I'm sitting on a log eating my lunch. Behind me are native-bush-covered hills; before me stretches a swathe of golden-sand beach.
It would be easy to imagine myself on a deserted island but Onetahuti Bay is a busier and more populated place than that.
Groups of people are sunbathing, sitting or walking on the beach and paddling and swimming in Tasman Bay.
Private boats and aqua taxis are moored at the edge of the sand bar or zipping about further out to sea.
Then it hits me. This place is as magical and spectacular as anywhere in the world.
I've seen almost every corner of New Zealand and have experienced my share of those moments where the majesty of the surroundings stops you in your tracks. Most of them have been in the South Island - flying over the snow-covered Southern Alps on a clear winter day; Lake Wanaka from the foreshore; Kakanui bathed in a golden glow at dusk; the view over Wakatipu and the Gibbston Valley from the Crown Terrace; rounding a corner on my way north up the West Coast and having awesome Mt Cook/Aoraki fill my entire view.
Closer to home, Otago Harbour still as a millpond early in the morning.
Now I can add Abel Tasman National Park to my list.
About 180,000 people visit the park annually, most of them from overseas. There are two main entrance points, Marahau at the southern end and Totaranui to the north.
The adventurous visitors walk the 53km coastal track over four or five days, freedom camping or staying in Department of Conservation huts along the way.
My sister and I did what by far the majority of visitors do - an overnight stay in Marahau, some sort of experience on the water and a brisk walk through the bush from one bay to another.
Marahau, not much bigger than Aramoana, has a relaxed feel to it. Facilities are modern but not trendy. There are several holiday parks, a cafe/restaurant/bar right on the waterfront, and dozens of baches ranging from the basic to the luxurious available for rent.
Various operators offer activities on and off the water, including fast aqua taxi trips, more sedate cruises, guided and freedom kayak tours, horse treks, diving or snorkelling trips and guided walks. The Department of Conservation, which administers the park, runs a visitor centre.
Nothing seemed to be a problem. We liked the look of the $70 per person "Seal and Sand" day trip comprising an aqua taxi ride to the Split Apple Rock natural rock formation, the Tonga Island seal colony (worth a visit, but the seal activity not a patch on the colony at the Moeraki lighthouse), a walk from Onetahuti along the coastal track to Anchorage, then a boat ride back to Marahau.
But that walk was an estimated four and a-half hours long and we wanted to leave the park by 4pm to meet other commitments. No worries, the staff member said. We could walk from Onetahuti to Bark Bay (about two hours), where the aqua taxi would pick us up. How would we locate our driver, we asked?
How would he know we were waiting?
No worries, the staff member said. When we saw an aqua taxi from the company we had booked with motoring into the bay, we were to go to the water's edge, get the driver's attention and tell him we wanted a ride back to Marahau. Too easy.
Only in New Zealand! The helpfulness continued the next morning when we discovered we had left our day pack at home.
No worries, the staff member at the holiday park shop said, we hire packs out for $5 a day.
We were on holiday and didn't feel like making our lunch. No worries, the staff member at the cafe said. We sell filled rolls and packed lunches enough for everyone.
Our boat ride began when we boarded at the tourist operator's headquarters, about 500m from the Marahau launching ramp.
Trundling along a road in a boat being towed by a mini tractor was a first for me and I made the most of it. I waved at the people on the roadsides. They waved back.
The rides, the wildlife, the walk and the scenery were all we wanted them to be. It was like being transported into a postcard.
On the way back to Marahau, our aqua taxi driver was instructed to divert to Anchorage to pick up two kayakers who needed to cut their tour short. By the time we left Anchorage we were lying low in the water, our payload a driver, 17 passengers, three kayaks, about 15 paddles and two huge bags of gear.
Back at Marahau itself, the tide had gone out, exposing probably 400m of mud flats. No worries. Our taxi nosed on to a trailer and was towed by tractor across the flats, up the ramp and along the road back to the tourist operator's headquarters - driver and passengers still aboard.
What will I remember most about Abel Tasman National Park?
A sizeable stingray lazily making its way along the water's edge, unconcerned by a gallery of spectators.
Sitting at an outside table at the Marahau cafe watching the moon rise over Tasman Bay and the twinkling lights of Nelson far off in the distance.
Glimpses of turquoise ocean framed by native bush on the coastal walk.
A waterfall tumbling down rocks to an estuary. Ducks and other birds sharing the beaches with the visitors. A toddler about a year old dressed for the boat ride in hat, sunglasses and the cutest tiny but perfectly-formed lifejacket.
A row of horses and riders ambling across a sand bar. Water so clear the kayaks seemed to be floating. Scenery so crisp and intensely coloured it looked like it had been digitally enhanced. No worries.
The park:
• Abel Tasman is New Zealand's smallest national park, at 22,530ha
• Gazetted in 1942
• Named for Dutch explorer Abel Tasman, who first visited the region in 1642
• Marahau, the southern entrance to the park, is about an hour from Nelson and half an hour from Motueka
• Totaranui, at the northern end, is about an hour from Takaka
• Walking the 53km coastal track through the park is free
• Accommodation is available within the park in four huts and several campsites but must be pre-booked and prepaid with Doc