Alan found a tour through Iconic Tours which is booked via the Internet while we were on the ship headed for Dunedin (pronounced DuhNEEduhn). We were the 7th and 8th people on the tour. We have found we really like tour groups of 10 or less.
We headed out of Dunedin toward our destination, the Otaga Peninsula. The road was referred to as the low road as it wound its way along the coast. New Zealand has more coastline than the United States, even though the land mass would fit between Erie, PA and Tallahasee, FL (leaving lots of US land uncovered) and we could see why.
The tide was going out, so we saw the bottom, marshy in some places with sea gulls walking around and sitting on posts and rowboats sitting on the sandy bottom. We came to a place where the road narrowed due to road construction because there has been a "slip" where the road had slid away and the construction crews were rebuilding.
The drive to the end of the Otaga Peninsula took about one hour. We stopped for a short break at a Maori cultural/community center. We couldn't go in, but we admired the carving on the entrance and the buildings off the road. We also noticed a number of flowers, apparently growing wild, and they provided a great opportunity for Alan to get some more pictures.
When we arrived at the end of the peninsula, we began climbing into the surrounding hills to the Albatross Center. Ralph parked the bus and we did some exploring outside.
He took us down a path toward the ocean, passed a sea gull nesting area. Our destination was a cliff high above the ocean where we could look out over the ocean and at the cliffs below. There was a low area that looked like volcanic rock at the base of the cliff with seaweed swirling around it as the waves crashed over it.
We spotted New Zealand fur seals in the distance at the base of the cliffs. Joyce had difficulty seeing them, until they moved and became more visible. Alan was able to see them through his telephoto camera lens.
At the beginning of our tour, we watched a short film about the royal albatross. The center we visited it the only nesting area on the mainland.
We learned the royal albatross mates for life, and spends most of their life at sea, returning to land only to breed and lay one egg. The male and female take turns caring for the egg with the other out at sea feeding. They continue to take turns caring for the chick and bringing back food for the chick.
The adult royal albatross has a 3 meter wing span. They need wind to begin flight. Since their wings are usually folded up when they are on the land, it is hard to get a sense of just how big these birds are. The Royal Albatross is the third largest in the Albatross family, and it was amazing to make the comparison to our own size and that of other birds.
We walked up a very steep hill to the top to a camouflaged building with large windows looking out over the hill facing the ocean. The nests of 5-6 royal albatross families dotted the hill.
One of the males had just switched with his mate and walked up the hill to a jumping off spot to fly out to sea to feed. We watched as he walked around, unfolded his wings, only to flap a couple times and then fold them again. He walked further up the hill and back, then part way back to his nest and back up the hill. After another couple false starts, he took off, looking very majestic as he soared out to sea.
After leaving the Royal Albatross Center we drove a short distance across the end of the peninsula to a Yellow-eyed Penguins sanctuary. The sanctuary is located on what was once a sheep station. They are in the process of replanting native trees and plants. It is quite a large area on several hillsides, some areas very steep.
Yellow-eyed penguins are solitary and don't want to see neighboring nests. They prefer to nest under trees. As the trees grow the naturalists have constructed little A-frames for them to nest under.
They have also constructed blinds for people to observe from as the penguins are shy around people. We were there when most of the adult penguins were out at sea feeding. They return to the nest a night. We learned they also usually mate for life and the female lays two eggs. Both parents share the care for the egg and the chick when it hatches.
Before visiting the nesting area, we visited the hospital where dozens of penguins were recuperating from various injuries. We observed through an opening in the slat fence. The penguins here have been rescued for various reasons. Some of them aren't healthy and are being nursed back to health. Some aren't thriving as youngsters and need some help in learning how to survive while molting.
Others aren't native to this part of New Zealand, such as the crested penguins, but were brought here for nursing and veterinarian care. When they recover, they will be released in their native territory.
We then boarded an 4WD bus and set off over gravel roads with steep hills and valleys. We left the bus and quietly walked on gravel or grass paths, up and down wooded bordered steps. We saw two almost fully grown chicks sleeping under the trees. They had most of their feathers with a little down on the top of their heads, but did not yet have the yellow eye-band.
