Albatross Encounter

"The shear beauty of these very large birds cleaving the water as they bank over the waves was awe inspiring. Also the backdrop of the Kaikoura Mountains made it all the more spectacular. To me it was one of the greatest birding experiences I have ever had."

"It was such a special trip, as you can probably tell from the amount of photos that I've added to the blog (and you should have seen what I left off….) and it really was a day that we will never forget. And we shall visit our dear friend Gary when he comes to the Rutland Bird Fair in the UK next August to promote this fantastic trip."

"For those wanting to see albatross, I think this would be a lot better than on the peninsula at Dunedin."

"They flew in from upwind, carved a clean bottom turn in our wake, wings stretching out past both sides of view in my binoculars, and coasted in through a pile of petrels and shearwaters to take possession. Bigger than a turkey, with massive chest, they were deceptively light on their wings. The biggest one arrived in one swoop past the bait, then calmly hung out its left foot in the water and made a neat pivot like a kayaker catching an eddy."

"We took an afternoon tour to look at the Albatross. Kaikoura is one of the few places you can see Albatross so close to land. We saw lots of birds and animals on the tour. The birds we saw include Wandering, Black-browed and Salvins Albatross, Petrels, Shearwaters, Shags, Terns, Gulls, a Gannet and a couple of Reef Herons that looked to be setting up a nest."

"we saw some of the largest species we have ever seen, such as the Giant Northern Petrel and the Wandering Albatross, as well as the smaller petrels, shearwaters,albatross, gannets, terns and gulls."

"Our skipper was so knowledgeable and helpful. It was an amazing experience and I've never seen an Albatross before, thank you very much!"

"A bird watchers dream! Many of the birds come in very close to the boat, so you really get a good look at them. The ship captain was extremely knowledgable, and did an excellent job both pointing out different bird species on the wing and maneuvering the boat in to get closer views."

"We've never seen an albatross before; they have truly huge and majestic wingspans the tips of which look as if they are millimetres above the swell of the ocean."

"The experience was, fantastic. We saw a great many species of birds, including the Gibson's Albatross ( The Wanderer ) - a most amazing sight in flight, and wonderful close up on the water right behind the boat."