The long-awaited Kaikoura weekend arrived, and for once the calendar and the weather and sea all cooperated for the spear fishermen. It was warm and still, humid even, and the sea swell was mild. We shared a house with Jeremiah’s hunting buddies + partners, some of whom are proudly posing for mug shots with their sea catch.  Yes, that’s an octopus.  Irmana, the Spanish girl on the left, knows how to cook them.  I keep warning Jeremiah NOT to get an octopus.  I have this weird superstition about them–they’re clever, and I think they should be left alone.  

I got up early one morning to go on a run, expecting to be the only one awake, but Stella and her Daddy were on the prowl for a morning snack too. At least the sunrise was spectacular from the house deck, looking out over the sea. I’m no longer the only mommy with children in the group, which is nice. It means Jeremiah’s not the only husband with daddy duties, which is also nice.

Kaikoura is old Maori food gathering grounds. “Kai” means “food” and “koura” means “crayfish,” or what we’d call lobster. The peninsula sticks out into the ocean right near a big deep ocean trench, so the upwelling of cold water makes for rich fishing. Exciting…for those excited by such things. The Kaikoura coastal range of mountains makes a nice back drop.

“These sausages are the ones we had made from that pig.” “These kebabs are from that wild goat we got on that amazing hunting trip.” “These are venison russels (Australian for hamburgers) from last November.” It’s a hunter’s banquet. “I buy my meat from the grocery store,” says the Canadian, completely comfortable in his non-hunting shoes amidst the manly swagger. Thankfully, there was a nice spread of salads as well.

Tired out after an early start and a beachy day….he hits the sack pretty hard.  Stella thought it was cool to buddy up to the big boy, even if he was asleep.

“Look at my boobies, Mom!” Paua are kind of like big one-sided snails, and they can grip onto neoprene!

Greenbone, also called Butterfish, are plentiful in the kelp beds. Jeremiah had good success filling our freezer with them. They’re delicious, and their bones really are green.

This crayfish was the king of his catch. It takes a lot of practice to be able to dive down 8 meters deep to where the crayfish live in their caves and grab one by hand before it backs in out of reach. He sure savored his big crayfish meal the next night.