Tag: New Zealand

The sea between the last stop and the next group of islands is relatively calm, but still a full day apart. Most of the sailing is done overnight,  removing all notion of the distance. The continuing lectures and excellent meals also help distract from the travel between stops. Later in the trip this would be different, but for now there is enough to keep the passengers entertained.

Second on the list of stops is the Auckland Islands group, and more specifically, Enderby Island. Little did we know that this was going to be a special stop for two fellow passengers. During the night one female passenger fell down, injuring her shoulder seriously enough to require an airlift to New Zealand’s mainland. Where the island groups is only just withing range of rescue helicopters, it takes two pilots, one medic and a fuel stop on Enderby Island to get the lady and her companion back to the South Island.

Upon arrival on the Island, hundreds of Hooker seals were there to greet us. These curious animals look intimidating, but as this was the island that the Department of Conservation’s representative lived on for some time, she was able to provide some simple advise to keep them at distance: Keep your backpack in your hand in front of you. Where this sounds easy, the male seals are big enough to make anyone doubt if this will do the trick. Turns out, it did…

From the small beach where we ‘landed’ there was a nice path running all the way to the other side of the island and back. The path ran past some interesting sights, like a Norther giant petrel’s nest. A recently hatched chick was patiently waiting for its parents to bring food. It wasn’t just the wildlife that was special here. Just like several other islands that we were about to see, Enderby Island is covered in vegetation that takes forever to get where it is now. Not only are the plant species rare, they are also slow growing. As a result, you won’t find any tall trees on the island. All plants come up to my waist and it has taken dozens, if not hundreds of years to get that far. By the time we got to the other side of the island, both weather and shores have become a lot more rugged. Wind has picked up and the temperature has gone down. The high cliffs break the waves with loud noise and lots of splashes. Endemic cormorants take advantage of this roughness that keeps away predators. We take a few minutes to watch the wildlife and scenery before heading back.

Back on the beach, a next surprise awaits us: Yellow-eyed penguins return from a fishing trip. With these birds being incredibly shy, the first two pairs of penguins refuse to come on shore. Whether the noisy seals or us is keeping the seals away will always be a mystery, but eventually (after some hours of waiting) some did come on shore. For me this means two things: Tick-off penguin number 10 of 17 and more importantly, and a good laugh when one of the birds trips over a piece of kelp laying around on the beach.

Seeing the penguins marked the end of our stay on this island. Not a bad thing as the weather isn’t getting any better. It is not raining yet, but that is a matter of time. It is just a couple of hundred meters on a Zodiak, taking just a few minutes to reach the warm tea and coffee. Well before dinner we are back on board. Now that we have seen more wildlife and the passengers get to know each other, conversation during dinner is more lively than the days before. With two days of sailing to the next port of call ahead, we can look forward to sharing more stories and photos with fellow passengers.

In the next post, the most southern island, Macquarie Island.

About one day after leaving the port of Bluff (New Zealand), finally we arrive at the first ‘port of call’. A full day at sea may sound like water and more water, but the crew will keep you entertained. There is the mandatory safety drill to start with, followed by (optional) lectures on all different subjects. And let’s not forget the delicious meals, all prepared on no more than a few square meters.
One of the lectures is done by the Department of Conservation, who travel on this ship to see if none of their rules are broken. The lady on board of our trip is marine biologist and a nice person, who has lived on one of the island groups we are visiting over the next weeks for several seasons, studying seals. From that experience, we was able to provide lots of surprising facts and funny anecdotes to make this one of many interesting lectures.

By now, we are at the Snares Islands, home to the snares penguin. It is a bird breeds on this group of islands only, hence its name. Those of you who do not know me, I have set myself a goal to see all penguin species and this is the main reason for me to take this trip. I am really excited and anticipating to see penguin species number 9 of 17.

Sadly, the morning fog makes it difficult to see anything, but at least we are out of the big waves in the Southern Ocean. So far, all we have seen is the peaks of stone sticking out of the ocean in front of the Islands. Fortunately the weather isn’t bad enough to stop the penguins from welcoming the boat about a mile from the islands. The counter of species that I have seen has now gone up from 8 to 9 with several more to come on this trip.

With the islands consisting of (extremely) rocky shores, covered in rare plants and wildlife, made the Department of Conservation decide to not open the islands for tourism. Only researchers of the Department of Conservation are allowed ashore. This rugged terrain combined with the bad weather means it is unsure if the Zodiak cruise of the afternoon can go ahead as planned.

Later in the day, the weather improved somewhat and this meant it was time for the first ‘excursion’ and a closer look at my feathered friends. Dressed in warm and waterproof clothes, we headed out. Wherever you look, the Islands and ocean is full of penguins, seals and other wildlife. The excitement of all 12 people on board quickly made you forget about the cold and wet weather.
Where this is just the first stop, I realize that the Beluga Reizen (the travel agent that arranged the trip for me) was right in calling this the ‘Galapagos of the South’. Little did I know that this was only the beginning of a trip that was about to become even more fantastic….

Later more on this amazing trip down South!