Moa Park Shelter and clearing where 200 alpine plant species can be found. Photo: Shaun Barnett/Black Robin Photography

Inland solitude

National Parks

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Kathy Ombler

A long-time Wilderness contributor and freelance author, Kathy writes about outdoor recreation, natural history and conservation.

By Kathy Ombler

While thousands walked, kayaked and camped around the Abel Tasman coast this summer, Kathy Ombler found solitude and serenading bellbirds on the park’s Inland Track

Take a tent, they said. Abel Tasman is so busy at this time of year. Not on the Inland Track. Two nights, three days, and not a (human) soul was to be seen. In mid-January. Just the ubiquitous weka welcomes at the huts, and the cacophony of bellbirds that serenaded me along hot, dry Evans […]

About the author

Kathy Ombler

Freelance author Kathy Ombler mostly writes about outdoor recreation, natural history and conservation, and has contributed to Wilderness for many years. She has also written and edited for other publications and websites, most recently Federated Mountain Club’s Backcountry, Forest & Bird, and the Backcountry Trust. Books she has authored include Where to Watch Birds in New Zealand, Walking Wellington and New Zealand National Parks and Other Wild Places. She is currently a trustee for Wellington’s Ōtari-Wilton’s Bush Trust.