Youve Lost That Loving Feeling hasnt worked nor the theme to Indiana Jones so I think Sod it and start singing my own song Three Little Words. It isnt exactly the best rendition sung through a snorkel mouth piece but some how it works. Suddenly Im surrounded by half a dozen Dusky dolphins criss crossing from all directions less than a metre from me. Then one passes from right to left within half a metre of my face and looks me directly in eye. And in that moment I can see an intelligence but also a mildly bored expression as if to say I like the song but I wouldnt buy the album. Flipper What the October weather in New Zealand gives with one hand it often takes with the other. Leaving a rain soaked Queens Town we head north into warm sunshine and through stunning sparkling mist patched hills. By lunch time weve reached Lake Pukaki, a lake with a water so light marine coloured that as you look at it you cant quite believe your eyes. The lake is glacier and rain fed, the colour of the water caused by a silt called Rock Flower deposited into it from the surrounding earth. On a good day New Zealand will often gift you with such scenery, but it often takes a bad days weather make a good one. Without the previous days rain thered have been no mist to hang on the hills and I try to keep this optimism in mind as we enter the cloud of violent wind and heavy rain that surrounds our stop for the night next below Mt Cook. The next morning, despite a short clear spell, we leave the area under a cloud of drizzle without having actually seen Mt Cook or its nearby glacier but thankfully head back into the sunshine as we hit Rangitata. Its here I try my hand at horse ridding for the first time in three years. At the end of which all I have to say is any activity that leaves you with a smile on you face and aching balls in my book is a good one (I never did get the hang of trotting). Rangitata is a beautiful place consisting of undulating green cattle farming land backed by pine forests, blue skys and distant snow capped mountains. At our hostel for the night we derive probably far too much fun from the ping pong table and walk out of the grounds to gaze at one of, while not necessarily the brightest, the most star packed skys Ive ever seen. Awaking the next morning to a heart warming display of a golden yellow sunrise over the distant mountains we travel to Kaikoura with the sun on our back and calm blue and turquoise coastal waters ahead. As we arrive, despite a cold taking the best of my energy Im still as excited as a child before Christmas morning as the success rate of the dolphin experience here is very high. After being given a full thermal wetsuit with hood and accidently exposing myself to some women heading past the open door of the mens changing room, we are taught how to attract and interact with the Dusky dolphins that inhabit the bay. Theres no touching, baiting or feeding, the boat simply locates a pod by looking for birds feeding at which point they send us siding off the back into the water. Singing, keeping our hands to our sides and duck diving is the best way to attract their attention and it works three out of the five times we go in. Its the second swim when I find myself seperated from the othe swimmers that they come closest to me. My other two songs and even the theme tune from flipper sung in the later dips proving less popular than the first it seems. After some hot chocolate and a challenging boat rocking change out of my wetsuit we have the opportunity to watch the dolphins at play. No one knows why they like to follow the bow of the boat or jump and play around in the water (possibly to attract a mate) but play they do making for some great photos. Its a great end to a grand adventure as my journey reaches its close and while Ive do doubt there will still be fun to be had there, Wellington will be dull in comparison. For now though with a beaming smile on my face I can tick another item off my bucket list and, joking aside, that moment the dolphins criss crossed in front of me and me alone in the water, when I made eye contact with an intelligence comparable to my own, as brief as that moment was, it will likely stay with me till the end of my days.
Posted on: Sat, 26 Oct 2013 10:09:25 +0000
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