Winter Series 2022: Truman Tack, Punakaiki

Truman Track to Te Miko Beach

Another place Karen and I visited while in Punakaiki was Truman Track about 2 kilometer's north of the settlement. You can walk to this track from Punakaiki on a newly completed footpath and this will add about 2 kilometers to the trip. Alternately just drive to the start of the track... 

Start of Truman Track near Te Miko

It is 15 minutes to Te Miko Beach on Truman Track

Truman Track is located just north of Punakaiki near Te Miko....there are a couple of car-parking areas near the track entrance which can hold perhaps 20-30 cars at one time. The track starts on the ocean side of SH6...it is well sign posted and very popular so there are bound to be cars parked here.

The new walkway back to Punakaiki

The track is about a kilometer return and a gentle 15 minute walk will see you standing down on Te Miko Beach. The track is compacted gravel with some bridges, stairs and boulder climbs required to get right down onto the sand.

Well covered tree trunk at the Truman Track

Truman's Track goes down through a lovely piece of coastal lowland forest before popping out onto Te Miko beach. The forest has some large examples of Nikau Palm, Totara, Miro, Rata, Rimu and Kahikatea in it and is a most agreeable walk.

Straight into lowland forest...Truman Track

DOC information panel next to Nikau Palm

This is a mixed lowland podocarp/coastal forest so you see all the usual species plus a whole lot of Nikau Palms, coastal grass and flax and some salt loving coastal bushes as well. The forest is lovely to walk through..cool and fertile with the sound of the wind blowing in the trees and birds singing in the distance.

It is a gentle downhill walk to Te Miko Beach

All up it only took us about 60 minutes to walk down to the beach have a stroll around and head back up to the car so this track is great as a half day walk or a stop over when travelling to another place.

Karen next to huge Rimu Tree...Truman Track

..Rimu grow to 40 meters tall...

There are some really large examples of podocarp trees in this small reserve...most are either Rimu or Rata trees but there were a number of other species as well. Some of them are totally covered in epiphytes. They are a variety of  plants that make their home in the branches and trunks of other trees.

Southern Rata tree on Truman Track

The largest epiphyte is actually Rata...they start their life cycle up in another trees crown and drop vines down to the forest floor. As these grow and thicken they surround the parent tree and form a continuous trunk of their own. The parent tree eventually dies and the Rata is left standing in its place.

 If you were to cut a cross section of the trunk you would clearly see these multiple roots.....one of the reasons Rata wood is not a widely used timber. 

Rata start as vines descending down to ground level

Massive Kahikatea Tree...Truman Track

There is something very exotic about walking through a forest on the West Coast when half the trees are palms. It must have been quite surprising for the European explorers to strike palm trees so far south.

Nikau Palms would have colonised the area from palm nuts which floated down here from the Pacific Islands. It is quite fascinating when you start to think about it...when did they first arrive? How long did it take for them to spread along the coast?

Truman Track side streams have bridges...

Really thick lowland forest along the Truman Track

As you get closer to the ocean the forest changes in nature and the majority of the trees are Kamahi which grow well in salty locations. The forest under the Kamahi is open with a lot of smaller tree trunks covered in moss, ferns and lichen. 

Edge of the forest along the Truman Track

Kamahi trees along the Truman Track

Kamahi trees like these salty ocean locations

Eventually you break out of the forest into a zone of grasses and flax...you find this replicated up and down the coastline so it is probably a temperature inversion zone, a change in the chemical makeup of the soil or where the salt air impacts on species selection.

Truman Track...one of many pest traps

Harakeke Flax along the Truman Track

There is an information board here about a small penguin colony which has taken to nesting in the flaxes. It makes sense as this is the kind of dense scrub terrain that penguins find attractive. 

Jon saw no Penguins=  ;(   = sad face Jon!!!

On occasion you will also find Seals basking on the beach...if you see one please keep your distance!

First view of ocean from the Truman Track

As you reach the edge of the coastal cliffs you can see down to Te Miko Beach which is the end point of the Truman Track. It is a small bay with sandy beaches backed by some overhanging sea cliffs. In the distance you could see some stormy weather approaching Punakaiki from the north. 

Te Miko Bay from the Truman Track

...a storm approaches from the north...

If you visit please stay on the track...it is there to protect the fragile vegetation and you. There are cliffs, deep holes and cracks in the rock you can fall into so stay behind any barriers you find. 

Truman Track...take heed of the sign!!!

Te Miko Beach near Punakaiki

You eventually break out of the forest to the coast...there are awesome views along the coast from the end of the track. You can clearly see Punakaiki, Dolomite Point and in the extreme far distance the shining snow covered peaks of Mt Aoraki, Mt Tasman and Mt Haast when it is fine.

View south to Dolomite Point from Truman Track

Descending down to the observation platform...Truman Track

The tides on Te Miko Beach are savage...in a high tide and with storm conditions you cannot get down onto the beach. From the track you have to climb down two sets of stairs and then scramble down some car sized boulders. At high tide the water will lap around these boulders as there was seaweed and shells deposited all around them.

Incoming tide at Te Miko Beach

Descending down to Te Miko Beach

There is a nice sandy beach here as well as some impressive limestone cliffs and some great viewing platforms elevated from the beach. The beach is backed by thick flax which provides a home for a small penguin colony during the breeding season.

Watch the tide on Te Miko Beach

Tasman Sea from Te Miko Beach

The ocean, rain and wind are slowly eating away at the limestone cliffs that back Te Miko Beach...the carve away the bottom of the stone which then collapses under its own weight. This makes for a striking looking back drop for those beach selfies. Stay away from the cliffs as they occasionally drop chonks of rock without warning.

