We had some wonderful views on the flight. This is Oreti Beach, 26 km of hard packed sand that Burt Munroe (of 'World's Fastest Indian' fame) used to test his bike:
And this is Half-Moon Bay which the only town on Stewart Island, Oban, wraps itself around. At a total population of 400, and a land area not far off 2000km2 that leaves a lot of island wilderness!
Another view of the township - not difficult to find your way around!
Ulva Island, a bird paradise where they have got it completely free of rats, stoats and possums to give the native species a fighting chance:
Some of the beautiful bays and inlets that we got to explore by sea kayak:
And our trusty steed after a rather bumpy touch down on the island:
The island is gorgeous:
Its dificult to get anywhere without taking to the water:
But well worth it when you get there:
This dog thought so too - he was very industriously digging up the entire beach!
Here is the water taxi that took us out to Ulva Island:
We spent most of the day exploring little Ulva, with views of Patterson Inlet:
Untouched beaches:
And a few makeshift amusements!
The flora is stunning native podocarp forest, with some species that have pretty much died out on the mainland:
But the island is chiefly known for its bird life, and we have a whole separate post full of bird pics to post!
We were also lucky enough while on Stewart Island to see a kiwi in the wild. Secretive, nocturnal and in low numbers on the mainland, most human 'kiwis' have never seen a wild one! They are much more common on Stewart Island, so we went looking just in case, and were rewarded with one coming right up to where we were sitting, before realising what we were and shooting off at an unbelievably fast pace across the field. They are definitely very special birds!
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