We hiked out as far out onto Farewell Spit as you are allowed to go (the rest is a bird sanctuary and only licensed tours are allowed to go through). This is at the farthest point out on the eastern (calmer) side. After this, we crossed sand dunes of fine, white sand, forming endlessly varying and complex sand patterns and punctuated by occasional plants, (many of them thorny - yikes!), to the western side of the spit. There, we encountered more endless beaches and only one other person during our entire walk.