Dude, where's my kayak / wind?

This weekend was supposed to be one of adventure; kayaking to Browns Island on Saturday and blo-karting today. Unfortunately the much talked about, but little realised "weather bomb" - up here at least - led to our kayaking trip being cancelled. Meanwhile, today, the wind died pretty much as soon as we arrived at the beach reading to kart.

Our last minute, plan B, today, thanks to a tip from a colleague, was to head to a nearby orchard and pick some mandarins; $2 for a kilo, sweet!

Yesterday's plan B was to stay inside in watch movies, since we were expecting the conditions outside to be rather inclement.

Yet, while a little cold, and certainly windy, the sun was shining so we headed south for plan C - a walk around Duder's Regional Park.

Fairly large at 162ha with unparalleled views of the Hauraki Gulf, it is located approx 50 minutes drive south of Auckland on the pohutukawa-fringed Whakakaiwhara Peninsula.

Lot's of walking to be had here and the views were indeed, awesome. There's at least 5 hours of tracks to explore; but since Amanda's back is still on the mend we restricted ourselves somewhat.

Here is Amanda, suited and booted - just in case the weather bomb returns. As it happened, it did rain once - and you can see a rainbow where the rain cloud was before it hit us and the same cloud after it had passed us.

One thing we have bemoaned since arriving here is the apparent lack of birdlife. They are there, apparently, and you occasionally hear them, but rarely see them- nothing for my inner birder to get excited about.

Yup, once upon a time, before I found computers, beer and girls (and sometime before they found me) I was a keen birder or bird watcher.

Just today we managed to spot no less than 10 different types of bird.

And roughly in the order we spied them, here they are:

• Pukeko
• Some kind of hawk
• Kereru
• Fantail
• Kotare (Sacred Kingfisher)
• Black Oystercatcher
• Heron
• European Goldfinch
• Toutouwai (Robin)
• Sparrow

The Kereru, or wood pigeon is a rather plump bird - we interrupted it tucking in to whatever it was sitting on. The Fantail is an acrobatic little fellow and fond of dancing around you. The Pukeko's are strange birds, much like moorhens back home; with a strange bumpy flight when startled.

The goldfinch, was obviously a long way from home, while to me, the Oystercatchers often look like they are laughing. Spot of the day however, had to be the Kotare or Sacred Kingfisher. We disturbed a few of them when we sought shelter underneath a leage pohutukawa tree during the rain. Brilliant turquoise on top and an orange tinted white underneath.

South Island: Day Four

Dunedin - Portobello

Saturday 16th February

Up early doors to pay a visit to the Otago Farmers market; Stock up on eggs, fruit and vegs. Amanda, does well to avoid the bread and cake. :0)

Today's destination is the Otago Peninsula. Our guide book recommends several walks in the area; the best of which appears to be the Lovers Leap track.

Civilization is soon left behind; as is the last petrol station. The roads on the peninsula or twisty, often very steep and in many places, gravel. The camper struggles a bit on some of the steeper ones and when we hit a very steep gravel road, we decide to leave it at the bottom and walk up!

Amanda not overly keen. Decide to see how it goes; it does not look far on the map. Turns out it was further than we thought; each time we reached a crest in the road, thinking we were there, we found out we were not. Lot's of evidence of the drought - the country's worst in quite a while.

Worth the effort though as the views were stunning. Judge for yourself.

It takes 40 minutes to reach the start of the walk proper; meet two guys who have cycled all the way from Invercargil. Next hour is spent walking around the headland and then scaling Sandy Mount for even more spectacular views across the peninsula - A mixture of woodland, bush and farmland.

With the walk finished we still have the return journey back to the camper. Thankfully it mostly down hill; and a good thing too as the sun is out now and blazing away. Amanda thanks me for 'forcing' her to do it. Twas just some gentle persuasion, says I.

Famished, we lunch at Portobello's 1908 Cafe. Reasonable; another huge bowl of wedges with sour cream and chilli sauce - seems to be standard fare here. Coffee poor.

Head over to the other side of the peninsula and 'Sandly Bay'; named after flying sand and not the little critters. Stop off on the way at Lanarch Castle; not really a castle, but a rich man's idea of a house. Spend an hour ambling around the grounds - well maintained, large succulent garden and impressive views. A wedding is under way as we wander.

With early evening beckoning we continue on to the bay. The big draw here is the 'Yellow Eyed' penguins who come to shore around dusk. To avoid scaring them we need to use a hide; at the opposite end of the beach.

However, first we need to get down to the beach itself; clamber down some huge grass tufted sand dunes - they are going to be fun coming up again later! At the bottom we meet a volunteer. She will be here for about 5 hours clipboard in hand. Don't envy her as it's very windy down here. Thankfully yesterday's rain means that there is not too much sand flying through the air though.

It's quite a slog along the beach; and with the wind howling around us we also need to take care not to bother any of the sleeping sea lions, slumbering on the beach.

The afternoon sun is a distant memory; and both cold and windswept, the hide makes a welcome reprieve from the elements. We are rewarded with a view of the famous and rare penguins - Amanda is very happy!

There are two of them sitting at various heights on the cliffs preening - how do they get there?! Not lucky enough to see them move, but still pretty cool. Can see a lot sea lions lounging around too.

It's starting to get dark (and cold) and we don't fancy navigating the sea lion infested beach, nor climbing those dunes, in the dark. So time to bounce.

Odometer: 429km