Punakaiki Series: II of III: Truman's Track

Head north young man...to Truman's Track, Te Miko

Another place Karen and I visited while in Punakaiki was Truman's Track about 3 kilometer's north of the settlement. You can walk to this track but there is no pedestrian track...you would be walking along the shoulder of the very busy SH 6. I would not do this as it is super dangerous...drive to the track. 

Entrance to Truman's Track 4 kilometers north of Punakaiki

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 Totora, Miro, Rata, Rimu and Kahekatea in it and is a most agreeable walk.

Dense Podocarp forest along Truman's Track

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

Truman's Beach lies at the end of 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.

At Truman's Track north of Punakaiki

We walked down to the beach on the way back from visiting the Punakaiki Cavern so it was later in the afternoon when we arrived here. 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 off short islands which lay scattered around this headland.

Cars parked along SH6 next to Truman's Track

Truman's 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 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.

Map: Truman's Track is at Te Miko north of Punakaiki

Truman's Track: the track takes 15 minutes to the beach

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.

Typical coastal forest species on Truman's Track

Lots of rain mean a lot of undergrowth, Truman's 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.

The 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?

Nikau Palm grove along Truman's Track

Truman's Track: a close up of the information panel in the nikau Grove

It was a warm day when we visited so it was great to be inside a cool forest for most of the time.....

I'm taking photos of the moss...Truman's Track

Some slight undulations along Truman's Track

Matai, Miro, Punga, Nikau Palms and Hinau along Truman's Track

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..a variety of  plants that make their home in the branches and trunks of other trees.

Epiphytes growing on a Rimu Tree, Truman's Track

Truman's Track: some of the trees are big...

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. 

A fully mature Rata tree wrapped around a Matai tree...

There are a couple of small stream beds going along the track but all of them have small footbridge's so you would be able to come down the track in rain without getting too wet.

One of the bridges on the Truman's Track at Te Miko

Entwined trees along Truman's Track, Te Miko

Truman's Track: light filtered through the trees....

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.

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.

Truman's Track: we enter the flax behind the beach

Information panel at Truman's Track...penguins live here!!!

Te Miko beach at the end of Truman's Track is a marine reserve...

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.

Truman's Track: view south towards Punakaiki....

Looking down to Te Miko Beach from Truman's Track

The viewing platform at the end of Truman's Track...

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. Looking back along the track you have a great view of the limestone plateau that backs onto the coastal strip.

Looking south at Punakaiki and Dolomite Point from Truman's Track

View inland from the end of Truman's 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 must lap around these boulders as there was seaweed and shells deposited all around them.

Te Miko beach: warning signs on the track...

Te Miko beach: more warning signs on the track..

Te Miko beach: and even more warning signs on the track..

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 are always 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. 

Truman's Track: following the track down to Te Miko beach

Te Miko Beach: recent rockfall at the beach entrance

You need to keep an eye on the tides if you come down to visit the beach...the sea comes right in to 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...

On Te Miko beach: the viewing platform at the end of the track

Heading along Te Miko beach to the rock formations...

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 to those beach selfies. Stay away from the cliffs as they occasionally drop chunks 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...

Limestone cliffs back Te Miko beach, north of Punakaiki

Wide angle view of Te Miko beach

Te Miko beach: for some reason everyone was walking around this spot....

There was a strange rock formation on the beach from a distance is really looked like a old schooner which had been beached there. As soon as I saw it I immediately thought of the cover of Sting's 1991 album The Soul Cages....

What do you think? There is a resemblance there....it just needs wooden prop's and an acetylene torch to be complete.

This ship like rock formation at Te Miko beach reminds me of....

...the cover of Stings 1991 album The Soul Cages.....

'I have a wager' the brave child spoke

The fisherman laughed, though disturbed at the joke.

'You will drink what I drink but you must equal me

And if the drink leaves me standing,

A soul shall go free'

'I have here a cask of most magical wine

A vintage that blessed every ship in the line

It's wrung from the blood of the sailors who died

Young white body adrift in the tide'

'And what's in it for me my pretty young thing?

Why should I whistle, when the caged bird sings?

If you lose a wager with the king of the sea

You'll spend the rest of forever in the cage with me'

Still one of his best albums in my opinion...it is a bit dark and introspective because he wrote it just after his fathers death. The man had some stuff to work through.....!

There is a bit of a nautical/ship building string through a lot of Sting's work...he is from Newcastle so he would have seen ships being built and departing for places unknown for most of his childhood. The Last Ship and The Soul Cages are the best representations of this....but there are also nautical themes on Mercury Falling and Songs from the Labyrinth. 

Te Miko beach is backed by cliffs and flax...

Sea shaped limestone cave on Te Miko beach

The sea level is a lot higher than Te Miko beach

We spent a good half hour walking around on Te Miko beach looking at the limestone bluffs, rock formations and the small coves. I noticed and commented to Karen about how the sea around here is higher than the beach...only the steepness of the beach stops the area from being constantly inundated by the ocean. 

You need to keep a side eye on the tide if you are coming down to this beach as the access is closed off to Truman's Track at high tide. There is no other way off the beach once the tide comes in so you would have to sit here for a couple of hours if caught. 

Nice tidal cove at the far end of Te Miko beach, Punakaiki

Karen on Te Miko beach near Punakaiki

The sea is slowly eroding away the coast at Te Miko beach

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. The last time I was here (in 1999...) access to the beach was down a ladder from near the viewing platform but this area is now washed away. 

The local DOC office recently got into trouble for blowing up a couple of sections of the cliff face as they thought it was a possible hazard...maybe...if the wind is from the Southwest and your tongue is poking out the right side of your mouth.  As I said they are super cautious since the Cave Creek tragedy but that was possibly going a bit far blowing up the rocks. They got fined $200 000 for damaging the fragile ecosystem...

Te Miko beach: heading back to the viewing platform

You climb down boulders and stairs at Te Miko beach

Te Miko beach: overhanging cliffs and flax's...

It was a lovely clear day when Karen and I visited so you could see right down the coast to the big mountains down around Mt Aoraki/Mt Cook. It is surprising as they must be over two hundred kilometers away. You can clearly see Mt Aoraki, Mt Tasman and Mt Haast (all over 3000 meters asl) but also a lot of the lesser high points down south as well. 

Distant Southern Alps (Mt Aoraki/Mt Tasman/Mt Haast) from Te Miko beach

Karen goes selfie mad at Te Miko beach...

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. 

Heading back up Truman's Track to SH6, Te Miko

There is a whole eco-system on this Rata tree on Truman's Track

On Truman's Track heading back to the car-park, Te Miko

Be careful when you walk back onto SH6 at the track end as it is very busy.....during the peak tourism season several thousand vehicles pass by this point each day. 

Truman's Track: the track end on SH6, Te Miko

The car parking areas were both completely full by the time we got back up to the road...there would have been 40 odd cars parked there. It must get quite congested here when it is full on tourism season but if you were here early in the morning or later in the day there would be a lot less traffic. 

The car-park for Truman's Track on SH6...north of Punakaiki

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 were the only ones who noticed it...everyone else seemed intent at getting down to the beach.

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

A small tarn next to the Truman's Track car park

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 here 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.