A Whale 'Tale' from Kaikoura

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Day 513 (23.08.08)

The major 'tourist attraction' of Kaikoura is the marine life that you can view there. The continental shelf lies very close to the shores of the town and due to the deep trench formed there it is home to wildlife not often seen that close to the mainland. So today we were off in search of the Sperm Whales that can be seen here year round.

Boarding a rather plush vessel we set out with our eyes glued to the water to see if we could be the first to glimpse a water spout - the first sign that a whale is at the surface to take a few breaths before diving down for up to 2 hours at a time.

Before we knew it a whale had been spotted by the crew and we were speeding towards our first whale sighting. He was a fantastic fella as he bobbed on the surface and occasionally sent some water spouting up into the air. We were excitedly waiting fior the moment when he'd dive down to the depths and show off his powerful whale tail - which he soon did with great elegance and style.

Throughout the rest of the cruise we saw another four whales at close range (5 if you count a tail in the distance!) - which was amazing. We were also lucky enough to see plenty of fur seals floating about and the incredible wandering albatross taking flight and skimming the waves beneath. A great trip which we all enjoyed immensely.

With our feet back on dry land we went to lunch at the famous Kaikoura seafood BBQ, a stall on the shore at the side of the road grilling up some local fresh delicacies. We tucked into a feast of chowder, scallops, mussels and white fish whilst we looked over the water - delicious!

We wanted to take a closer look at the large seal colony we'd spotted from our clifftop walk the day before so walked around the base of the peninsula and spent a good while watching the antics of the fur seals as they rested on the rocks.

A quick stop on the way back thorugh town to check out some of the excellent murals that decorate the town's buildings and we went back to camp a dip in the toasty spa and another bbq dinner.

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