Stewart Island is south of the South Island and is comprised of more than 80% National Park. Only 380 people live on the island permanently and it has 17 miles of roads. The Māori myth says that Stewart Island was created when the demi-god, Maui, threw out an anchor to hold his canoe. (His canoe became the South Island. The North Island is a fish he caught.) A creative artist created two anchor sculptures, one on the South Island (Stirling Point, Bluff) and one on Stewart Island (Lee Bay Trailhead) to symbolize the anchor chain.
We took the ferry from Bluff to the island and stayed at the Rakiuria Retreat that included a car with the room. Even though there are very few roads it was handy to have a car to drive to the town and the trailheads via windy and steep roads. They only have 20+ year old cars on the island since modern electronics can’t be repaired locally. Our host told us to leave the keys in the car, where is a thief going to go?
The accommodation also came with a resident kaka (a type of parrot). We had takeout the first night and it hung off the gutter to watch us eat. It likes apples, and defended its perch from other kakas.
Ulva Island
Ulva Island is a short water taxi from Steward Island. They have managed to eradicate all non-native predators (ferrets, rats, possums) and the native bird population is rebounding. We are not really into bird watching but we took a hike around the island and did our best. With the help of other people on the trail we saw lots of interesting birds. We tried to take pictures, but they did not turn out very well. So here are some other aspects of the hike.
We were warned about sea lions as they can bite. One blocked our trail, so we had to find another path. An aggressive weka (flightless bird) joined us for our lunch on a beach, we had to keep scaring it away. Diane also found a nice seaweed hat! It was a great hike and a must do day trip from Stewart Island.
Kiwi Tour
The endangered Kiwi (flightless birds) are thriving on Stewart Island. Kiwis are nocturnal so kiwi spotting tours start late in the evening. Our guide had red flashlights, as that part of the light spectrum does not scare or blind them. We were fortunate to see one foraging for about 30 minutes. We later saw a kiwi parent and their offspring fighting. Apparently as the chicks get older the the parents need to kick them out of their territory. It was a noisy, chaotic fight in an out of the brush.
Rakiura Track: Hike to Maori Beach
We hiked one segment of the three day Rakiura Track from the start at Lee Bay to Maori Beach. It follows the coastline and the turn around point (for us) was a swing bridge at the far end of Maori Beach. Fortunately there was a shelter on Maori Beach for lunch as we had sporadic rain showers that day. We ate lunch there and met all sorts of interesting folks hiking the track.
Diane on the Māori Beach swing bridge
Hikes around Stewart Island
We also did several shorter hikes in the area, here are a few pictures.
Stewart Island was an interesting and fun visit, it felt very remote and raw.
The kiwis! Wow, you have nailed retirement. How did you plan this – internet research or did you use a travel company to put together a plan for you based on your interests?
We did all our own planning. We used a combo of Lonely Planet,NZ Facebook groups, and internet search. We did the major logistics including timing, accommodations, and hard to get reservations in advance. The rest we have been figuring out as we go. The kiwi tour we booked about one week before we got to Stewart Island. We are retired now so we have more time to plan. 🙂
Great blog, Dave and Diane! Hope Sarah and Owen are doing well! Still remember the time Owen fell through the dock in Sweden. Love, Eddie and Sandy
Sarah and Owen are doing great! We do remember that time in Sweden. We also remember you both using the sauna every night and taking dips in the Baltic, I think you both became part Swedish on that trip. Skol!