Tom Canes Bay is within Port Underwood and the last accessible bay from Port Underwood Road between Rarangi and Oyster Bay. Unlike the other accessible bays, it has a little sandy beach and is very small, only about 100 metres wide. But it is exceedingly pretty with colourful stones and a nice grassy reserve on the south side of the beach with a picnic table. It's a perfect spot for a picnic or lying around doing nothing.
In the 1830s, it was quite different. The name started as Tom Caves Bay but morphed into Tom Canes Bay. It was one of several bays with significant interests in Port Underwood, with apparently two whaling stations. This is hard to imagine given its modest size and handful of bachs today.
There is also an interesting historical crime story. An early settler in Tom Canes Bay, Mary Ann Baldick, was reputedly given nearby Whangatoetoe Bay and Pipi Bay by local Māori for saving a young Māori girl from rape. Mary Ann later moved to Blenheim and set up a nursing and maternity home, having had several marriages and a number of children.
Cruise Guide has an excellent short history of the bay if you are interested.
