New Zealand 2017 Day 12: Akaroa

For my last day in New Zealand, I took a day drip to Akaroa, for my dolphin swimming excursion!

Checked out around 8:15am, and turns out I could just stay in my room after all - what a treat!

It was a 90 minute drive to Daly's Wharf.  While the route was straightforward, Highway 75 was the most windy road I had been on.  Even though the roads to Glenorchy and Wanaka were windy, they did not last as long as this, and this road was constantly going uphill and downhill.  As I got closer to Akaroa, the views of the valley were incredible, even though it wasn't a particularly sunny day.

Checked in with ecoSEAker around 10:15am, and got briefed on how to put on a wetsuit. These wetsuits and water shoes were great quality! So much better than the ones in Waitomo. They were nice and thick and looked almost brand new.

Small, intimate 12-person boat

The group had 12 people, the max amount. In the group were a few folks from Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, UK, and Canada -- diverse crowd.

I was really worried about seasickness kicking in..so I took both Bonine, ginger pills, and wore my acupressure bands.  I was pleased, nothing ended up hitting me!  I'm not sure which did it..maybe the combo of it all.

Cold and wet weather when we first started

It wasn't great weather when we headed out.  Drizzle, clouds, wind.  It was cold so I stayed in the cabin by Captain Steve.  He provided really great information the whole time. It was clear he enjoyed being out on his boat with nature.

We were able to reach areas with a break in the clouds, sunshine! Hector dolphins!  We must have seen at least 10 different occurrences of dolphins.  They really are small dolphins, and have distinctive dark dorsal fins.  

Before getting into the water, we look for the dolphins to "show interest", where they approach the boat and stay around it, staying up out of the water more than usual.  We made our first attempt in the water in an area with a lot of dolphins.  When the first person got into the water, there were two swimming right behind her.  I was nervous getting in, but I was too excited to be nervous for very long.  It was easy to float around, all I had to do was kick a little to stay vertical.

We were all instructed to make noise and sing.  The more, the better.  The vibrations from our chest would be felt by the dolphins, and their interest would be piqued.  It was definitely not harmonious, everyone just kind of randomly sang snippets of songs.  I did some random humming and noises.  Who knew it'd be difficult to decide what to sing on the spot!  I don't know if a dolphin was next to me during this time.  It was a little hard to tell being in the water as opposed to seeing from above in the boat.  But, during our second time in the water, one came right at me!  I didn't have my snorkel, as it was too difficult to navigate using that and holding my GoPro, so I don't know how close it came to me.  But I saw when it started approaching though, it must've only been within 15 feet of me.  I tried taking video of my time in the water, but it's just a bunch of underwater blurry, uneven footage.

Later on, we encountered three or four really playful dolphins.  They swam right alongside the boat and underneath.  I didn't have time to grab my camera.  Miss out on the sight while I grab my camera and worry about getting the shot?  In the end it was just easier to enjoy the experience.  Someone who was standing next to me got some great shots though.  Hopefully he'll email me the pics.

Perhaps I see a dolphin?

We also saw two or three white flippered blue penguins! They are small and so cute. Just floating around sitting on the water.

While the dolphins didn't interact with us directly as much as we would like, they were still nearby and it was really awesome seeing them swim and jump up.  Apparently jumping up is rare, too!  Overall a really great experience with this small company. 

We got back to the wharf around 2pm.  It was sunny and warm at this point.  Needed a late lunch, so the woman from Canada, guy from Netherlands, and couple from the UK and I went to try a local fish and chips spot.  It was nice to compare travel stories and our plans.  I'm jealous of everyone taking extended time off. Four weeks from work, a gap year before school, quitting and taking a year off to travel. 

I briefly walked around the town.  It is not as busy as Queenstown or Wanaka. Without any cruise ship visitors, it was a quiet area with not much shopping, but still some restaurants and convenience stores.

View of Akaroa

I got back to Christchurch around 6pm. Had to just get my things ready, eat, and have an early night.  I needed to drop off the car at 4am, so I was slept by 7:30pm. Which wasn't difficult as the drive and excursion really tired me out. 

My time in New Zealand has been incredible.  It was a transformative trip, and sometimes I feel like words cannot really describe it.  How is it possible to have so many beautiful sights everywhere you look?  I was in awe the whole time, and just in disbelief about how much natural beauty was surrounding me.  I felt like I was in a dream and never wanted to wake up.  I loved it all.  I feel a renewed inspiration to explore my own region more.  One day I will come back and spend more time here.  See more of the South Island, and the coasts as well.  Goodbye, New Zealand.  I will see you again.