Watching whales

Not only did I flee the west coast because of the weather, I also really wanted to drive Arthur's Pass and I definitely wanted to go to Kaikoura. I think people go to Kaikoura for one reason only - to watch whales.

I had already done whale watching in Australia, but I still had two wishes unfulfilled:

1. take the perfect photo

2. See orcas

That's why I booked another whale watching tour for Kaikoura. The whole thing was supposed to take place at lunchtime. So I relaxed in the morning and around 12 o'clock I got ready and set off. But just as we arrived at the tour center, thick clouds gathered. Great! In fact the tour was canceled because of the fog! But I still had one more night in Kaikoura so I asked if there would be another option the next morning. Lucky you! At 8 a.m. there were still seats available. For me, 8 a.m. means getting up very early. Because I had to clear the campsite and drive the camper to the whale watching center. In order to get a parking space there with the huge item, I had to leave early and first pack everything up neatly... 😴

The next day the weather was really nice, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. So the tour was supposed to take place today.

I was told in advance that you always get seasick on the sea off Kaikoura. And there is actually a forecast about wind and wave strength and the expected probability of getting seasick. However, calm seas and a low chance of seasickness were announced for this day. I still preferred to pack the travel chewing gum.

On the ship there were actually several bags on every seat in case of seasickness and the announcement said that if you used the bags, you should give them to the crew so that they can then dispose of them. Everyone laughed about it then.

Half an hour later, hardly anyone was laughing. The person sitting next to me (also from Germany) also started reaching for a bag. I quickly offered him some travel chewing gum, because I really couldn't use someone sitting next to me who was sick like that... But as a precaution, I also took some chewing gum.

A short time later the ship stopped because a sperm whale was spotted. And there it was, 15 meters long, lying on the surface of the water and seemed to be sunning itself. He kept blowing a fountain of water into the air. I was able to watch it for several minutes and then the announcement came that it would now dive "3,2,1" and the whale actually dived as announced and I was able to take the perfect photo: the tail fin in the air! 🤩🤩🤩

Back in the seat, I said to the person sitting next to me, "Seeing orcas once, that would be it!"

Kaikoura Bay is a good place for whales due to its water depth (up to 1000m deep relatively close to the coast). Mostly they are sperm whales, but other whale species also stop there from time to time.

The ship slowed down again and everything flowed outside again. There they were all of a sudden, not very close, but very numerous: Orcas 🤩🤩🤩. I was so excited that I almost forgot to take photos 😀. There were so many and they looked very majestic!

Then we went back to the coast. Some said: "Thank God. I'll never go on a ship like that again!" Yes, for many the 2 hour tour was not a pleasure. I felt a bit sorry for the crew, they had a lot to do on the whole tour, carrying away bags. The sea was really very smooth and there were hardly any waves.

For me the tour was unforgettable, as I was extensively compensated for the cancellation yesterday and both of my wishes were fulfilled!