Qualla: Te Aumiti / French Pass

Te Aumiti / French Pass: Introduction

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Herewhy, CC BY-SA 4.0. The current runs at 8 knots. That is roughly walking speed for a person, but in water, it is enough to stun fish. Te Aumiti, officially gazetted as Te Aumiti / French Pass, is a narrow and treacherous strait separating D'Urville Island from the mainland at the northern tip of New Zealand's South Island. On one side, Tasman Bay; on the other, the outer reaches of Pelorus Sound leading to Cook Strait. The pass is 500 meters across, but the navigable channel contracts to just 100 meters, flanked by broken reef. Tidal ranges differ by two meters between the bay and strait sides, with high tides offset by 25 minutes, creating pressure gradients that churn the water into whirlpools and standing waves.

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Image: Herewhy | CC BY-SA 4.0

Te Aumiti / French Pass: The Shag Turned to Stone

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Quoy & Gaimard, 1835, CC0. In Maori oral tradition, Te Aumiti is the resting place of Te Kawau-a-Toru, the loyal king shag of the legendary Polynesian navigator Kupe. The story holds that Kupe discovered Cook Strait while battling a giant octopus, and the violence of that fight gouged the coast into the co...

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Image: Quoy & Gaimard, 1835 | CC0

Te Aumiti / French Pass: The Corvette on the Reef

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit New_Zealand_location_map.svg: NordNordWest derivative work: Виктор В (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0. The first recorded European navigation of the pass came in 1827, and it did not go well. Admiral Jules Dumont d'Urville attempted the passage in the French Navy corvette Astrolabe during his second voyage to New Zealand. As the vessel entered the narrowest section, the current sw...

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Image: New_Zealand_location_map.svg: NordNordWest derivative work: Виктор В (talk) | CC BY-SA 3.0

Te Aumiti / French Pass: Pelorus Jack

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Herewhy, CC BY-SA 4.0. In 1888, a Risso's dolphin appeared in the waters near the pass. For the next 24 years, this dolphin made himself indispensable to local shipping. He would meet boats emerging from the pass, ride their bow waves for 8 kilometers into Pelorus Sound, then turn back to escort return...

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Image: Herewhy | CC BY-SA 4.0

Te Aumiti / French Pass: Jacob's Hole

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Quoy & Gaimard, 1835, CC0. The dangers of Te Aumiti are not confined to the surface. Near the pass lie deep depressions where powerful vertical currents can drag objects, and divers, down without warning. In 2000, a group of student divers undertaking a drift dive during an ebb tide were separated from the...

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Image: Quoy & Gaimard, 1835 | CC0

Te Aumiti / French Pass: The Long Road In

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Bernard Spragg. NZ from Christchurch, New Zealand, CC0. Reaching French Pass by land requires commitment. The settlement of French Pass / Anaru sits at the end of a 70-kilometer road from State Highway 6, much of it unsealed, with sharp bends that demand two hours of careful driving. A short walk from the settlement leads to a lookout...

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Image: Bernard Spragg. NZ from Christchurch, New Zealand | CC0