The Otago peninsula is one of the most beautiful spots in
New Zealand and the harbor by Port Chalmers is peacefully surrounded by rolling
hills that were a little brown from the lack of rain. Other trips here, the
green hills were amazing. They still were, just not as green. We docked at a
pier full of logs again. Logging is a huge industry in New Zealand and these
were probably destined for China which does a lot of importing of NZ wood.
With so many going off the ship on tours or catching the
shuttle into town, we decided to do our laundry before it was time for our
excursion. We loaded the washers and set the timer on Bob’s phone then decided
to use our forty minutes to take a quick walk into the little port town. Our
exit from the ship was blocked however for a few minutes by the scenic train
picking up its passengers for their excursion to Taieri Gorge. Once on our way
though we walked past all the limousines lined up for those who had ordered
private cars for the day. Lovely, but not our style.
Businesses were not open except for a few cafes serving
coffee and light breakfast. The church that sits on the hill is always a great
picture opportunity. There wasn’t enough time to take a look inside again but I
remembered the last time hearing organ music during our visit.
We scurried back to the ship (which seemed to be the tallest
building in the area) when it was time to move the clothes to the dryer. It
probably wasn’t necessary to hurry. The ship was pretty empty and we didn’t see
anyone else waiting for the machines.
While our clothes dried, we got a cup of coffee in the
Bistro on board and talked about our other visits to Dunedin to see the Larnach
Castle, the train station, Cadburry’s and Speight’s and so many of the other
sights passengers on excursions were enjoying.
Clothes stowed once again, it was time to gather with the
others on our volunteer excursion. Since we’d visited Dunedin so many times, we
decided this was a great opportunity to give back. The excursion was to the
Penguin Place we’d seen on our last visit but this time we were there to do a
little work—plant a tree.
The Penguin Place is way out almost to the end of the
peninsula where the albatross have a colony but before we even started out
there, the bus took us around the city of Dunedin to show us highlights, stop
for a few pictures along the way and then head out to our primary goal. “No
wonder it’s a six hour excursion,” I said to Bob. We were a little disappointed
because we could have done all of the sightseeing on our own if we’d wanted.
Still, it was a good opportunity for those who might not have seen it all
before.
I enjoyed the drive out to the Penguin Place. It’s a winding
drive all around the harbor and eventually we could see our ship on the other
side of it. I wondered why we couldn’t have all gotten on a boat and just
ferried across to a dock on the peninsula and save time. I’m sure there were
reasons.
At the Penguin Place, we divided into two groups of twelve
and each had a guide to take us on a little walk to see some of the rare
yellow-eyed penguins that were molting. After the egg-laying season, and
raising the young, the penguins have to take a month to molt away from the sea.
During the molting when the old feathers are pushed out by the new, the birds
are not waterproof and the sea would kill them. That being said, they have to
eat a lot before molting so that they have the energy to survive the month on shore
away from their food source.
The birds we saw in the underbrush were a pair. Penguins
mate with one other and as long as they keep producing young, they stay
together. The male was a little farther along in his molting since the female
had been on the nest so long. They were grooming each other and not moving far
from where they were. The less energy spent in movement, the more likely they
would survive the month of not eating.
We found some blue penguin nests. The blue penguins are
burrowers and often make their own nests or expand on the little wooden
shelters set up by the conservation group. They are quite small and hard to see
when they are inside their nests. Hence, no pictures. Maybe some other day,
some other place, at the right time. Sigh.
We took a look at the colony of young male seals below us on
the beach and rocks. They were called sneakers because they would sneak around
the other point of land, mate quickly with a female, and then hurry back before
the alpha male of the other colony could attack them.
Up on a hillside, we could see the trailer with our tools
and plants ready for us to get our hands dirty. It was actually quite an easy
task since the fellow in charge had already cut through the turf. The dirt
below the thick grass was easy to work and since the plants were not all that
big, we didn’t have to dig much. Each of us planted one of several different
varieties and watered it thoroughly. They were hoping for rain in the evening
to water them again.
A little higher up from where we were, was a patch of plants,
shrubs and trees that had been planted about eight years ago. Most of the
vegetation was about waist high. They are slow growing plants but as the guides
assured us, the new plants and vegetation would be a welcome sight to the
penguins who looked for a place to make new nests. We all hoped it would
encourage the penguin population to grow.
On our way back to the bus, we stopped in at the “hospital.”
Penguins seem to be a delicacy for barracuda or maybe just a little fun.
Whatever the case, the barracuda were attacking the penguins at sea and causing
injuries. So some were there recuperating and others were there because they
were young and were not eating enough to survive out on their own yet. Once
their weight was increased to normal, they would be given a gentle release meaning
they would be in a pen that they could leave whenever they wanted and they
would continue to get fed in the pen. Our guide said it didn’t take long before
the call of the sea won out and they would not return to the pen.
It was a wonderful afternoon and another scenic ride back to
the ship. This is a place we would love to return to—often.
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