Unseen Stewart Island

Make your way to the Invercargill Airport where you will meet your fellow travellers before catching your charter flight (times will be confirmed with your voyage documents) to Oban. The Captain and Expedition Leader will be waiting to welcome you aboard Heritage Explorer at Oban and show you to your cabin as you settle into life aboard your home away from home.

Stewart Island is home to New Zealand's newest national park, Rakiura National Park. The third and most southerly of New Zealand's main islands, Stewart Island is separated from the South Island by the 24-km (15-miles) Foveaux Strait. Its original Māori name, Te Punga O Te Waka a Maui, means "the anchor stone of Maui's canoe." Māori mythology says the island's landmass held the god Maui's canoe secure while he and his crew raised the great fish—the North Island. Today the island is more commonly referred to by its other Māori name, Rakiura, which means "the land of the glowing skies." This refers to the spectacular sunrises and sunsets and to the southern lights, or aurora australis. The European name of Stewart Island dates back to 1809. It memorializes an officer William W. Stewart on an early sealing vessel, the Pegasus, who was the first to chart the island. The island covers some 1,700 square km (650 square miles). It measures about 75 km (46 miles) from north to south and about the same distance across at its widest point. On the coastline, sharp cliffs rise from a succession of sheltered bays and beaches. In the interior, forested hills rise gradually toward the west side of the island. Seals and penguins frequent the coast, and the island's prolific birdlife includes a number of species rarely seen in any other part of the country. In fact, this is the surest place to see a kiwi. The Stewart Island brown kiwi, or tokoeka, is the largest species of this kind of bird. Unlike their mainland cousins, these kiwis can be seen during the day as well as at night. It's a rare and amusing experience to watch these pear-shape birds scampering on a remote beach as they feed on sand hoppers and grubs. Māori have visited Stewart Island for centuries. Archaeologists' studies of 13th-century Māori middens (refuse heaps) indicate that the island was once a rich, seasonal resource for hunting, fishing, and gathering seafood. A commonly eaten delicacy at that time, the titi, also known as the muttonbird, still occasionally appears on menus. In the early 19th century, explorers, sealers, missionaries, and miners settled the island. They were followed by fishermen and sawmillers who established settlements around the edges of Paterson Inlet and Halfmoon and Horseshoe bays. In the 1920s Norwegians set up a whaling enterprise, and many descendants of these seafaring people remain. Fishing, aquaculture, and tourism are now the mainstays of the island's economy. Even by New Zealand standards, Stewart Island is remote, raw, and untouched. The appeal is its seclusion, its relaxed way of life, and its untouched quality. Stewart Island is not for everyone: if you must have shopping malls, casinos, or umbrella drinks on the beach, don't come here. Visitors should be prepared for the fact that Stewart Island can be chilly, windy, and rainy, even in the middle of summer.

Wake refreshed this morning after your first night on Heritage Explorer and enjoy breakfast among the wide open spaces and serenity of Stewart Island’s primaeval landscape. Today we plan to explore Paterson Inlet, its near 100-kilometre-square expanse features bush-clad bays, beaches, inlets and around 20 islands, while its waters are frequently visited by Bottlenose Dolphins. During our time here there will be opportunities to visit the historic Norwegian whaling station in Prices Inlet and Kaipipi Bay, where from 1923 and 1933 the Ross Sea Whaling Company of Sandefjord, Norway ran a repair base where chaser boats were serviced in preparation for the Antarctic summer. Walk one of the many forest trails and explore predator-free bird sanctuary Ulva Island with our knowledgeable guides and marvel at the variety of birdlife which flourishes here.

Exploring southwards along the eastern coast of Stewart Island there are several well protected and important harbours for us to visit, with Port Adventure being the first of these we reach. Popular for fishing, hunting and diving this bay once housed a small Māori settlement which arrived from The Neck in 1843. Here opportunities could include visiting the Port Adventure Hunters Hut in the North Arm, Zodiac cruising the coastline and the spectacular Heron River, along with adventures ashore on foot.

Sure to be one of the highlights of our voyage, we have three days to explore the remote, undisturbed beauty of Port Pegasus. Isolated at the southern end of the island, with access predominantly by sea, there is much to explore and experience among this undisturbed wilderness. Boasting an expansive harbour laced with waterways, arms and channels, several waterfalls and three main islands – Pearl Island (the largest) in the north, Anchorage Island in the centre, and Noble Island in the south – provides an unrivalled opportunity to immerse yourself in the scenic beauty of Stewart Island. We will spend our time exploring by Zodiac and kayak, venturing into hidden coves and landing on pristine white sand beaches where few have set foot before. There are also a number of excellent walking options including exploring the granite domes to the west of Gog and Magog, or venturing onto the southern extension of the subalpine Tin Range, the eastern area of which would become the last refuge for Kākāpo in the second half of the 20th Century. The marine life here abounds with Hooker’s/New Zealand Sea Lions and Yellow-eyed Penguins/Hoiho regularly observed. For those who enjoy fishing, there will be ample opportunity to try your luck at catching a meal for the table.

