A short lapse between WWOOFs, we wanted to take a day to camp in Kaikoura and embark on one of our most anticipated trips yet – a helicopter flight for sperm whale watching! After leaving Blenheim, we drove south along the east coast, leaving behind lush green valleys of endless vineyards, for the harsh, but stunning, coastal views. We stopped several times along the way, first to catch a glimpse of the pro surfers at Mangamaunu (one of NZ’s longest left-hand breaking wave points – and these waves were towering today) ride waves 100s of meters in towards the shore. Further down was a fur seal colony among rocks that were being pounded by the fierce waves. We reached Kaikoura and took a long walk along the peninsula before dark.
The next morning we woke early for shopping – but mostly in anticipation of the day’s activity – whale watching via helicopter. But as we soon found out, trying to capture one of nature’s most impressive creatures in its natural environment was not as simple as showing up for our 10:00am flight time. As good as the weather was, 10 miles off the coast where the whales were located, there were low-hanging clouds and light rain. We postponed our tour for an hour hoping the weather would improve. Arriving back at 11:00 proved disheartening when there was no change in the weather. We opted to stay around for another 2 hours since we’d be leaving today for a 2 hour drive south, and we didn’t want to pass on this opportunity. We enjoyed the scenery from the peninsula and had lunch on the beach with a book, enjoying the pounding waves. We headed back to the helicopter office a 3rd time, and to our dismay, there was still no improvement in weather. Even the boat tours were finding it difficult in the weather conditions, and with no sign of improvement for days, we were forced to leave for our next WWOOF….
…..but, we returned! Several days later (after calling the office each morning for a weather report) we finally got word of good sighting conditions, and we made the 2 hour drive back to Kaikoura. We arrived just before our 11:00am flight time, but because the conditions were so good for the first time in days, there was a backlog of people waiting to fly, and the whale breathing patterns were spaced out such that we were once again forced to wait to fly. As each preceding flight disembarked, we got word of their sightings and our spirits soared. We could hardly stand waiting our turn. When it was our time, we hopped into the 3 passenger R-44 and strapped on the head/micro phones.
The initial ascent was unnerving, rising straight up into the air before spinning around and heading off. It was a sensation only mirrored by the occasional roller coaster. We were up and away – perfect blue skies and fantastic views of the coast. We had 30 minutes to spot a whale. Once again, we understood this was not a zoo. It wasn’t a matter of simply flying to see the whale. We had to actively participate in spotting the whale (assuming it was still breathing near the surface). Whales typically oxygenate their blood at the surface for about 10 minutes before diving to depths of 300m and staying below the surface for up to an hour. Our goal was to find one of several known whales in the area during the small breathing window to catch a glimpse before it rose (for that iconic picture of the tail) and then plummeted deep into the sea. We radioed boats on the water for information about the whales breathing patterns and after nearly 15 minutes of circling and searching, we started to worry about our chances. The whales had taken a strange breathing cycle as if startled by something, and may not be resurfacing during our 30min flight. We continued to search and hover, taking in the surroundings, but at last, it was time to return to land. We almost started crying. No whale. It was heart-wrenching after waiting so long and having such a great day to see them. All the previous flights of the day had seen one, and yet, this is nature after all. It’s hard to predict. The experience was great and we took some amazing pictures, but there will always be something we left behind in Kaikoura.
View of the peninsula we walked around.
The line in the water is basically an underwater cliff. The topography under the surface makes this area a fantastic place for sightings. The deep blue region is the whale feeding ground, dropping to depths of close to 10,000 meters within just miles of the coastline.
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