Wildlife on the Otago Peninsula

After our Akoroa wash-out, we went back to Christchurch to meet Tash’s mum Lyn and stepfather Chris, who had made a fairly last-minute decision to fly to the other side of the world to see us! It was such a long way to travel for just a couple of weeks, we were super proud of them.

Hire cars ready? Check. We’re off!

Travelling south of Christchurch, we stopped at the Moeraki Boulders, which are large grey spherical rocks up to 2m in diameter, nestled in the sand. Were they formed as a result of erosion, dinosaur eggs or left from a giant’s game of marbles?!

The road’s surrounding scenery was truly awe-inspiring. We can’t get enough of the sky in this country, it’s SO big!

We pitched up close to Dunedin in order to visit the Otago Peninsula, known for its abundance of magnificent world-famous marine wildlife, namely The Royal Albatross, the endangered Yellow Eyed Penguin/Hoiho and the Blue Penguins.

The magnificent drive there took us along windy ocean-hugging roads.

We found little driftwood-encrusted bays to run along.

Reaching the end of the Peninsula, we found the Albatross Centre, where you can book onto tours to see albatrosses sitting on their nests. We decided to see if luck was on our side, and waited patiently on the bitterly cold windswept beach to see what might pass us by (these blue skies belie the temperature!).

First, we excitedly spotted NZ fur seals!

Then, a tiny Blue Penguin appeared on the beach – wow, we did not expect that, especially as you only normally see these little guys at dusk when they come in to land!