Kaikoura

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Greetings from Kaikoura! Sorry it's been a few days since our last post - wifi is surprisingly difficult to find down here.

THURSDAY
We picked up our van from Escape Rentals in Christchurch. We chose Tangaroa, which is apparently their flagship design. We got a quick orientation, and we were off!

Marshall has done an amazing job of driving, so far. Drifting into the other lane isn't really a problem - it's the turning that gets confusing. To help each other out, we decided to describe turns: "short turn" (don't cross another lane) is left, "long turn" (cross a lane) is right. So far, so good!

After loading up on groceries, we hit the road for Kaikoura. We cannot say it enough - New Zealand is BEAUTIFUL. Gorgeous, amazing, incredible. Everything is so vibrantly green. And all the rumors are true - there are a ton of sheep!

Our campsite (Kaikoura Coastal Campgrounds, Boat Harbour) was right on the water. We hadn't been there more than 10 minutes when I almost walked into a male fur seal. That's right - we had fur seals hauled out right in front of our campsite!

After dinner, we decided to drive into town to play trivia at The Whaler (thanks, Alejandro and Lisa, for the suggestion!). We did pretty well! I was pretty relieved we weren't in the running for money though - they had some crazy tie-breakers, mostly involving drinking. Ha!

FRIDAY
Up early for our trip out on the Dolphin Encounter boat. Marshall and I opted to just watch, instead of swim. It was a little rough out there, so we were both happy to stay warm and dry on the boat. We had incredible views of Kaikoura and the surrounding areas from the boat. We saw ~20 dusky dolphins, tons of seabirds (including albatross!), and more fur seals. We had a great time.

When we got back to town, we decided to drive up to Ohau Point to see fur seal pups. As soon as we started up the trail to the waterfall, there were pups playing in the stream! The hike itself was very easy. We walked up to trail, stopping to take photos of napping seal pups and tree ferns. I wish we'd bought a plant guide! At the end of the trail, there were dozens of fur seal pups playing in the pool under the waterfall. All big-eyes, whiskers, and blubber rolls - completely adorable. They're quite the little climbers, too. Not only do they make their way up the stream to the waterfall, they were climbing all over the hillsides!

Back to camp for the rest of the evening. We played cards and wandered over to the Lure Cafe and Bar. Sweet little place with cheap beer!

SATURDAY
As soon as we publish this blog post, we'll be on our way to Picton for the night, then on to Wellington for 2 days tomorrow. Hope to write another update soon!

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Photos

Tangaroa
Campervan at our sweet campsite near Kaikoura.

Dusky dolphins
View from the Dolphin Encounter boat.

Comments

[Shelbey]

Looks like a great trip so far you guys!
Love the photos you've shared. Keep 'em coming! :)

[colleen]

Hi Katie and Marshall! I love that you saw the fur seal pups!!...while I was in the Christchurch hospital ward, all the ladies could say was \"You must come back and see the seals in the waterfalls at Kaikoura!\" And then the dolphins! And Trivia! Oh my..how fun:) Love the van..stylin! Keep on keeping on!

[Mary Luxa]

So Great!
So far the pictures are wonderful. Nice wheels! It does look so beautiful, can't wait to hear more. and what a great campground! don't get that kind of view around here. Enjoy yourselves which I'm sure you are. I love you and miss you. Mom