I arrived in Christchurch in the evening, so it was literally a case of having something to eat and then chilling out a bit before retiring for the night and getting up for my pre-booked trip the following day to the French town of Akaroa. Christchurch is located on the east coast of New Zealand’s South Island and is known for its English heritage. It has a diverse landscape, a great climate, and a population of over 400,000.
The weather was perfect for this trip with a blue and cloudless sky stretching out before me. I had booked a shuttle bus that runs daily between Christchurch and Akaroa and takes around 1.5 to 2 hours – it also includes a stop on the way out where you can get a fantastic view of the lake in the distance, and a stop on the return at a cheese factory. There was a good commentary on the bus and the route out to Akaroa offered some great scenery.
The bus dropped me off in Akaroa town centre which is full of colonial architecture and has an array of quaint gift shops, craft stores, art galleries, and eateries – this is the perfect place to indulge in some French cuisine. I also came across a lovely fudge shop where you can sample the fudges to decide which you like the best! I then stopped off at a little café that was just perfect and had some lovely comfortable outdoor seating. It was turning into a really hot day, so sun cream was a must!
Early afternoon was my trip on the lake with Black Cat Cruises to search for the Hector’s dolphin, fur seals, white flippered penguins, and an array of other sea birds. Whales can also be seen at times – although I didn’t see any of those. The lake is absolutely stunning, and on a perfect day such as this it was even more stunning.
I headed over to the wharf where I had to board the boat and waited to check in. It was extremely hot when we first boarded the boat, but as we set sail and headed further out towards the Pacific Ocean it got colder – so if you go on this trip I would advise you to take a warm fleece top or such like to put on once you get out on the lake.
We travelled for a little while before spotting a sleeping penguin and a group of fur seals, and according to communication from other boats that day no dolphins had been sighted. I had everything crossed, though, and it paid off as we then had a sighting of several dolphins up
ahead. They came right up to the front of the boat, so everyone got a good view of them and was able to get some good little videos. The Hector’s dolphin is only small compared to the bottlenose dolphin and it has distinct black facial and fin markings. These dolphins are one of the smallest and rarest species in the world and are only found in New Zealand. I felt really lucky to have been able to see these beautiful creatures in their natural habitat. The whole trip was great from start to finish, and there were hot drinks available on the boat which were definitely required after the freezing cold breeze up on the deck!
