M.T.P.: Whale Watching

The last day spent with my parents was hectic, but fun nonetheless. The plan called for another train excursion, this time on the TranzCoastal, a rail line that snakes its way along the coast of Middle Earth, from Christchurch to Picton. Unlike the previous excursion, my parents & I would get off the train at the town of Kaikoura to partake in a whale-watching trip.

As always, the train station was bustling with activity when we arrived in the very early morning. This time, two groups would be coming along for the ride: primary school students, and Asian tourists. Luckily, the students had a carriage all to themselves so no one else had to suffer their overly energetic behaviours. Also, my parents had to bring their suitcases with them because they would continue travelling north, eventually reaching the city of Auckland.

The TranzCoastal ride was better in my mind, not making as many stops as the TranzAlpine. The only difficulty was when taking photographs – timing was important so as to avoid capturing passing by trees and only the majestic coastline.

We arrived at the coastal town of Kaikoura at around 10 in the morning, the weather being a mix of clear & overcast skies, and strong winds. My parents freed themselves from dragging their suitcases around by locking them up at the train station. Despite the presence of strong winds, the whale watching trips were still on but with warnings of seasickness. The warnings didn’t bother me because I had plenty of Gravol pills to combat any nausea. My mother decided to stay behind due to a severe headache caused by the weather.

My dad & I, along with 40 other tourists were bused to the marina where our vessel named the Te Ao Marama was waiting. In case the unthinkable happened, I swallowed 2 Gravol pills just as our ship slowly pulled out of the marina. It then accelerated to 20 knots (40km/h), heading into the open sea searching for the marine wildlife the passengers came to see.

Whale watching has its ups & downs (not referring to the water currents), the kind the wildlife documentaries forget to tell you. Since the whales were not in a zoo, the trained crews had to find the whales using sonar and help from a friendly helicopter circling above. When the captain stopped the vessel for the third time to take a sonar reading, I quietly joked to my dad that we had a better chance of finding Jimmy Hoffa than any humpback whales. No sooner had I said that, the helicopter above spotted a surfaced sperm whale. We raced over and watched it take on air before diving for another deep feeding, its tail rising in the air before disappearing beneath the surface.

Before the captain turned the ship towards shallow waters, we watched another sperm whale perform the same routine. Upon entering shallow waters, we were greeted by a school of dolphins, happily swimming under the wake of the boat and jumping out of the water. The only way to capture this spectacle was through filming because it was impossible to catch an action shot. We also circled a large rock island, home to a number of seals, and hundreds of birds.

We were supposed to see a humpback whale that had been spotted earlier but time had run out and the whale had done a good of hiding. I would say the whale watching was worth the $150NZD for 2 hours. Just make sure to bring Gravol to combat seasickness.

My dad & I met up with my mom back at the train station and entertained her with our whale watching stories. We spent the rest of the time munching on snacks at the café and walking along the coast, snapping family pictures.

The next thing we knew, it was time for me to catch the train back to Christchurch. My parents would stay behind and catch the train heading north to Picton where they would catch the ferry to Wellington on the North Island. We hugged and said our goodbyes as I boarded the train for a quiet ride home. My parents thanked me for being their tour guide and proclaimed their trip a success.

It was great to see my parents again, the last time being in late June. My parents’ visit also restarted the clock on how long I’ve survived without them. My record now stands at 19 weeks. To break it, I have to last until April 2009, alone. I’m ready.

End of Meet The Parents 5 part mini-series.