Strolling along an iconic golden beach, sipping a refreshing beverage while basking in the sun, a relaxing kayak in the Astrolabe or ... hurtling through the air at 200km/h, leaping off rocks into crystal-clear creeks and zipping down one of the world’s longest flying foxes?
The Nelson-Tasman district has a relaxed reputation and laid-back vibe, but it is also home to a range of activities that will make your heart race. These adrenaline spiking adventures on our doorstep draw in adventurous locals and visitors alike.
I spoke to some local experts, who gave me the rundown on what these thrill seeking activities entail. Are you brave enough to take on the challenge?
Damien Ettema
Skydive Abel Tasman
www.skydive.co.nz/abel-tasman
How long have you been involved in the skydiving industry? What got you interested?
I’ve been skydiving for just over 11 years. I started in the same way many New Zealand skydivers start because we are fortunate enough to have this thing called the New Zealand Skydiving School. Somehow the New Zealand government got it approved that you could complete a university degree, and get a diploma in commercial skydiving. There is nowhere else that has this sort of thing. I also used to be in the Air Force for six years, and I did my first ever skydive out of a military plane. So I did my first 40 skydives in the Air Force then very shortly after that realised that it was something I wanted to do full time. So I applied for a year of unpaid leave from the military and joined the New Zealand Skydive School. I left New Zealand with around 200 skydives, and have been overseas in the United States. I came back to New Zealand last December with 11,000 skydives.
What can people expect their experience to be like?
Most people are really scared of skydiving, so I think one of the biggest things is just getting here and meeting your instructor. I think a lot of people paint a picture of skydiving in their heads long before they step foot in a dropzone. You’re welcome to visit the base, just to see how it all works, see how the instructors operate, and have a yarn to us. It instils a lot more confidence in people. A lot of people will come here really nervous and scared and maybe they are on the fence about doing it or not doing it. Then they end up booking in and doing it, and I would say 75% of people will land in that field out there and then will want to go up again straight away.
On the day of your booking you will meet our front-of-house people. We have a bunch of different options in terms of how high you can jump. If you want to have someone jump with you to film a video; I always think that adds to the experience, and also having that documentation of your very first jump is cool. You will then sign a waiver and let us know about any medical conditions. Then you are in the line. We usually ask people to allow 1.5-3 hours depending on the weather and how busy it is. But you might come in at 9am to check in and then we will have you on the plane by 9.45am. You will meet your instructor and you can ask all those questions that you have been worrying about. We have a hugely experienced crew. They explain how the harness works, and get you all geared up in your suit, hat, gloves, and goggles.
Then you go for a quick briefing, and I always tell people after the briefing because it is a lot of information. If you forget everything I’ve just told you, you will still be fine. The plane will taxi up, people get into the plane, and the plane takes off. It is going to take 12-15 minutes to get up to 13,000 feet. If you go higher to 18,000 then around 15-20 minutes. We will open up the plane door and that will be the most intense part for sure. It’s windy, and it’s loud. That’s when we go back to our breathing, deep breaths in and out, and you just gotta trust your instructor. No countdown from me, and then we are out in freefall. You are just blissed out dude, there is no going back at that point. The parachute opens up at 5,000 feet. We can talk again then, maybe even let you fly the parachute. Finally, we land back at the dropzone, give you a big hug, and ask if you want to go back up again!

"75% of people will land in that field out there and then will want to go up again straight away.."
What makes it unique compared with other tourist activities in the area?
I think what makes it unique is that it’s kind of scary. I think fear is not necessarily a bad thing. When you get that nervous butterfly feeling, a lot of the times in my life that’s been a sign to go for it. That’s something to push past and challenge yourself and get outside your comfort zone. I think with other tourist activities they try to make you comfortable, and we sort of go the other way. It’s not about making you uncomfortable but instead pushing past a bit of a fear boundary. A nice meal, a trip to a winery, or the beach are all things I love but your first skydive will get you, it will make you think about things differently. If you can throw yourself out of an aeroplane you can do anything, so it’s empowering.