Sure to be one of the highlights of our voyage, we have three days to explore the remote, undisturbed beauty of Port Pegasus. Isolated at the southern end of the island, with access predominantly by sea, there is much to explore and experience among this undisturbed wilderness. Boasting an expansive harbour laced with waterways, arms and channels, several waterfalls and three main islands – Pearl Island (the largest) in the north, Anchorage Island in the centre, and Noble Island in the south – provides an unrivalled opportunity to immerse yourself in the scenic beauty of Stewart Island. We will spend our time exploring by Zodiac and kayak, venturing into hidden coves and landing on pristine white sand beaches where few have set foot before. There are also a number of excellent walking options including exploring the granite domes to the west of Gog and Magog, or venturing onto the southern extension of the subalpine Tin Range, the eastern area of which would become the last refuge for Kākāpo in the second half of the 20th Century. The marine life here abounds with Hooker’s/New Zealand Sea Lions and Yellow-eyed Penguins/Hoiho regularly observed. For those who enjoy fishing, there will be ample opportunity to try your luck at catching a meal for the table.

Sure to be one of the highlights of our voyage, we have three days to explore the remote, undisturbed beauty of Port Pegasus. Isolated at the southern end of the island, with access predominantly by sea, there is much to explore and experience among this undisturbed wilderness. Boasting an expansive harbour laced with waterways, arms and channels, several waterfalls and three main islands – Pearl Island (the largest) in the north, Anchorage Island in the centre, and Noble Island in the south – provides an unrivalled opportunity to immerse yourself in the scenic beauty of Stewart Island. We will spend our time exploring by Zodiac and kayak, venturing into hidden coves and landing on pristine white sand beaches where few have set foot before. There are also a number of excellent walking options including exploring the granite domes to the west of Gog and Magog, or venturing onto the southern extension of the subalpine Tin Range, the eastern area of which would become the last refuge for Kākāpo in the second half of the 20th Century. The marine life here abounds with Hooker’s/New Zealand Sea Lions and Yellow-eyed Penguins/Hoiho regularly observed. For those who enjoy fishing, there will be ample opportunity to try your luck at catching a meal for the table.

Returning northwards along the shores of Stewart Island’s east coast, Heritage Explorer ventures into the sheltered waters of Lords River. At 8-kilometres long it is the longest navigable river on Stewart Island. Considered one of the most spectacular and unspoilt areas of New Zealand and the country’s Amazon, a historic deed was signed in 1999 to protect the area’s 3,515 hectares of virgin native forest. Here we will take the opportunity to enjoy a Zodiac safari up this fascinating winding estuary with its tannin-stained water reminiscent of Fiordland as it snakes its way to the ocean from the interior of Stewart Island.

This morning Heritage Explorer returns to Oban where, after a final breakfast and farewells, you will be transferred to the airport to catch your charter flight to Invercargill. In case of unexpected delays, we ask you not to book any onward travel from Invercargill until after midday.Note: During our voyage, circumstances may make it necessary or desirable to deviate from the proposed itinerary. This can include weather and opportunities for making unplanned excursions. Your Expedition Leader will keep you fully informed. Voyages are planned and scheduled pending final regulatory approval.

Stewart Island is home to New Zealand's newest national park, Rakiura National Park. The third and most southerly of New Zealand's main islands, Stewart Island is separated from the South Island by the 24-km (15-miles) Foveaux Strait. Its original Māori name, Te Punga O Te Waka a Maui, means "the anchor stone of Maui's canoe." Māori mythology says the island's landmass held the god Maui's canoe secure while he and his crew raised the great fish—the North Island. Today the island is more commonly referred to by its other Māori name, Rakiura, which means "the land of the glowing skies." This refers to the spectacular sunrises and sunsets and to the southern lights, or aurora australis. The European name of Stewart Island dates back to 1809. It memorializes an officer William W. Stewart on an early sealing vessel, the Pegasus, who was the first to chart the island. The island covers some 1,700 square km (650 square miles). It measures about 75 km (46 miles) from north to south and about the same distance across at its widest point. On the coastline, sharp cliffs rise from a succession of sheltered bays and beaches. In the interior, forested hills rise gradually toward the west side of the island. Seals and penguins frequent the coast, and the island's prolific birdlife includes a number of species rarely seen in any other part of the country. In fact, this is the surest place to see a kiwi. The Stewart Island brown kiwi, or tokoeka, is the largest species of this kind of bird. Unlike their mainland cousins, these kiwis can be seen during the day as well as at night. It's a rare and amusing experience to watch these pear-shape birds scampering on a remote beach as they feed on sand hoppers and grubs. Māori have visited Stewart Island for centuries. Archaeologists' studies of 13th-century Māori middens (refuse heaps) indicate that the island was once a rich, seasonal resource for hunting, fishing, and gathering seafood. A commonly eaten delicacy at that time, the titi, also known as the muttonbird, still occasionally appears on menus. In the early 19th century, explorers, sealers, missionaries, and miners settled the island. They were followed by fishermen and sawmillers who established settlements around the edges of Paterson Inlet and Halfmoon and Horseshoe bays. In the 1920s Norwegians set up a whaling enterprise, and many descendants of these seafaring people remain. Fishing, aquaculture, and tourism are now the mainstays of the island's economy. Even by New Zealand standards, Stewart Island is remote, raw, and untouched. The appeal is its seclusion, its relaxed way of life, and its untouched quality. Stewart Island is not for everyone: if you must have shopping malls, casinos, or umbrella drinks on the beach, don't come here. Visitors should be prepared for the fact that Stewart Island can be chilly, windy, and rainy, even in the middle of summer.