Day 12: Stewart Island
A quiet sunrise on the beach – that was the view we got at 7AM this morning. Now THIS is what we imagined freedom camping would be like! (Did I mention it’s FREE?)
View of Colca Bay from our campervan window
We had plenty of time to drive down to Bluff for our ferry to Stewart Island. We wandered around town for a few minutes before we remembered that it was Sunday, explaining why the place felt like a ghost town (Funny how being unemployed makes you forget the days of the week – eh?).
Bluff, NZ – on the otherside of the world from NYC
The ferry ride to Stewart Island was very choppy, as the boat was going full-throttle through open ocean. Igor tried to enjoy the deck and take pictures, but he was eventually crowded out by half the passengers trying to do the same thing.
Stewart Island in the distance – lots of tourists getting excited for the ferry-ride
Once we got to Stewart Island, we hit up the local DOC info center to help us plan our daytrip. Unfortunately, we learned that the kiwi bird is nocturnal, so all the guided walks to try and see them in the wild required an overnight stay. And while Ulva Island (a bird sanctuary off Stewart Island, where the DOC has eradicated all invasive predators for the native birds) is a big attraction, we had already paid $75pp each way for the ferry, and didn’t feel up to paying for the water taxi as well. We decided to hike the first section of the Rakiura Track to Maori Beach instead.
We came to Stewart Island looking for kiwi…
…but since it was daytime, we only saw seagulls and some guy’s chickens
Wind-swept trees along the Rakiura Track to Maori Beach
Mossy trails through the forest, with a few pretty beaches on the way
Stewart Island has a history of being disconnected from the mainland…too busy eating oysters to hook up the telephone?
Island living at the bottom of the World
Maybe it was the price tag of the day, or maybe it’s just that Doubtful Sound is a tough act to follow, but we found Stewart Island to be very underwhelming. Our advice: not recommended as a day-trip.