From Bluff to the Catlins - a wildlife paradise!!

Well, what a wonderful few days we have had travelling from Bluff through the Catlins to Balclutha, a small but important town where we have found an excellent i-Site. It has good internet access and will allow us to use our gadgets to download photos.

Bluff is right down at the bottom of South Island, the ferry point for Stewart Island. We found wonderful accomodation with Roy and Robyn at the Lazy Fish and spent 24 hours exploring this very interesting town. There is a well signposted Heritage Trail which took us to tiny churches, ship graveyards, the Maritime Museum, Bluff Hill and a wonderful walk around the peninsula from Stirling Point to Lookout Point. Wonderful views, excellent information boards and stunning cliff scenery. The kelp which hangs onto the rocks is absolutely fantastic, it has evolved to swirl around the jagged rocks without being damaged.

We were very pleased to have been able to visit Bluff, somewhere that should not just be used as a transit point. Also Invercargill, the local city; it was very quiet even though it was Saturday something which we still find strange. It has a good little museum and Art Gallery and just out of town the Anderson Art Gallery which has a good collection of NZ art.

Then we started our exploration of the Catlins. This is an area stretching from Fortrose to Balclutha a distance of some 160kms. The scenery changes from green pasture to forest covered hills, open valleys to winding forest roads. It is really beautiful but its real jewel is its coast. The beaches are awesome, long stretches of golden sand completely undisturbed except by the local sealion population. On the beaches where the flax and othe native plants come down to a rocky rim before the sand the very rare yellow eyed penguins can be seen waddling up the beach at the end of a long fishing day to feed their chicks. There are headlands and wonderfully strange geology - pebbles trapped in layers of sandstone and petrified trees on Curio Bay. I can feel myself wandering off so I'll get back to the point!

We stayed in a wonderful house just outside Fortrose, The Garden House, owned by Chris and Colin McKenzie. It is the old schoolhouse from Fortrose transported to its present site by lorry (a common occurence here - they even move churches!!!). A wonderful setting protected by trees and overlooking rolling fields.

Here we are at Slope Point which is officially the southernmost point on mainland New Zealand.


As you can see we are still enjoying wonderful sunshine!! The Catlins would be good to look at on google earth and for geologists the rocks here and at nearby Waipapa Point are fascinating. Talking of Waipapa, it was here that we saw our first sealions. They lie out on the sand enjoying the sun and flicking sand onto their bodies to keep cool. They look up when you are near but generally just lie down again. They are quite dangerous though and can attack if they feel threatened. At nearby Curio Bay we marvelled at the petrified Jurassic forest and at the yellow eyed penguins.


Fogg's photos are as always brilliant!! The penguins walked quite close by and at this beach seemed unconcerned about our presence.

We then travelled on through the Catlins to Surat Bay, another massive stretch of sand on which were sunbathing up to 10 sealions. We were really pleased to watch a very large male haul himself upright and 'walk' down to the sea for a cooling swim. At Nugget Point we walked out to the lighthouse on the way spotting more penguins and fur seal pups playing in the kelp on the water's edge and sunbathing on the rocks. We have overnighted at Kaka Point and watched the sun go down on a good surfing beach. Poor Fogg, he is wildlifed out so we will just chill for the next few days on the Otago Peninsula before going to the Albatross Colony.

Best wishes from a very happyily wildlifed Phileas!!

Hi, Fogg here.

What can I say. It is continuing to be awesome. Sorry to keep using this word, commonly used over here, but that is what it has been. The sights , sounds and people are all quite wonderful. I must just mention Roy and Robyn from the Lazy Fish at Bluff again. We spent a happy evening with them chatting and drinking wine and they made us feel very welcome. Christine McKenzie was equally welcoming and she extended her hospitality and we spent a couple of times with her and husband Colin drinking coffee and talking Science and Art both of which she had considerable interest in. Their cottage 'The Garden House' was wonderful and a real joy to be in. A magnificent view from the end of the garden which I painted. I had a couple of hours off from 'Nature Watch with Kate!'

Having had the luxury of hotels in South East Asia we are now truly winging it. We have accomodation booked up for the next week but do not know where we will be after that although we have a rough idea of the area. We are aiming for the Franz Joseph Glacier which I am particularly looking forward to.

South Island is fantastic, that is not to say that North Island wasn't. It is also, but, South Island is so quiet. There are less people in South Island than there are in the whole of Auckland. Invergargill, which Phileas has mentioned appeared to be almost deserted. Wide roads with the occasional car and a few people and an interesting place with lots to do and to see. The driving in our Ford focus is however somewhat hair raising as I am more interested in the views than keeping my eyes on the road. Phileas is an amazing map reader and under her guidance and my driving we have been to some amazing places.

NZ seem to be so relaxed. I am sitting in an i site and can see our car. It is parked under a sign that says ' one hour max' Don't move it I am told, we don't have any traffic wardens here. No worries.

What with the sun tan, the greying hair and a Maori Green stone on a thong around my neck I seem to be 'Going local.'

I'm loving it here.

All love and best wishes to you all

Fogg xxxxxxxx