What makes a skydive in the Abel Tasman special?
The scenery is phenomenal. You see the Marlborough Sounds, you see the Wellington Heads wrapping around, you see the Cook Strait, Mount Ruapehu, Mount Taranaki. You can see the North Island and you can see the South Island. A lot of people who come here will have some interaction with the Abel Tasman. So if you skydive before you have gone out on the trail you get to see where you are headed from above.
Do you have any words of encouragement for those who are a bit tentative to try skydiving?
It’s OK to be scared of this activity. As everyone says, “Why on Earth would I want to jump out of a perfectly good plane?” and I always reply,“Because it’s really fun.” You are supposed to be a bit nervous. Just come down to the dropzone; being here will make you feel a bit more at ease. You will see how natural the instructors are, how seamless it all is, and how it’s fun. We love it and that is infectious. If you can get down here, have a yarn, see some people land, and chances are I can convince you to jump.
In three words can you describe what free falling feels like?
Breathtaking. Exhilarating. Windy

Toine Houtenbos and Eva Maureau
Abel Tasman Canyons
www.abeltasmancanyons.co.nz
How long have you been involved in the canyoning industry? What got you interested?
Toine: I got into canyoning in 2003 in the North Island and at that time in New Zealand, they didn’t even call it canyoning. Then I went back to Europe to work as a general outdoor instructor, and everyone was going on and on about canyoning. So I got some in-house training at the company in Italy I was working for. I got pretty hooked on it from there on. So we came back over to New Zealand in 2008. Toured our way around the country, moving from Twizel to Queenstown and then to Christchurch. When in Christchurch I would go on road trips around the South Island with a good friend of mine Daniel Clearwater, who is the president of the Canyoning Association. On one trip we went up the West Coast over Arthur’s Pass making our way to Nelson Lakes National Park, we were planning on doing the first descent of a canyon there. Unfortunately, it was bucketing with rain and everything started to flood. So we bailed on that but it looked like the rain had missed the Abel Tasman.
We didn’t expect anything particularly good but we had no other place to go. We went up to the Torrent River, and it was cool, really beautiful. Back in Christchurch when looking at the photos of the trip I thought that would be a really good trip for people who have never done it before. I did a few other canyons around the area and that’s when we came up with the plan to apply for a concession from DOC to set up a canyoning business in the area. We teamed up with AquaTaxi to get us into the park and it’s been awesome ever since, and it’s been 12 years now.
Eva: So I’m the person in the office. I will come along on a trip, but as a customer just having fun! I don’t have those technical skills. I help out on the administrative side of things. Organising the bookings, co-ordinating the staff, marketing. That’s where I come in. So having that combo of skills between us works well.
What can people expect their experience to be like?
Toine: I think many people are a bit nervous when they book because they might not know what canyoning is. If you don’t know what it is it makes you nervous straight away, right? Canyoning is perceived to be a bit more full-on than what it is. A good thing for people to know is that all jumps and slides are optional. There is no getting to the side of a cliff and someone yelling, “You have to jump off!”
If you book onto our Torrent River trip we will meet at the AquaTaxi based in Mārahau. We will have a chat about safety and then get you ready to get on the boat. Then we will take a beautiful water taxi ride into the park. In Anchorage, we reorganise our gear to get ready for the walk up to the top of the canyon, telling some stories on the way about the history of the park, culture, and flora and fauna. At the top of the canyon, we will have some lunch. Then get into our wetsuits and have a full safety briefing. Then it’s jumping, sliding, abseiling, ziplines, walking, scrambling and swimming. It’s about 3 ½ hours and we finish up at Cleopatra’s Pool. Then we walk back down to Anchorage, get changed and back on the water taxi with big smiles on our faces!
Eva: It does take a full day but once we are in that canyon there is something fun around every corner. There is a cool feature, a cool challenge. Torrent River also builds up beautifully. Your first abseil is small and the next one is bigger, the first zipline is small and the second one is bigger. People gain confidence during the trip. They end up doing stuff that beforehand they never thought they would do. There is room to make it extra challenging and room to make it a bit easier for those who are a bit nervous, all within the same trip.
