Oceanic Adventures

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It's nearly time for me to leave Kaikoura, at least for a while. I'll be heading up to Wellington next week to stay with a friend for a couple of days, and from there I'll be exploring the rest of the North Island. Kaikoura feels like my home now, and I'm sad to be leaving. It's been great of Max and K.d to let me stay here for so long. I intend to stay with them again for a while when I return to the South. It will be winter then, and a completely different Kaikoura. It's getting a lot colder in the mornings and evenings now, but I still find myself working in shorts most days.

Realising what precious little time I have left, I took the opportunity two weeks ago to have a real dolphin experience. The reason most people come to Kaikoura is to see the marine mammals, and aside from my seal encounters I hadn't really got close to the dolphins.
The opportunity arose when Petra, a German friend whom I met at new year in Christchurch, came to stay for a couple of days and wanted to see some dolphins. I had managed to borrow a couple of Kayaks from friends, so we set out on Thursday morning at sunrise down the coastal highway, following a group of 5 or 6 dusky dolphins. We pulled in about half a mile ahead and took to the water. It was a beautiful morning and the sea was calm and clear, so we paddled out quite quickly but just missed the dolphins as they passed in front of us.
Feeling somewhat disappointed, I suggested we follow in their direction for a while, and after a few minutes the horizon ahead of us was teeming with dolphins; leaping, diving and corkscrewing out of the water, and coming fast towards us. This group of 100 or so duskys passed underneath us three times, some of them within an arms reach. They stayed with us for about half an hour before heading out to sea. What made it special was that besides one cray fishing boat we were entirely alone in the bay. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me on the sea, but it was really one of those things that you can't convey with photography, or at least I can't.

The following friday was calm and sunny again so I paddled out on my own from South Bay in the afternoon, watching seals and birds on the reefs at Sharks Tooth, the furthest south point of the peninsula. On passing the point the sea became rougher, and a couple of breakers filled my kayak with water (the plug was missing - something I should have fixed before I went out). I had my camera with me that time, and nearly lost it as it bobbed away on the waves in its little plastic box. I had to go scrambling though kelp to get it back. I ended up being hurled onto the sharp rocks of Baxters reef, and stranded there in the crashing waves until I could drag the heavy kayak over the barnacle encrusted rocks onto the calm side of the reef and empty it of water. I emerged about half an hour later, covered in scratches from the barnacles. That was a different kind of experience to the previous week, but certainly an experience nonetheless. These are the kind of outings you can't have on package tours.

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Photos

Me and Petra
After a morning with the dolphins

Sharks Tooth, Kaikoura Peninsula
You can just make out the shearwater colony on that last hill, behind the stand of trees.

Baxter's Reef
This is the rock I ended up being hurled into by the waves.

Shags on the rocks
-insert cheap joke here-

Terns on Kaikoura beach
This is the beach a 10 minutes cycle ride from the house, looking North away from town.

Snow on the Kaikoura mountains
There seems to be snow on the mountains most days now - winter is approaching...

Comments

[mum]

some stunning photos again .what experiences ,the dolphins sound amazing

[pedrita]

Stunning views
Great to had the dolphin experience with you! Hope to catch up soon to take part on more weird things like loosing camera's. I lost mine in december somewhere on a beach... Same history, eh?