For a 360 degree tour of the Omaka Heritage Aviation, follow this link. Tour will open in a new window


Paua Pearl Farm
Our tour group headed back towards the north end of the island and took a 45-minute cruise of the outer Marlborough Sound to the jetty at Whekenui Bay, arriving at the Paua Pearl Farm. After morning tea came a guided tour through the hatchery and growing tanks where the abalone begin their life cycle, get embedded with mantle tissue, and are then harvested and the pearl extracted. There are two videos below--the first is by Arapawa Blue Pearls, that details the actual tour, while the second by the "Pearl Girls" goes into greater depth regarding the pearl-making process. Below the videos is a photo gallery of the Paua Pearl Farm.


What's in a Name?
Kaikǒura is a seaside town wedged between the mountain range of the same name and the South Pacific Ocean. It was given the name by Tama ki te Raki, an early Maori explorer, who paused here on his exploration of New Zealand's South Island to eat a meal of crayfish. Thus this area became known as Kaikǒura--literally it means "to eat crayfish." One can only hope he showed more original names for his other discoveries!




A Brief History of Kaikōura
Settled by the Maoris, the area offered an abundance of sea food, and its ownership was contested by rival Maori tribes in the early 1800's. The area was known to Europeans from the sea voyages of Captain Cook, although he never anchored his ships there. In 1842 Kaikǒura saw its first influx of Europeans, the Fyffe family, who, along with John Guard, established a whaling station with a crew of 40 men. A second station at South Bay was established in 1867, and it became the commercial center of the town, as it remains to this day. As the number of whales decreased, the Fyffe family diversified into shiping and farming. Modern Kaikǒura evolved with the completion of the Picton to Christchurch rail service in December, 1945. However, overfishing saw a decline in the economy by the 1970's. Starting in 1985, locals developed a tourist center and began promoting the town as a tourist destination. Primary draws were the walking trails where marine life could be spotted, as well as boat trips to view the dolphins and whales. It was crippled by the November 14th,  2016 earthquake, the second largest magnitude in New Zealand History.

Things to see in Kaikǒura
Given that the train to Kaikǒra does not arrive until 7:30 p.m. and the next morning is devoted to dolphin watching, sightseeing time in Kaikǒra was very limited. In our experience, you can probably fit one site in during your sightseeing time. Here are the options:

The Garden of Memories is situated opposite the Kaikǒura Memorial Center. The small garden features a number of whalebone arches (since replaced by concrete replicas) and is a tribute to those in Kaikǒura who sacrificed their lives during the two World Wars. Early in 1921 a memorial obelisk dedicated to the memory of Kaikǒura servicemen killed in World War I was unveiled. It overlooks and provides access to the beach below. The spot for the memorial park was sandy, stony, and generally inhospitable to all but local plants. It was the dedicated effort of Lydia Washington that brought the area to life. The adjacent Kaikǒura Memorial Center contains plaques and an honor roll of the World War I fallen at its entrance.

The Kaikǒura Museum is located on the first floor of the town's library and main civic building and consists of three spaces. It showcases Kaikǒura's diverse and colorful natural, social, and cultural history. The Kaikōura's collections take into account the geological and natural history of the district (including some impressive dinosaur fossils). It also contains Taonga Maori (valued possessions of the Maoris), and artifacts of early colonial life--whaling, fishing, surfing, and a large collection of marine specimens. The museum's New Normal exhibit details the effects of the catastrophic 2016 earthquake. Below is a video walkthrough of the museum by fjbutch, and below that a photo gallery of the Museum

Kaikǒura Peninsular Walkway. There are numerous walkways in the Kaikōra region. One of the most popular is the Peninsular Walkway which juts from the rugged east coast of the South Island offering views of the sea, with mountains as its backdrop. A wide variety of animals may be observed--whales, dolphins, seals, birds, and crayfish. The route is dotted with information panels explaining the rich history, geography, animals, and plants that make the area a unique biosphere. Below is a video by i-SITE that traces the path along the peninsula.