| Birding
On My Own - Australia and New Zealand 2002 Emmalee Tarry |
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South Island West Coast
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The east and west coasts of south island are separated by a
steep mountain range. The southern west coast is cut by deep scenic fiords. You
can take a bird trip by boat down the west coast and visit these fiords. You
can see two of the fiords by car and boat. The northern west coast can be
traveled by road. From Invercargill I drove into Fiordland staying 3 nights at Te Anau and then crossed over the Hass Pass to descend to the tropical west coast at Haas. I drove north visiting Franz Joseph and Greymouth. Then I drove back over the mountains with a night at Arthur's Pass and another at Hanmer Springs. I spent 3 more days at my favorite place on the south island Kaikoura. |
There are three penguins on the south island. Two I have already seen: Little Penguin and Yellow-eyed Penguin. The Fiorldland Crested Penguin lives only on the west coast and Stewart Island. And if you don't see it in New Zealand you are not going to see it.
The other target birds are Wrybill, Blue Duck, Yellowhead, Fernbird and the ubiquitous alpine parrot the Kea.
Te Anau
There were several beautiful coastal views on the drive from Invercargill before heading up the mountainous road to Te Anau. I stopped at the Manapouri Power Station on Watau River for the flock of Black-billed Gulls.
Te Anau is a beautiful little town on the edge of a large alpine lake. I registered at the YHA and then signed up to take a tour across the lake to the Glow Worm Caves.
The NZ$45 boat trip starts with a trip across the lake to the entrance of the cave where there is a visitors center. After a short video you hike into the cave entrance along a rushing stream. After a short walk you get into the first of two boats. The guide propels the boat by pulling on a cable strung across the ceiling. Along the way you see lots of glow worms. Glow worms are insects that live on the ceiling of the cave and emit light to attract other insects. They appear as tiny points of light on the ceiling. Sometimes you can see web like string hanging down to catch the prey. Then you return the same way you came in.
The mountain side above the glow worm cave is the area where in 1948 they found 250 Takehe which until that time were thought to be extinct. This area is now a sanctuary for the Takehe. There are signs about the Takehe, but little chance that you will see one here. I saw the Takehe on Tiritiri Matangi outside of Auckland.
Doubtful Sound
There are two options for seeing Doubtful Sound. The YHA has special rates on the overnight trip and I was told by a couple that took the trip that it was very nice and they saw the Fiordland Crested Penguin. I took the day trip which cost NZ$190 plus another $19 for lunch.
The trip starts with a boat trip across Lake Manapouri to the power station from the town of Manapouri 22 km from Te Anau.
| Outside the power station visitors center I saw my first
Kea. Notice the long sharp bill on this rather dull bird. The original plan for the power station was to build a dam to raise the lakes 100m in depth. This would have destroyed this beautiful area. Instead they dug a tunnel into the mountain and put the turbines underground. At the visitors center you board buses for the trip down the tunnel to the power station. For some reason you drive on the right hand side of the road down the tunnel. I am glad I am not driving because once down the tunnel the driver has to turn the big bus around in the narrow tunnel. We spent some time in the power station looking at the turbines and reading posters describing the project. |
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The bus trip continues over the Wilmot Pass stopping to look at the moss gardens that grow on the cliffs. At these stops I saw Tomtit and Kea. On reaching the sound at Deep Cove you board the boat for the trip up and back on Doubtful Sound. The sound is very scenic and it is a beautiful restful trip. There is a small island where you can see the Fiordland Crested Penguin coming and going from its nest. We did not see any penguins today. The problem seems to be that the breeding season is almost over and the birds are seen one day and not the next. At the mouth of the sound there is a rock with fur seals. There is also a chance that penguins will be seen on these rocks and the captain did look for them with a pair of binoculars. By that time he knew I was a bird watcher and even said to me "I can't fool you into thinking that gull is a penguin." He was right about that.
On the way back up the sound the boat was followed by a pod of Bottlenosed Dolphins. I pointed them out to the other tourists and everyone on the boat raced to see. The captain reluctantly stopped and let us have a good look at the dolphins. I was most disappointed not to see the penguins
Milford Sound
Undeterred the next day I drove to Milford Sound as a day trip from Te Anau. The drive goes up the mountain to the Homer Tunnel. The Homer Tunnel would never be allowed in the United States. There are no lights in the tunnel and the tunnel goes downhill. It has two very narrow lanes. I must admit that I was very frightened in this tunnel. Of course you don't realize how frightening it is until you are already in it and then there is nothing you can do but keep going..
The Milford Sound trip was much like the Doubtful Sound trip except that I was on a sail boat. We used the power for most of the trip, but at one point they did unfurl the sail. This time we did not see the penguins and frankly the captain wasn't looking for them. We also didn't see any dolphins.
An optional part of the trip is a stop at the underwater observatory. At the end of the trip the boat pulls up to the observatory and lets the passengers who want to visit off. They return to the dock on another boat. I didn't understand that and left my coat and backpack on the first boat. Fortunately the stuff was still there when I got back.
Tanin in the fresh water flows into the sound and the fresh water floats on the salt water. The tanin blocks the light and allows corals to grown. The underwater observatory is a tower built in the sound with a spiral staircase. As you walk around the tower you can look out the windows and see the coral and the fish. This was really quite nice.
Haas Pass
From Te Anau I drove over the alpine meadows to Queenstown. Outside town I stopped at a bridge to watch the bungy jumping. After watching two jumpers from the spectators platform, I walked out on the bridge to stand behind the jumpers. The jumper was a young woman who was crying and saying "I can't do this." The jump masters almost pushed her off the bridge. After the jump she was extatic. It seems to me to be something you don't want to do so much that after you do it you are exhilarated you don't have to do it again.
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Snow capped mountains on the drive over the Haas Pass. There
were also flowering meadows, fruit trees and of course sheep pastures.
I stopped at a farm stand and bought some fruit and enjoyed birding at various stops along the road. |
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