On January 9th we headed south to the Catlins area. We visited Slope Point, which is the southernmost point on the South Island of New Zealand.


We visited Nugget Point Lighthouse and then on to Roaring Bay for an evening of Yellow-Eyed Penguin viewing. The wind was gusting 30-40 mph and it was also lightly raining. We were able to hang out in a hide and mostly stay drive, except having to dry the front element of the lens every 15 minutes. The wind chill had us in our heavier fleece and Goretex clothing.


We stayed the night in Nugget Point.


We observed over twenty Yellow Eyed Penguins come ashore during the evening. Here is a photograph of a group of seven Yellow-Eyed Penguins hanging out on the beach.