An early morning start with our cruise around the Bay of Islands starting at 8.30am from Paihia harbour.

Our boat took us on a scenic cruise through the islands, including the famous Hole in the Rock and also some amazing sea life.

The Bay of Islands are an enclave encompassing more than 140 subtropical islands, It’s known for its unspoilt beaches, big-game fishing as well as Maori cultural artefacts.

It’s also home to the 19th-century whaling port of Russell, our first stop on the cruise whose waterfront promenade is lined with remnants from its days as the country’s first colonial capital.

We then sailed on for 30mins along the jagged coast to the infamous Hole in the Rock, formed over hundreds of years of erosion creating a channel of 12m wide and 15m deep.

On our way to the Hole in the Rock we ‘struck gold’ when we sighted three Orcas, two males and one female in a family pod. We then spotted a shark, but within a minute the pod had worked together and the shark had become Orcas lunch. The picture below shows the shark’s fin in the Orcas mouth. Such an amazing sight to see, especially as they are rarely spotted and never before with a shark kill.

Our captain explained that navigating through the channel was extremely challenging and dangerous due to changing currents and the narrowness of the passage. As he finished his sentence the boats engines roared and within a matter of a few seconds we were safely making our way through the gap and out the other side.

Looking back through the gap we were amazed that the boat, with a passenger count of well over a hundred had managed to get through. A big thanks go to our captain who performed the act with aplomb.

Further down the coast we passed a lighthouse, now unmanned and automated which helps to keep ships safe to this day.

On returning to Russell we came across a pod of bottle nosed dolphins who were, we were told hiding from the Orcas in the main bay.

So incredible to see these beautiful intelligent creatures up close in their natural habitat.

After the excitement of seeing the Orcas and dolphins we docked on the island of Urupukapuka for an hour lunch break providing time for a bite to eat and a short hike to one of the nearby bays. The island scenery was spectacular and unspoilt and we got to see some great views once high up.

We then returned to Urupukapuka harbour and our final destination a return to Paihia.

As our boat returned to pick us up, we came across the return of the bottle nose dolphin pod.

As we said goodbye to the small island the dolphins followed and the next thing we knew they were jumping through the waves – what a sight!

This behavior is believed to be both playful and practical. The bow wave created by the ship provides a sort of “free ride” for the dolphins, allowing them to move through the water with less effort. This can be a form of play for the dolphins, but it also might help them conserve energy.

After a fun few hours on our cruise they kindly dropped us back at Russell, the oldest township in NZ to allow us to explore some more.

Before going for a walk we stopped at the Marlborough Arms for a pub lunch of fish and chips and a local ale.

After a hearty lunch, we went for a hike up to Flagstaff Hill where the views out over the bay were magnificent. Made even more special as the sun had come out and the clouds had subsided.

Russell, formerly known as Kororāreka, was the first permanent European settlement and sea port in New Zealand.

As at the 2006 Census it had a resident population of 816, an increase of 12 from 2001.

Now much of the town is set up for tourists with a great array of restaurants, bars and shops along with the first church in New Zealand.

Our walk took us past the oldest church in the whole of NZ dating from 1836.

After a wonderful day, we caught a ferry back to Paihia around 6pm and headed for a bite to eat before walking it off on a coast walk.

We are back in the car tomorrow as we head south, first to Whangarei to see the waterfalls and caves, before we drive on south of Auckland to the city of Hamilton.