Overview
About Mutton Cove
Why stop
- Golden sand, clear water and a tree-lined cove.
Heads up
- No road or scheduled water-taxi access; arrive on foot or arrange a boat.
Map
Where it is
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Abel Tasman Tour Guide
Your drive to Mutton Cove, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Abel Tasman National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
More stories near here in the app
- Tōtaranui Beach and Campground
- Wainui Bay Coast Track Entrance
- The Tide Sets the Walking Day
- Pigeon Saddle and Awapoto Hut
- 23 audio storiesacross Abel Tasman’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Kea, New Zealand Fur Seal, Little Penguin, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 43 trails, 65 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
More about Mutton Cove
A remote beach campMutton Cove is a golden-sand bay on the northern Abel Tasman Coast Track, with a 20-site…
Mutton Cove is a golden-sand bay on the northern Abel Tasman Coast Track, with a 20-site Department of Conservation tent campsite beside the beach. It suits an overnight stay or a longer walk, not a quick drive-up stop: no road reaches it, and scheduled water taxis stop at Tōtaranui. Walk in on the Coast Track or arrange a boat independently. Visitors describe this northern stretch as quieter than the more accessible southern bays.
Arriving and campingThe campsite is on the track's Tōtaranui-to-Whariwharangi section. The whole section is 9.
The campsite is on the track's Tōtaranui-to-Whariwharangi section. The whole section is 9.8 km and about 3 hours 15 minutes; that is not the distance or time to Mutton Cove alone. Book ahead and carry your meals, since food isn't sold along the track. Water at the site is listed as untreated, so boil it before drinking. Dogs aren't allowed, and fires are limited to designated fireplaces when no fire ban is in force.
Take in the shorelineThe sand curves below forested coastal hills, with rocky ends to explore.
The sand curves below forested coastal hills, with rocky ends to explore. Visitors often praise the clear water and beach; a few mention swimming or looking for marine life around the rocks, though sightings aren't guaranteed. For a photo, include the curve of the beach and one of the green headlands to show how the cove wraps around.
The nameLocal history suggests the name comes from ships carrying mutton that sheltered here in…
Local history suggests the name comes from ships carrying mutton that sheltered here in westerly weather during the area's farming years in the early 1900s. It's a likely origin, not a certain explanation.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Abel Tasman
10 sightingsKeaMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
54 sightingsNew Zealand Fur SealMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
20 sightingsLittle PenguinMost seen around 9 PMSighting map
21 sightingsSouth Island KākāMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
526 sightingsWekaMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
16 sightingsTūīMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Abel Tasman. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
