Kaikoura - Whale watching

---

I don't think any of us had a great nights sleep last night. The hostel has no sheets on the beds so we braved just our duvet covers we brought from home. Lisa and I had pjs, a fleece, a hoody, and two pairs of socks and we were still freezing all night. Chris and I managed to sleep for quite a bit but Lisa headed for the showers at 3.00am to warm her feet up, that didn't help so she took a sleeping tablet! No wonder she didn't stir when I got up, she's normally first awake!! She's been a bit more groggy than usual all day!

The whale watching boat trip was booked for 1.15pm so we had a casual breakfast and then headed to the fir seal colony. We saw some seals just lying around in the sun. You can get quite close to them until they make a snorting sound which really makes you jump, then you know to back off!

The whale watch boat took us out about 5 miles off shore to where they had spotted whales earlier in the morning. The main whale that is spotted is the giant sperm whale which is the fourth largest mammal in the world. The ride was a little bumpy, it gave you the feeling of dropping like on a rollercoaster quite a bit but at least that took your mind off feeling sea-sick!

Only 10-15 minutes after we had set off the captain used underwater sonic waves to locate a whale that had been diving for about 40 minutes. Typically the sperm whales around Kaikoura dive for about 40-60 minutes so we headed straight to where it was. She took the boat to right above the whale so we would be really close. We were reassured that the whale wouldn't come up and split the boat in half as they do a scan of the surface to check nothing is in the way when they come up, thankfully! We spotted the whale from the spray from its blowhole which is about 3 meters high. They tend to stay up and oxygenate for 5-15 minutes. As they dive again they disappear and then the huge tail comes up. It was great to see.

We were really lucky as we saw three sperm whales. The average is 2 so that was brilliant! On our way back to shore we came across some Dusky dolphins who were putting on a bit of a show for us. Dusky dolphins are the most acrobatic and playful of all dolphins and they were jumping all over the place! There were loads of them all round the boat. They are bit difficult to take photos of though as they move so fast!

I'm so pleased we did the trip it was definately worth it!

---

Photos

Fir Seals
Even though they are really lazy and don't move much, you definately know when you get too close!

Sperm whale
They spray which helps you locate them when they come to the surface.