February 18, 2026
Our first full day on Stewart Island was packed with activities. It rained overnight and we woke up to an overcast morning. But the weather forecast looked good for it to clear in the afternoon.
We walked over to the local bakery and bought some treats. This was also one of the places where we could reserve a sea shuttle to take us to the nearby Ulva Island. We reserved the 10:30 am shuttle and scheduled a return time of 3 pm.
The shuttle left from the Golden Bay wharf which was about a 20-minute walk from our room. We had over an hour to spare, so we took the scenic route via a couple of trails (Fuchsia Walk and Raroa Reserve Track) through the forest to get there.
The sea shuttle met us promptly at 10:30 am. It was a quick 8-minute ride to Ulva Island. Our plan was to hike the entire network of trails on the island. Ulva is a predator-free island, so there is a large variety of birds and native plant life with minimal introduced species.
We decided to hike to Boulder Beach. The goal was to take our time and look for various birds. The trail was very easy: flat most of the way. I am not a big bird watcher, but I have to admit I really had fun walking the trails. And we saw and heard quite a variey of of birds. Our first sighting was a kaka. This is a parrot that is considered to be threatened in many areas but is common on Ulva, so we felt lucky to have such a good view.
We arrived at Boulder Beach and had a water and snack break. We saw several oystercatchers running around on the beach.
Next we took the trail to West End Beach. By the time we arrived, the weather had cleared and it turned into a beautiful afternoon.
On the right hand side of the beach was a little sea cave that I explored. It was really just a big overhang and not a cave, but it was interesting. On the way back from the cave I saw three weka birds: two adults and a young one.
We turned around and started walking to the other side of the island at Sydney Cove. This was yet another pretty forest walk. We saw a few more interesting birds along the way, and we heard the calls from the kaka birds, but we did not see them.
We had almost reached the cove when we saw a couple of people ahead of us, staring into the forest. They excitedly whispered to us: kiwi! And sure enough, a large adult kiwi was grazing just to the side of the trail. After a few minutes it crossed the trail and then was grazing for several minutes on the other side. It seemed entirely unfazed by our presence. We watched it for about 20 minutes before it finally disappeared into the woods. This was the icing on the cake for me, to see a kiwi in broad daylight.
We continued on the trail down to the beach at Sydney Cove. Then we followed the path across the beach to the next short trail up to Flagstaff Point which had nice views of the area.
From Flagstaff Point it was just a 5-minute walk back to Post Office Cove Wharf where we would meet the sea shuttle to return us to the main island. Since it was still a little early for the boat, I walked back to Sydney Cove and saw a sea lion swimming in the water close to shore.
The water taxi arrived shortly before 3 pm, and we took the quick jaunt back to the wharf at Golden Bay. The experience on Ulva Island greatly exceeded my expectations. Even before we found the kiwi, it was a really fun day walking around on the trails. The bird sounds were prolific, and the native forest was beautiful.
We took the 20-minute walk back to our room, and then we walked over to the hotel restaurant for an early dinner.
At 7:30 pm it was time for our next adventure: the Wild Kiwi Encounter tour with RealNZ. This was a 4 to 5-hour tour that started with a boat cruise around some of the outlying islands and ended with a walk on the trails in Glory Cove, the southernmost point we've ever been, to search for kiwi. During the boat cruise portion of the tour we would look for other wildlife: penguins, sea birds, fur seals, and sea lions.
The tour left from the ferry terminal and used the same boat that had ferried us over from Bluff. There were 19 total people on the tour plus 2 guides, so the boat was very uncrowded.
The boat passed an island where we were able to view a Fiordland crested penguin standing outside a little cave. The guide told us that the penguin was probably moulting. This is the stage during the year when the penguins shed their feathers and grow a new set, and during that time they are unable to go in the water since they lose their waterproofing. For a couple of weeks they must stay onshore. Although the penguin was a bit far away, I was able to get a photo. This was my very first sighting of this type of penguin.
Next we passed by Bench Island where we were hoping to see some of the yellow eyed penguins in the water or onshore, but we didn't see any. The boat continued on to an area where we were able to see a group of fur seals hunkering down on the rocks. They are hard to pick out in the next photo: look for the darker black objects on the left side that resemble rocks.
The boat circled back to Bench Island for a second attempt at the penguins. This time we found them: three hoiho were standing on the rocks near the shore. They didn't move around much and just stood there the entire time that we watched them.
Our next stop was a rocky island where hundreds of shag birds were resting.
Near our stop at Glory Cove was a beach where many sea lions were hanging out.
The boat docked at Glory Cove, and we got ready for the kiwi spotting portion of the tour. First we listened to a talk from the guide on what to expect. The rules for the hiking portion of the tour were much stricter than what we had encountered with Beaks and Feathers. We were to walk single file at all times and make as little noise as possible. We were not allowed to take our backpacks with us. We each received a flashlight that we used to point down at our feet at all times: enough light to see where we were going. We were split into two groups: Heinrich and I were in the first group of 10 with our guide. I was at the front of the line. Shortly after we got off the boat and started the walk uphill, the guide turned around and asked me what I was wearing. Apparently my rain pants were making too much noise, and she asked me to take them off. Fortunately I had two more layers underneath and it was not raining! She slung my rain pants over the railing and said I could pick them up when we returned to the boat.
We walked about 20 minutes when the guide spotted an adult kiwi close to the trail. It was a very good viewing with the kiwi not bothered by our presence, and everyone in the group was able to get a good view of it. We watched it for about 20 minutes, and it was still there when the guide said we had to move on.
After about another 10 minutes of walking, the guide spotted another kiwi. It was a juvenile and was very actively moving around. I was not able to get any good photos of it, but we watched it for about 5 minutes before it moved out of sight.
For the second half of the hike, the guide had us switch places so I was now at the very back of the line. But that turned out okay since we did not see any more kiwi. We returned to the boat, I retrieved my rain pants, and then we settled in for the half hour ride back to the ferry dock.
It was after midnight when we returned. I thought it was a good tour and interesting to compare it with the Beaks and Feathers kiwi experience where the spotting rules were more relaxed. I think that is due to so many kiwi on the Beaks and Feathers tour that we were almost guaranteed to see at least one, where with the RealNZ tour it required more luck to see at least one, and some of the tours might not get to see any.