The island used to be used as a quarantine station for people arriving by ship with smallpox, TB and other infectious diseases, and in more recent years was used as an animal quarantine station. These days it's a scientific reserve managed by the Department of Conservation, who do an excellent job of keeping out the pests and looking after the native flora & fauna.
Jake has been fortunate enough to spend quite a bit of time on the island - for "work" reasons - and Molly's been on a couple of visits as well, but we've been trying for ages to go as a family and spend the night there. (DOC have a couple of houses which you can rent for the night - they're basic but very comfortable and well equipped).
Our last planned trip to Matiu Somes Island was cancelled on the day, due to a big storm which meant the ferries couldn't get across.
This trip almost went the same way! The night before we were due to sail, a huge storm whipped up with gale force winds, and the first ferry of the morning was cancelled.
When the ferry company decided to go ahead with the 12 noon sailing, I wasn't quite sure how I felt. The winds were strong and the water was very choppy, and the trip there was consequently kind of reminiscent of a roller-coaster ride...
But we made it there safely, and wow am I glad we did - it's so beautiful!
When you first get off the ferry you have to go into the Whare Kiore (quarantine building) for a briefing from the DOC rangers, while you get your bags inspected and clean your shoes. Everything has to be thoroughly checked to make sure you're not bringing in any rats, cats, bugs or other pests with you.
At one point I feared we would be denied access, as Molly's "Fur Real" pink kitten had gone off in her bag and was making all sorts of jerky movements and squeaky noises. Luckily the ranger understood!
We were finally given the all-clear and headed off to our DOC house for some lunch. Here's our first view, walking up to the house in the moody weather!
Luckily for us it wasn't long before the storm cleared and we got the chance to go out and explore. The scenery around the island was AMAZING!!
It doesn't take long to walk around the whole island as it's so small - and so pretty too!
But as much as I enjoyed the daytime exploring, what I really wanted to do was head out at night to see some of the island's nocturnal wildlife - little blue penguins, Wetas, Skinks and Tuatara.
It doesn't get dark until around 10pm at the moment, which doesn't make dark night excursions easy with kids in tow. Luckily we had travelled in a reasonably large group which allowed for one person to stay in minding the children (we had four under 7's with us) while Jake and I headed out with our head torches on.
OK, so here's my first confession......I am quite scared of the dark - and it's REALLY dark on Somes Island at night.
Second confession.....I am also very scared of Wetas.
So every time I heard a rustling in the bush or saw a shadow moving, I jumped and shrieked and gripped Jake's arm a bit tighter, which made Jake jump and shriek too. Apparently I was so bad that he's now declared that he will never be going out at night with me again..... :(
And after all that, all we saw was a very large snail!
In the morning the weather had fully cleared, so we went out exploring again before our ferry ride home.
This time we saw several Skinks - yay! We also saw Kakariki (red-crowned parakeets). But no Tuatara, Wetas or Little Blue Penguins this time - which means we WILL be back...
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