#Kaikoura

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May these words be the first to find your ears The world is brighter than the sun now that you're here

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迷える心は月夜のため 息

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Oceania, New Zealand, Canterbury, Kaikoura - webcam 

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South Island Roadie begins

After a very long hiatus of not posting, trying to start up and actually post for my trip!

I packed up from Christchurch on 9 Jan and headed up to Kaikōura. Packing is horrible, I do not recommend it to any of my friends or enemies. On the way, I stopped at Pegasus Bay Winery for a nice glass of wine. Although it started raining just as I was walking inside, I was able to enjoy a nice glass by the fire! And aren't those hydrangeas beautiful!

The next stop was the Cathedral Gully viewpoint to look at the incredible view of the cliff face and the ocean. Then a stop at Gore Bay for a quick beach walk.

Then, honestly I was too tired to do much of anything else! A 2.5 hour drive can easily turn into 5 when you stop wherever you'd like.

Friday morning, I went on a whale-watching cruise! I had been a little nervous - almost all of the recent cruises had been canceled due to poor weather or sea conditions. Luckily, though, the tour went off without a hitch! There were warnings that the likelihood of seasickness would be high due to the swells, so I got some sea legs before boarding the boat. And that did the trick! Plenty of seasick passengers, but I was not one of them.

Kaikōura is a great place to see oceanic wildlife because there is an underwater canyon only about 10 minutes off shore. It's a semi-permanent home to some male sperm whales, but may also see humpbacks, baleens, orcas, and more.

We saw two whales up close and personal (as personal as you're allowed to be with wildlife protections in place). These are the two we saw! Technically, I also saw a third in the distance, but they didn't call it out on the speaker in the boat because we were still too far off. I just happened to look in the right place at the right time!

After a quick lunch, I then went out to walk the Kaikōura Peninsula Walkway, which gave great views of the cliffs, hills, and ocean, as well as the seal colony and more.

Here are a few other photos I enjoyed!

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New Zealand

A seal relaxing at Point Kean in Kaikoura

NomadAsaurus

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Swimming alongside curious ocean creatures

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2023_12_20

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Kaikoura, New Zealand

Taken by Tim Marshall

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The Lightbringer

Thank you to all CC creators!

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Kaikoura, New Zealand (2020).

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Kaikoura to Blenheim

Second day in Kaikōura was much more chill - intermittent rain meant going for a quick walk in the morning with a stop for coffee, then a visit to the Kaikōura museum.

There was a great joke in the museum, made even funnier by the fact that they posed a question at the top of the sign, provided a semi-real informational answer in the main body, then dropped the punchline at the end. I'll shorten it up for you but I put it below the cut to keep you guessing!

Q: Why do people always stop and watch a blacksmith work?

A: He is riveting

I also particularly liked the Jimmy information in Jimmy's Jimmy, pictured above.

After the museum, the rain started to pick up again, so I went back to my accommodation to relax and read. I finished A Man Called Ove in about a day, after finally picking it up to read.

The next morning, I packed up my things, went for a quick stroll, and started the drive to Blenheim. Along the way, I stopped at a few scenic outlooks to really soak in the scenery. The winds and waves were so strong, I really had to hold onto my phone while I took pictures! There were so many very cute seal babies too - it was so charming to watch them all run around!

For day 1 in Blenheim, I spent most of the afternoon in Pollard park, soaking in the sun since it finally deigned to come out. There's a beautiful rose garden, and what I assume to be beautiful camellias and rhododendrons when the time is right for them to bloom.

After the park, I went out to Moa Brewery and got a tasting flight of their beers on tap. There were a lot of IPAs, which are not my usual choice, but it was very cool to try something new!

The surprise winner was #5 (though the cider took the cake, it's just not a beer), followed probably by number 3 then 1. I also got some souvlaki fries. Yum!

A stroll through town later showed that the tree topper of the Blenheim Christmas tree is a traffic cone.