Fodor's Expert Review Collingwood
After winding past several small farming districts and close to beach communities such as Paton's Rock, Onekaka, and Tukurua, State Highway 60 ends at Collingwood, a small and picturesque seaside village at the mouth of the giant Aorere River, 26 km (16 miles) west of Tākaka. The earliest European settlers came here in the 1840s to build small ships from the timber lining the beaches and to farm the fertile river plain that spills out of the surrounding mountains. In the late-1850s, gold was discovered nearby and Collingwood became a thriving port-of-entry town; at one time it was even under consideration to be the country's capital. Collingwood is a bit out on a limb from the main roads, but nevertheless has much to offer. It's the northern access point for the Heaphy Track Great Walk and the main base for trips to internationally recognized bird-watching site Farewell Spit and to the wild, remote coastline of the northernmost West Coast, notably Wharariki Beach. The town's rich heritage... READ MORE
After winding past several small farming districts and close to beach communities such as Paton's Rock, Onekaka, and Tukurua, State Highway 60 ends at Collingwood, a small and picturesque seaside village at the mouth of the giant Aorere River, 26 km (16 miles) west of Tākaka. The earliest European settlers came here in the 1840s to build small ships from the timber lining the beaches and to farm the fertile river plain that spills out of the surrounding mountains. In the late-1850s, gold was discovered nearby and Collingwood became a thriving port-of-entry town; at one time it was even under consideration to be the country's capital. Collingwood is a bit out on a limb from the main roads, but nevertheless has much to offer. It's the northern access point for the Heaphy Track Great Walk and the main base for trips to internationally recognized bird-watching site Farewell Spit and to the wild, remote coastline of the northernmost West Coast, notably Wharariki Beach. The town's rich heritage is well documented, in both the small Collingwood Museum and the neighboring Aorere Centre.
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