A NZ South Island sojourn

[JohnM]

First activity, Zodiac excursions to Stirling Falls.




Our turn.


Cloud beginning to burn off.



Awwww…, so cuuute…

 

[JohnM]

Afternoon excursion in the ‘Xplorers’.



After dinner, departing Milford Sound and heading S. Next destination Solander Island.

 

[JohnM]

After dinner, departing Milford Sound and heading S. Next destination Solander Island.



Solander Island is a rocky outcrop not suitable for landing. It’s noted as an albatross breeding site. The nesting season was just getting going.

 

[JohnM]

Time to load the ‘Xplorers’, and head for Bluff, with disembarkation next morning and the end of a great voyage. We transferred to IVC to collect a rental car and head north in warm, sunny conditions to Wanaka for two nights. The weather was about to change with a system moving in from the west overnight bringing low cloud and drizzly rain.



Summery Lake Wanaka on arrival, but next day was a different story. We drove to Mt Cook but with low cloud obscuring the mountains, there was nothing to photograph. Took one photo during a brief stop at a lavender farm soon after the turn-off into Mt Cook which shows the low cloud.



A pleasant enough day out but no prospect of the glacier flight, and Mt Cook lurked somewhere in the soup. Next day was the same as we prepared to depart our Wanaka digs for Greymouth, with a few not greatly photogenic stops on the way.



Greymouth was just an overnight stop on the loop over to experience the west coast before heading to Kaikoura on the east coast, by which time the rain system had cleared. Our B&B just outside Kaikoura and the view from in front.



A mere couple of hundred metres away. Self-explanatory.

 

[JohnM]

A major attraction of Kaikoura is whale-watching. Just a short distance offshore, the ocean depth plunges to well over 1000m in the Kaikoura Canyon and is home to sperm whales. The picturesque backdrop of the mountains extending right to the coast adds to the attraction.

Off we go in classic NZ style - an excellent fast four-engine Hamilton-jet propelled boat, and within minutes our first sighting.



Starting to arch its back; get your cameras ready, folks!

 

[JohnM]

That was number one; two more would follow. The second one mooched about on the surface for a while, then slowly sank to have a sleep. The third one dived.

Albatrosses kept wheeling by. Giant petrel.

 

[JohnM]

The second boat closes in.



Well, that was pretty good! Time to head inshore and scope a large pod of frisky dusky dolphins, a smaller species than bottlenose dolphins.



They have a characteristic group feeding behaviour. A few circle a school of fish from below, while one leaps out of the water, flips over and flops onto the surface on its back to scatter the prey.



That was a great morning out and basically it finished our trip on a nice high.

We just chilled around Kaikoura for the rest of the day before next day leisurely making our way to CHC for our late afternoon flight to SYD for a couple of days before heading home to PER.

 

[RooFlyer]

A major attraction of Kaikoura is whale-watching. Just a short distance offshore, the ocean depth plunges to well over 1000m in the Kaikoura Canyon and is home to sperm whales. The picturesque backdrop of the mountains extending right to the coast adds to the attraction.

I assume seasonal? Do you know the season?

 

[JohnM]

I assume seasonal? Do you know the season?

They are not seasonal. The tours run every day except Christmas Day, obviously weather permitting.

I think that we were particularly lucky to see three, but it seems non-sightings are rare. Scope their website: Kia Ora!

As told to us, the sperm whales that hang out at Kaikoura are all younger males. The females were described as mainly being in tropical waters. Bull males are apparently solitary until mating season.

I pinched this from Wikipedia:

 

[bPeteb]

Bit late to the party.

Thanks for an excellent trip report John. We were just over in Akaroa for the Jan 26 weekend and had a lovely if slightly damp time. We were in Kaikoura (and Picton) last October for an extended long weekend. Very much enjoyed our visit to Fyfe House while in Kaikoura.