When we were in the Bay of Islands in January, we had hoped to see dolphins, but didn’t. On the Waitangi holiday in February, we went to Whakatane partly on the suggestion that boat trips were available there to see dolphins. They were, but the time of our arrival and necessary departure meant that we missed them. There is a resident pod of 50-odd bottlenose dolphins in Doubtful Sound, but we saw nothing on our first afternoon’s cruising. However, after a hearty breakfast, further exploration of the Sound brought its rewards; as we headed towards Hall Arm, a splashing could be seen in the distance. As we neared, a couple of curious dolphins came to play, riding the bow wave of the boat and leaping and dashing through the wake at the side, to the oohs and aahs of all the passengers gathered along the bow and sides to watch. When the dolphins left us, the captain stopped the engines at the end of the Arm to allow us to listen to the Sound, if you’ll pardon the pun. In the quiet, the area was full of birdsong and bird calls, the bush on the rock walls teeming with life, demonstrating the value to New Zealand of the wilderness of the Fiordland National Park.
With great reluctance, the trip came to an end and we disembarked in order to make the return journey, this time in bright autumn sunshine. The only differences were a trip to Te Anau (below) for lunch and to pick up Skip’s coach, then a stop at a tiny place called Athol, for an ice-cream.
We finally got back to Queenstown at about 3.30, and were driven in the coach to the door of our second motel, much less well positioned than Saturday’s, but rather more modern and attractive inside.
