Kaikoura

We're in Kaikoura, the self-styled capital of the Crayfish. They obviously haven't been to Sweden in October.. This is a nice, laid-back place, and the weather is marginally better here on the east coast, slap bang in the middle of the 'rain shadow' from the spine of mountains that runs the length of the south island. We did stop at a vineyard or two on the way past Marlbourough. Rude not to. The main reason for people stopping in Kaikoura is the fact that a deep sea trench comes very close to the coast, leading to large numbers of whales, dolphins and other marine mammals (plus a dazzling array of sharks, apparently) coming close to land to feed and rear their young - and to entertain the tourists. So confident are they that you get your money back if you don't get to see a whale on your trip. We decided to put them to the test.

The boat trip is two hours, on a modern catamaran. The word on the street is that there are loads of whales seen from earlier trips, and the atmosphere is expectant. After about 15 minutes we come across the first sperm whale idling lazily, hovering on the surface for 5-10 minutes, just breathing, preparing for its next dive. Apparently, they can dive to more than three kilometres, and stay under for more than two hours. The sight is mesmerising. Suddenly it arches its back, takes one final breath, sticks its tail in the air, waving goodbye before vanishing into the deep. Straight out of the Greenpeace posters of my youth.

Our guide tells us that all Kaikoura sperm whales are male. And frustrated. Apparently, the females won't let anyone less than 45 years of age anywhere near, so this is one giant bachelor party. Or the longest cold bath in history.

We move on, and in the process almost crash into one surfacing beast, totally non-plussed about our presence. The ocean is boiling with whales, it seems. Although on reflection it was only four more, but we're all grinning from ear to ear. We move closer to shore, and see several dolphins, but the guide says that there's no point hanging around for only a handful - we want to see HUNDREDS of dolphins. And suddenly...

They're everywhere - in front, behind, on both sides, jumping, summersaulting, ducking, diving, showing off. A pod of perhaps 200 individuals have temporarily made their home in the bay, with lots of babies.

Sarah took a few video shorts of the events. The quality is dubious due to the still camera used, and the fact that she was also busy watching, rather than concentrating on the filming..

[Videos removed due to hosting issues]