Today was a busy day. We left Christchurch at 7:15 AM and would need to reach Tākaka in the far north of the South Island by the end of the day, a total drive time of about 8 hours. Initially, we planned to break the drive in half, with a couple of nights in Blenheim along the way, but flooding prevented that approach. We had to do the whole drive in one shot. Further complicating matters, we planned to stop along the way in Kaikōura for a whale watching trip.

Fortunately, everything went according to plan. We reached Kaikōura at about 10 AM and checked in for our tour. The area is well known for its marine life. There is a deep ocean trench that runs close to shore near Kaikōura, producing an environment where deep sea life like whales rubs shoulders, err, fins with shallower brethren.

We soon got on a shuttle bus to the marina and quickly arrived at the boat. We headed out of the small harbor at a good clip, what our guides called “transit.” After only 20 minutes or so, we went outside and started looking for whales. While we looked, I enjoyed watching a couple of albatrosses buzz by our boat.

Albatrosses are kind of amazing. They have a wingspan of 8 to 11 feet, can reach speeds of 75 mph, and can stay aloft for weeks at a time.

But we were on a whale watching tour, not a bird watching tour. Our guides were well versed in finding them, and with their help we soon saw the tell-tale spray of a whale in the distance. Our captain repositioned the boat, giving us our first good glimpses of a sperm whale, which you can see in the lower left in the picture below.

But the funny part of the experience was the Dusky Dolphins desperately vying for attention. What they lacked in size, they made up for in effort. I zoomed in a bit on this photo to demonstrate.

The whale huffed a bit on the the surface and then dove deep below.

Sperm whales hunt deep in the ocean before coming up for air. As a result, sperm whale sightings usually end with a prominent tale display, as the whale tips head down to descent to its hunting grounds. But again our guides were ready, as they soon directed us to another sperm whale.

The setting for our whale watching was typical New Zealand, with stunning snow-capped mountains in the background. The Kaikōura ocean trench is more than 3,000 feet deep, though we’re still very close to shore. That’s why deep diving whales like sperm whales can be seen in this area. We enjoyed watching the whale for a bit before it, like the first whale, dove beneath the waves to start snacking.

Our next whale spot was a little different. Our guides led us to a spot where two humpbacked whales had surfaced. These whales hunt at shallower depths so we enjoyed watching them splash back and forth, accompanied once again by dolphins.

We also enjoyed hearing these whales. Unlike the sperm whales, which merely made puffing sounds, the humpback whales moaned a bit as they caught their breath.

After about 2 hours of whale watching, we headed back to shore. We decided to take a short hike up to a bluff that promised great views of the area, and we were not disappointed.

In fact, Lydie spotted two more whales in the distance. In all, we saw 8 whales and countless dolphins. On the bluff, we also enjoyed watching the local fur seals on the rocks below.

It was a great experience, but we had kilometers to drive before we slept. We hiked back down to the car, admiring the mountains and the bay.

We were soon back on the road, with about 5.5 hours left to drive. Our route was somewhat circuitous due to the flooding, and we reached Tākaka in the dark, tired but happy with our day.

-Will