We called our support number for our campervan to get some repair work done. We had two cabinets which had latches that seized. One was under the sink and the built-in garbage pail was there, partially full of garbage. Sooner or later we were going to have to open that door. So they scheduled us for a stop at an auto salvage company first thing in the morning.

When we arrived we were quite surprised to find a nicely appointed office. The owner of the company made us welcome, offered us coffee from his fine coffee machine and a biscuit (cookie). He took a look at the problem and worked with the latch for a while until it began to work again. We had a second latch which had also become difficult to release so he did the same with that. Then he tackled a cabinet door which had lost a hinge and when I started to disconnect on end of the gas piston that helped support the door, both ends of the piston came loose, screws everywhere. We recovered all the screws and he put it all back together for us. That done, we were on our way again, leaving Invercargo about 11:00 a.m.

About an hour east of Invercargo the scenic route divides. The inland route continues on while a seaside route takes us further south into an area known as The Catlins. Named for ship captain, Edward Cattlin who plied the seas carrying cargo to and from New Zealand and Australia, the Catlins today are home to fishing, farming and eco-tourism.

The road forks at Fortrose. As we turned off there was a nice parking area and it was about lunch time so we pulled in and parked. I began looking at the many sea birds in the low tide mud flats. Some really large white birds attracted my attention first. In binoculars I could see that they had long bills which isn’t that unusual for birds making a living probing in the mud flats. I set up my tripod and spotting scope and was surprised to see a prominent spoonbill. These were Royal Spoonbills and quite a treat to see. There were dozens of them vigorously feasting upon whatever was in the mud. Occasionally the wind would catch some of the feathers near the crest of the head lifting them into the air. This was quite an impressive bird. Another interesting find was the white faced heron. We have spoonbills in the US but they are pink, the Roseate Spoonbill. We also have a number of herons but none have a white face.

On down the road we stop at the Waipapa Point Lighthouse. The shore there is known for sea lions and we were rewarded with some close views of a small group of sea lions basking in the afternoon sun. Trying to keep cool by digging sand and throwing it over their backs, one finally began a slow crawl to the sea. Stopping for breaks and resting, he slowly worked his way to the surf. He lingered for a while as the surf pushed up the beach to wash his face. Tossing wet sand onto his back must have helped cool him but not enough to satisfy. He finally lifted himself and moved into the surf and then was gone. Sometimes you just need to go for a swim!

Later we stopped at Curio Bay which is known as a fossil forest. The fossils were not spectacular but if you looked carefully there were stumps everywhere and many logs that could be seen. The fossils were on the beach and the fossil forest is being washed away by waves from the sea. While there we noticed that people were drawn to an area near the top of the beach. Two yellow-eyed penguins were lounging there. One was now standing and stretching. We watched them for a while. The beach was posted for unlimited access until 4:00 p.m. After that time, the adult penguins would be returning from the sea to feed their young chicks. The two penguins we saw were immature penguins. Yellow-eyed penguins are quite shy and won’t come onto the beach if there are crowds of people around. Thus after 4:00 p.m. people were restricted to a small area near where the stairs led down to the beach.

We drove on almost to dusk, stopping to visit several other sites. We finally pulled up in Owaka for the night. There was no TOP 10 Holiday Park that we favored so we stopped at a Youth Hostels Association (YHA) facility. These are common here, places for the backpackers and bicyclists to stay if they aren’t camping. This one had sites for campervans so we decided to stay there. The owner took us through the building showing us the facilities, kitchen, shower, etc. In discussing the facilities we learned this building used to be a hospital. It was now a hostel and campground. There was a note in the restroom area that the boiler was wood fired and they had a fire at 6:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m. and at other times the water would only be lukewarm. Clearly this was a little below the standard for the other parks we had stayed at. It was I’m sure a great spot for those who are backpacking or bicycling, being a very economical place to stay.