Kaikoura.
A rugged peninsula that looks more like a bosom with an extended nipple or a skin tag than a peninsula to my mind!
It is midway between Christchurch and Picton on our drive North toward the ferry and our leaving of the South Island.
The name means ‘meal of Crayfish’ and when Captain Cook sailed passed it he called it Lookers On because the local Maori were unsure and did just that.The first European settlers arrived in 1842 and hunted the whales, nowadays they still hunt for them but just to show these creatures off to the visiting tourists which has led to a boom of different sorts to the original settlers.
The main whales are the toothed, sperm whales which hunt their prey unlike the baleen whales which feed by filtering plankton from the seas.Orcas and many dolphin species can also be seen due to the mixing of warm and cold ocean currents forcing nutrients to the surface.
Our own feeding was catered by a beachside BBQ wagon where Maureen had a whitebait pattie and Vick and I enjoyed a superb Blue cod burger which consisted of two large pieces of beautiful tasting white fish with mixed salad with ginger dressing topped off with tartare sauce in a burger bap.Ace!!
Just on from here past Fyffe House a quaint pink colonial cottage from the whaling days is a point where we were able to get close to a colony of seals that drew a large number of visitors.You are told not to get closer than 10m to them as they can become quite aggressive especially if there are young around.They seemed to split into 2 types those that could not give a toss and continued to ignore you and sleep and those that were put out by you intrusion who decided to make their way back to the sea in their rather cumbersome manner but when they hit the water their true agility is demonstrated.
Driving northwards about 30 km there are a series of seal colonies that can be seen from the road.