If you like white shell-banks in the middle of nowhere then this is for you. Best visited by kayak at high tide. A great spot to stop for a cuppa.
Log sheet is a short timber strip.
Note: Because it is an extremely fragile and sensitive environment, and because landward access to Pollen island is difficult and potentially dangerous (getting to it requires crossing a busy motorway and trapsing through thick mud), access to the island from the landward-side is still strictly controlled (you can access on foot by going under the Whau Bridge thus going UNDER the motorway) and across the marine reserve (requires notification to DoC under Reserves Act), although access from the seaward side is possible by boat.
Since 1982 Auckland Forest & Bird has been actively involved in protecting Pollen island. They make the following recommendations if you need to walk to the island:
- Contact DoC about access to an open scientific reserve and crossing a marine reserve with fragile ecosystem
- Visits be limited in number of participants and in frequency to protect the fragile ecosystem
- Extreme care be taken particularly with the nearby motorway, and then the muddy environment
- Don't go out there alone; always have at least one person other with you