Ancient fossils of sea creatures often fall out of these cliffs...it is old seabed so there will be a lot of bones in the rock.

Permanent waterfall at Te Miko Beach

 The views from Te Miko Beach would be spectacular as the sun is setting as they would be perfectly framed by the coves, outcrops and small offshore islands which lay scattered around this headland.

You need to keep an eye on the tides if you come down to visit the beach...the sea comes right into the stairs at high tide and there is no other way off this beach. If the track at the start is under water you are stuck here for at least 4-6 hours until the tide goes out...

...the tide can cover your line of retreat...

These are calm seas at Te Miko Beach

I love this rock formation and marvel at it every time I come here. I looks just like a big wave crashing ashore with that long curved back and sharp edge on the landward side. 

Wave formation rock at Te Miko Beach

...looks just like a curling wave...

There are several places around the beach where large chunks of the limestone have fallen off the cliffs and onto the sand. I would imagine this is a regular occurrence as limestone is quickly and easily dissolved by water of which the West Coast has an abundance. 

When I visited Te Miko Beach back in 1999 access to the beach was down a ladder from near the viewing platform but this area is now washed away. The ocean has a massive impact on any rock it comes into contact with...

Base of the waterfall at Te Miko Beach

Waterfall comes from stream in the forest

The rock in this area is limestone and this photo of the honeycomb nature of water worn rock gives you an idea why it collapses from time to time. 

Pitted and worn rock at Te Miko Beach

The flax must be really wet underneath as there is a constant flow of water coming off the end of the mossy ground cover and dripping down the rocks. 

Curtain waterfall off limestone at Te Miko Beach

DOC are super cautious in this region as they were the branch that were responsible for the Cave Creek tragedy back in the 1990's. A viewing platform they built collapsed and lead to the death of 14 outdoor education students visiting the site. 

Since that day they have always been the most safety conscious DOC office in the whole country. As an example...they had no less than six warning messages on the fenced area leading to the beach as it can be dangerous in extreme weather conditions. 

Heading back up Truman Track from Te Miko Beach

...at high tide you cannot access Te Miko Bay...

We stayed on the beach for about 10 minutes and then started climbing back up the track. There was a storm blowing in from the north and the tide was coming in and crashing into the rocks at the start of the platforms. 

It was time for us to go...

There is a steep drop off in Te Miko Bay

Pied Oystercatchers on the rocks at Te Miko Bay

Last view of Te Miko Bay

Looking back along the track you have a great view of the limestone plateau that backs onto the coastal strip. This whole coast is the result of uplift as evidenced by the massive limestone plateau right behind the coastal strip of land. The hills are between 300-400 meters asl and have been eroded over the eons by the many rivers which run to the coast through them. 

The plateau behind Te Miko beach stretches inland for a couple of kilometers and is two kilometers across at its widest point. The coastal strip along here is also large for the West Coast...it would be about a kilometer wide at this point. 

Limestone plateau inland from Truman Track

There were a set of visual instructions on the pest boxes along the track...it had words and images telling to you take care and NOT open the box. When Georgia and I acted as hut warden at Packhorse Hut we had to clear the pest traps. When I went in for training they showed me some gruesome photos of hands that got caught in a DOC 2000.

Not pretty...best stay away from them unless you know what you are doing!!!

Instructions on the top of this DOC 2000 trap

Fern fronds along the Truman Track

Epiphytes on a tree along the Truman Track

There is a definite angle to the track as you climb back up to SH6 and your car but it is a easy slope and the beauty of the surrounding forest will take your mind off any fatigue you feel. 

On the Truman Track heading for SH6

There are a lot of pest traps on the Truman Track

There is a huge Kahikatea Tree in the forest at Truman Track and it is covered in epiphytes. It is easily 40 meters tall and is probably the tallest tree in the reserve. 

Huge Kahikatea Tree...Truman Track

Kiekie along the Truman Track

Miro Tree on the Truman Track

Truman Track....a Nikau Palm

Be careful when you walk back onto SH6 at the track end as it is usually very busy.....during the peak tourism season several thousand vehicles pass by this point each day. The road is only 1.5 meters away from the track end...

Entrance to the Truman Track at Te Miko

There is a very pretty tarn next to the car-park for Truman's Track...it is not huge but it is backed with a grove of Nikau Palms and ferns which makes for a picturesque snap. I think Karen and I are the only ones who notice it...everyone else seems to ignore it in favor of the beach..

It is worth a look if only for a selfie moment....

Attractive tarn opposite Truman Track entrance

So...another excellent side trip to consider when you are visiting Punakaiki. It is only a short track but the bush here is in fine condition and the views from the beach are spectacular. You should definitely stop if you are passing through or staying in Punakaiki. The best time of the day to visit would be as the sun is going down but it is lovely at any time of the day. 

Access: The start of Truman's Track is 3 kilometers north of Punakaiki on SH 6 (Punakaiki to Westport).  It is well sign posted and obvious as you approach from both directions. There is parking here for about 20-30 cars on both sides of the highway.    

Track Times: From the start of the track it takes approximately 30-40 minutes (about 1 kilometer) to complete the track.

Miscellaneous: There are several car parks here as the site receives thousands of visitors every year.  DO NOT leave valuables in sight as this car-park is targeted by thieves. The track is easy walking....rock, gravel and sand with a number stairs and boulder scrambling to gain access to Te Miko Beach right at the end. There are no facilities at this location.