When they are ready to launch, they walk to the beach below, a considerable distance and head out to sea to feed. One of the chicks we saw had followed the parents on their way out to sea for a short distance, then lost his nerve and walked back to the nest. His brother had already launched. If he waits too long, the parents will stop feeding him and he will be forced into walking to the sea when he is hungry. The sanctuary has a protected beach at the bottom of the hill that people do not use that is for the penguins.
We also observed a male penguin in the middle of molting. The molting process takes about a month. The penguins feed until they are fat because once they begin the molting process, they stay on land until the process is complete and don't eat. He looked pretty miserable, but he will be dashing when he gets all his new feathers and can return to the sea.
We also saw a penguin the staff estimates to be about 30 years old that returns every year and usually takes a new partner, usually younger. Our guide really wished she could talk to him since his behavior is atypical. He was standing under a tree with two chicks.
We left the yellow-eyed penguins sanctuary in the late afternoon and began the hour drive back to the ship. Ralph decided to take the high road through the hills since we had driven the low road on the way out. It started to mist and the clouds were low, but we were we still treated to some hair-pin curves and beautiful vistas of the country-side. At one point we stopped to get pictures of a stone wall and building that were constructed with a friction-fit style, not using any mortar as glue. The wall has been there more than 150 years and looks pretty tight.
We walked off the ship and began looking for the Iconic Tours sign. All the signs on the pier close to the ship were Oceania tours so we kept walking. We walked down the pier and around the end of the ship. There were several other tour companies waiting there and we located Ralph, our guide for the day. A couple from Maryland also joined us. We went to wait for the other four people in the van/bus and spent some time chatting. The other four people must have had difficulty locating us as we waited for about 30 minutes, then Ralph found them.
We left the pier and Ralph told us a little about Dunedin, pointing out various buildings in town. As we approached the waterfront, he noted that there was an emphasis on art in the town, though he was questioning if the $40,000 spent on the teeth sculpture was worth it. We've certainly enjoyed the speculation about the pictures of it!
He told us cloudy days weren't always fun for us, but they were great for viewing wildlife.
We left the pier and Ralph told us a little about Dunedin, pointing out various buildings in town. As we approached the waterfront, he noted that there was an emphasis on art in the town, though he was questioning if the $40,000 spent on the teeth sculpture was worth it. We've certainly enjoyed the speculation about the pictures of it! He told us cloudy days weren't always fun for us, but they were great for viewing wildlife.
We headed out of Dunedin toward our destination, the Otaga Peninsula. The road was referred to as the low road as it wound its way along the coast. New Zealand has more coastline than the United States, even though the land mass would fit between Erie, PA and Tallahasee, FL (leaving lots of US land uncovered) and we could see why.The tide was going out, so we saw the bottom, marshy in some places with sea gulls walking around and sitting on posts and rowboats sitting on the sandy bottom. We came to a place where the road narrowed due to road construction because there has been a "slip" where the road had slid away and the construction crews were rebuilding.The drive to the end of the Otaga Peninsula took about one hour. We stopped for a short break at a Maori cultural/community center. We couldn't go in, but we admired the carving on the entrance and the buildings off the road. We also noticed a number of flowers, apparently growing wild, and they provided a great opportunity for Alan to get some more pictures. When we arrived at the end of the peninsula, we began climbing into the surrounding hills to the Albatross Center. Ralph parked the bus and we did some exploring outside.He took us down a path toward the ocean, passed a sea gull nesting area. Our destination was a cliff high above the ocean where we could look out over the ocean and at the cliffs below. There was a low area that looked like volcanic rock at the base of the cliff with seaweed swirling around it as the waves crashed over it.
We spotted New Zealand fur seals in the distance at the base of the cliffs. Joyce had difficulty seeing them, until they moved and became more visible. Alan was able to see them through his telephoto camera lens.
We headed back up the hill to the Albatross center to eat lunch before our 1 p.m. tour to see the Royal Albatross nesting area. Alan & Joyce split an order of fish & chips, which was very good.
