1 - Kaikoura

2 - Kaikoura Peninsular

3 - Seal Colonies

4 - Coastal Pacific Rail: from Picton to Kaikoura

Kaikoura, where the Mountains meet the Sea, is small township located on a rocky peninsula. The deep sea provides a rich habitat for marine mammals and seabirds. Maori heritage is reflected in the name: Kai-food Koura-crayfish. Europeans established in 1843 the 1st shore whaling stations near Fyffe House. Meanwhile, resident Sperm Whales and other migrating species such as humpback whales, dolphins, orca and fur seals are the basis for a Maori owned tour operator to offer whale watching tours.

Kaikoura Peninsular walkway along the rugged coast, with a backdrop of steep snow-capped mountains. Mountains are rising about 1cm/y and periods of rapid uplift (earthquakes) have formed steep-sided promontories; limestone or siltstone tidal platforms are rising from the sea, exposed to erosion during less active geological periods.

3 - Seal Colonies at Kaikoura Peninsular, and Dolphins - but no flukes of Sperm Whales seen in October 2016 (...hiding in the deep sea for the November earthquake?)

4 - Coastal Pacific Rail, from Picton to Kaikoura alongside mountains and the sea (shortly before the big Kaikoura earthquakes on 14th Nov 2016)