Dunedin and onwards

Weds 11 Dec continued.

Today we arrived in Dunedin and found a super little hostel on the Otago Peninsula called McFarmers backpackers.

The owner John has a good sense of humour and some sheep! The road to Portobello on the peninsula has more bendy twists than you've had hot dinners, right by the water and nothing to stop you going in. Hostel a wooden house perching on the hillside, bellbirds singing, quirky things all around as John is a train nut. There is a miniature railway in the garden with crossing signs! In the harbour we saw 3 spoonbills feeding about 20 yards away.

The area is full of unusual birds, won't bore you with all of them. BUT we saw Royal Albatrosses sailing majestically about in their nesting area, and then, having waited a long time in the cold, we were rewarded by seeing little blue penguins come ashore to change over with their mates - they do 24 hour shifts, one lot sitting on egg, the others feeding out at sea.

We were told there were penguins on the way, and for ages there was nothing, just a black shape in the water (they swim in formation) and then suddenly - pop! about 20 of them on the beach. They waddle along like little old men. They come in after dark, so you have to strain your eyes to see them, but they come up the beach and spread out all over the hillside to go to their nests. Big groups of them walked past us - they don't see very well, we just had to move aside. Then, the most magic thing, as they met up with their mates, a sound of them calling and greeting each other from all around us - bubbling, trilling calls. Wow.

Thurs 12 Dec

A day in Dunedin, getting petrol, supplies and cash. We visited the impossibly grand Railway Station, and the not so impressive Cathedral.

The Botanical Gardens were really good, and we had a pizza in the cafe, which was most welcome.

Friday 13th (!)

Poured with rain overnight, but cleared and we had good views of the harbour from the hostel sitting room.

On the way north we revisited Baldwin St., said to be the steepest street in the world = 1 in 2.86. At Shag Point we had the best ever view of fur seals, about 3 dozen of them, on rocks quite close below us. It was blowing a gale and freezing and raining occasionally, but unforgettable. There were families, with babies and teenagers all interacting. Nobody else there.

At the Moeraki Boulders the tide was in and very violent, lots of surf - nearly got cut off, and had to remove footwear and paddle back to the car - not the weather for it!

Saw Wendy's 'fantastic beach' on the way to Oamuru, yes it is but we were not tempted to go in! The sea is the most astonishing colour here, a milky bluey green.Booked into the Empire Hotel backpackers, in the middle of Oamuru, which is a very grand little town.

This evening we went to look for yellow-eyed penguins about 2 km away, and were rewarded with seeing not only distant ones coming in from the sea and some going off out too, but others really close to the path. One was sitting beside its mate who was presumably sitting on an egg, about 5 ft away, seemed oblivious to us.

Supper is ready so I had better stop 'going on'! Christchurch next stop.

Love to everybody, Mumbo.