Plan B gets an A+

We parted ways with our German friends and headed down the east coast to Kaikoura to do some whale watching.We booked on the first tour of the day, but when we arrived, the trip was cancelled due to rough seas.  It was difficult for us to comprehend this as we looked at dead calm water from the shore.  We re-booked for an afternoon tour and did some much needed laundry.  We asked a nice Australian gentleman for some change and joked about seeing him on the other side of the island later (Hint: remember this for a later post).

With our partly dried laundry hanging from a makeshift drying line in the van, we went for a walk along the coast.  Next to the carpark was a seal colony.  Signs warned not to touch or attempt to move the seals.  Who tries to move them?  The males can weigh up to 200kg!

We tried to walk along the coast, but we were met by a big sunbathing seal.  With the tide coming in, there was only a little space to pass him, but we didn't want to chance disturbing him.  Seals look cute, but they are known to bite.  So we decided to take the high road, literally.  We climbed up to the ridge and had beautiful views of the ocean and coastline.  Later, we made our way back to the coast and saw more seals on the rocks and even in the grass.

A takeaway seafood platter filled our tummies and on the way back to the harbour, Thomas pulled over to pick up our first hitchhiker.  Yumi was a little perplexed until she saw the sweet little Dutch lady Thomas had stopped for.  She had booked on the same morning boat and then the afternoon trip and decided to take a 5 hour walk to kill some time.  She was so thankful for the short ride to town.  It was her first trip staying in youth hostels so she wanted to show us what it was like inside.  We kindly declined as we were well aware of what they are like, but it was so kind of her to offer.

Unfortunately, the afternoon trip was also cancelled.  Disappointed, we started back up north to Picton.  Along the way we stopped at a hidden gem called Ohau Stream.  Yumi had spotted it in our Escape manual and we thought we would give it a go.  We missed it the first time we drove by and had to ask for directions as it truly is hidden.  It was well worth the effort.  We saw young seals playing in the stream.  They swim, wiggle, hop, squirm their way up stream from the ocean.  

The day didn't turn out as planned; it was even better.  That's why it gets an A+ (for those of you not familiar with the American educational system, A+ is the highest mark one can recieve).