"Canyoning is perceived to be a bit more full- on than what it is. A good thing for people to know is that all jumps and slides are optional."
What makes it unique compared with other tourist activities in the area?
Toine: The terrain we take people into. There isn’t any other way to see that sort of landscape. The Abel Tasman has so many amazing views, it doesn’t matter where you are. When canyoning, you are taking in this beautiful scenery, but you are also interacting with it, too. When challenging yourself your adrenaline is elevated, and everything is quite enhanced. We also see people who are quite nervous at first becoming more and more empowered along the way.
Eva: I think we see the biggest growth in people who were nervous at the start. To find themselves doing it. We also see wonderful connections between families, and teams that come for staff parties. Cheering each other on and seeing someone do something they didn’t think they were going to do.
Toine: We also have groups of random people going on trips together who don’t know each other, but the adventure connects people. At the start, there is not a lot of conversation going on, but by the end, people are hugging and exchanging email addresses. They have been through something quite intense together.
What makes canyoning in the Abel Tasman special?
Toine: The unique thing about canyoning in the Abel Tasman is that it’s pretty much at sea level. Most canyoning in the world is high up in the mountains. The fact that you can be on a water taxi going on a canyoning trip, maybe seeing dolphins along the way, and spending time at the islands with the seal pups. That is unique. Guides, when they come over from Europe, we tell them that their commute to work is a water taxi ride but sometimes you get stuck in traffic behind a pod of dolphins. The granite canyons are beautifully sculpted so it’s all very flowy. It is a lot more open than other canyons because the rock type is quite hard, so we get sunlight beaming in making it a bit warmer.
Do you have any words of encouragement to those who are a bit tentative to try canyoning?
Toine: Just do it eh! I can understand that it’s something new, just have faith in yourself and the guides. We are not there to scare people, we are there to help people challenge themselves. The more scared you are at the start, the more satisfied and proud you are going to be at the end.
Eva: You won’t regret it!
In three words how it feels to jump off a rock into beautiful water?
Toine: Oh my god!
Eva: I did that!
If you are keen on the most action-packed day possible you can do both these activities on the same day in the “Guts and Glory” trip. Finish up your action-packed Torrent River canyoning trip with a 16,000ft skydive for the ultimate heart-racing combo.
Richard Ussher
Cable Bay Adventure Park
www.cablebayadventurepark.com
How did you get involved with Cable Bay Adventure Park? What got you interested?
We bought the Adventure Park at the end of 2017 – we’d been looking for business opportunities to keep us in Nelson and had never heard of the business prior, this struck us as a huge opportunity if we could make people aware of the Skywire especially. When we looked at the business, it felt like there was a lot of untapped potential as well as opportunities to expand into new areas like mountain biking.
"The Skywire especially makes people a bit nervous - especially those who don’t like heights so much!"
What can people expect their day to be like when they come to visit you guys?
People can really make up their day to suit – the Skywire flying is our most popular attraction but the quad bikes, paintball and mountain biking are all great options. You can also spend the day here easily with the onsite licensed café and also pet farm animals; there are eels for the kids to feed. There are opportunities for people to split up into groups focused on their particular interest and then meet back up at the café.
What makes Cable Bay as a location so special?
The property is mostly covered in stunning native forest, as well as having some magnificent views towards Cable and Delaware Bays and the distant Kahurangi National Park. There is a significant pest control operation in place and a wide variety of trails to bike or walk. On the Skywire you fly high above the forest and get stunning views of the property and wider area. Many of the 4×4 roads the quad bikes travel on are also through the forest and the tours stop at multiple viewpoints.
Do you have any words of encouragement for those who are a bit tentative to try some of your more scary activities?
The Skywire especially makes people a bit nervous – especially those who don’t like heights so much! But the vast majority of people arrive back stoked that they took up the challenge, and it’s also great being able to have someone next to you on the ride for a bit of moral support.
In three words can you describe a day at Cable Bay Adventure Park?
Fun. Scenic. Exciting!
Words by Jade Alborn