At the beginning of our tour, we watched a short film about the royal albatross. The center we visited it the only nesting area on the mainland.We learned the royal albatross mates for life, and spends most of their life at sea, returning to land only to breed and lay one egg. The male and female take turns caring for the egg with the other out at sea feeding. They continue to take turns caring for the chick and bringing back food for the chick.The adult royal albatross has a 3 meter wing span. They need wind to begin flight. Since their wings are usually folded up when they are on the land, it is hard to get a sense of just how big these birds are. The Royal Albatross is the third largest in the Albatross family, and it was amazing to make the comparison to our own size and that of other birds.We walked up a very steep hill to the top to a camouflaged building with large windows looking out over the hill facing the ocean. The nests of 5-6 royal albatross families dotted the hill.One of the males had just switched with his mate and walked up the hill to a jumping off spot to fly out to sea to feed. We watched as he walked around, unfolded his wings, only to flap a couple times and then fold them again. He walked further up the hill and back, then part way back to his nest and back up the hill. After another couple false starts, he took off, looking very majestic as he soared out to sea.
We watched a female sitting with her chick that was too big to sit on. She attempted to sit on it, then sat beside it. The chick was covered in white down and quite cute. It opened its mouth a couple times. We couldn't tell if it was making noise or yawning.
After leaving the Royal Albatross Center we drove a short distance across the end of the peninsula to a Yellow-eyed Penguins sanctuary. The sanctuary is located on what was once a sheep station. They are in the process of replanting native trees and plants. It is quite a large area on several hillsides, some areas very steep.Yellow-eyed penguins are solitary and don't want to see neighboring nests. They prefer to nest under trees. As the trees grow the naturalists have constructed little A-frames for them to nest under.
They have also constructed blinds for people to observe from as the penguins are shy around people. We were there when most of the adult penguins were out at sea feeding. They return to the nest a night. We learned they also usually mate for life and the female lays two eggs. Both parents share the care for the egg and the chick when it hatches.
Before visiting the nesting area, we visited the hospital where dozens of penguins were recuperating from various injuries. We observed through an opening in the slat fence. The penguins here have been rescued for various reasons. Some of them aren't healthy and are being nursed back to health. Some aren't thriving as youngsters and need some help in learning how to survive while molting.
Others aren't native to this part of New Zealand, such as the crested penguins, but were brought here for nursing and veterinarian care. When they recover, they will be released in their native territory. We then boarded an 4WD bus and set off over gravel roads with steep hills and valleys. We left the bus and quietly walked on gravel or grass paths, up and down wooded bordered steps. We saw two almost fully grown chicks sleeping under the trees. They had most of their feathers with a little down on the top of their heads, but did not yet have the yellow eye-band.When they are ready to launch, they walk to the beach below, a considerable distance and head out to sea to feed. One of the chicks we saw had followed the parents on their way out to sea for a short distance, then lost his nerve and walked back to the nest. His brother had already launched. If he waits too long, the parents will stop feeding him and he will be forced into walking to the sea when he is hungry. The sanctuary has a protected beach at the bottom of the hill that people do not use that is for the penguins. We also observed a male penguin in the middle of molting. The molting process takes about a month. The penguins feed until they are fat because once they begin the molting process, they stay on land until the process is complete and don't eat. He looked pretty miserable, but he will be dashing when he gets all his new feathers and can return to the sea.We also saw a penguin the staff estimates to be about 30 years old that returns every year and usually takes a new partner, usually younger. Our guide really wished she could talk to him since his behavior is atypical. He was standing under a tree with two chicks.
We left the yellow-eyed penguins sanctuary in the late afternoon and began the hour drive back to the ship. Ralph decided to take the high road through the hills since we had driven the low road on the way out. It started to mist and the clouds were low, but we were we still treated to some hair-pin curves and beautiful vistas of the country-side. At one point we stopped to get pictures of a stone wall and building that were constructed with a friction-fit style, not using any mortar as glue. The wall has been there more than 150 years and looks pretty tight.
Upon arrival back to the ship, we rested a short while before getting ready for the Go Next Purdue group picture and dinner. We took flat Pete with us and set him on the crystal table as we stood on the steps on either side. Our Go Next hosts tell us there are 14 people in the Purdue Alumni group. We have only met 10 at previous receptions. Eight showed up for the picture, with six of us eating dinner together in the Grand Dining Room. We have visited with these two other couples several times at receptions and around the ship, so we had a very enjoyable dinner together.
The entertainment this evening was the Paradise String Quartet. We've seen them several times around the ship, but were tired and elected to skip out this time.
The entertainment this evening was the Paradise String Quartet. We've seen them several times around the ship, but were tired and elected to skip out this time.
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