Dunedin - The Otago Penisula

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31st May 2009

The bad weather that greeted us to Dunedin was not made any better by the terrible campsite we moved into (the worst one we stayed in). Unsurprisingly we decided to move site not before complaining.
After the move we decided to go in search of some yellow-eyed penguins along the beach at Sandfly Bay. On the walk to a DOC penguin viewpoint we did manage to see a huge sea lion walking up the beach to rest. The search for the penguins however was fruitless and with the wind blasting us with sand we headed back towards Cyril. On the walk back a storm swell brought the sea water in a little further than we bargained for and we had to take evasive action. Unfortunately Alex dived onto a sand bank that collapsed underneath him and was consequently in ankle deep water. Elaine's dive went better and she was perfectly dry, although somehow Elaine did manage to choke on her hair whilst laughing at Alex's misfortune. In our quest to see the penguins we decided to pay to see them at a reserve. We were lucky enough to be the only people on our tour. The reserve had a network of trenches through the penguins nesting area where we got our first glimpse of the yellow-eyed penguins in the wild. We then patiently waited for more penguins to return from the sea after deep sea fishing and after a short while one emerged on the shore. The penguins follow a set track back to their nest and we were lucky enough to be in the perfect spot for this one to pass right in front of us. Settling back into our new campsite we had dinner and watched a bit of T.V.

1st June 2009

Last night just before bed our fan heater became just a fan so we spent an hour in the morning searching for a replacement. After our small shopping trip we continued on to Mount Cook another day of travel. Along the way we stopped off at bay for a rest, had a terrible KFC and saw some Maori wall art that had partly been ruined by reckless peoples graffiti. The approach to Mount Cook was simply breathtaking and we stopped off at a viewpoint to take it in.

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