Published in the Sunday Telegraph, Sydney, April 15, 2007.

Kaikoura is a sacred place of myths and monsters as Karen Graham discovered.

A kilometre off the coast of Kaikoura, on New Zealand’s South Island, is a vertical cliff that drops 1000m. It’s the Kaikoura Canyon, part of a deep underwater system called the Hikurangi Trench.

Referred to as the grand canyon of the sea world, it’s one of the few places in the world where the edge of the continental shelf is so close to land.

Here, two ocean currents converge – one subtropical and the other sub-Antarctic – and the sea is rich in minerals and floating plankton.

As a result, Kaikoura is one of the best places in the world to see marine wildlife, including whales, dolphins and seals.

Set against the spectacular Kaikoura Ranges, snow-capped for the majority of the year, Kaikoura is the meeting place of ocean and mountains.

Its name comes from Maori words Kai, meaning to eat, and Koura, meaning crayfish.

Early European history here centred on the whaling industry, but for centuries prior to this the Maori people revered the whales.

According to legend, a young Pacific Islander called Paikea was rescued by the whale Tohora, and carried on its back to the settlement of Whangara on the North Island. Paikea is the whale rider.

Today, whales and other marine animals are protected in New Zealand.

Owned by Paikea’s descendants, the indigenous Kati Kuri people, Whale Watch is the only whale-watching company in Kaikoura.

It was founded in 1987 as a solution to the high Maori unemployment rate, and indigenous leaders believed that whales would once again provide the answer – this time in the form of tourism.

As we travel on a high-speed catamaran for deep water we’re shown a film called World of the Whales, which, using virtual reality, shows the scale of Kaikoura Canyon, five kilometres wide and more than 1600m deep.

We learn about sea-creatures, including New Zealand fur seals, dusky dolphins and the royal albatross. Seven species of whales visit these waters, including the blue whale, which is the largest, heaviest and loudest animal on Earth.

They can be as long as a Boeing 737, with a tongue as big as an African elephant and a heart the size of a small car.

Only two days earlier a blue whale was sighted, but our guide tells us this is rare (in seven years on the job he’s only seen three blue whales) and we are more likely to see the sperm whales that live in these waters all year round.

Sperm whales dive up to 3km in pursuit of their prey; their preferred diet includes giant squid, the famed monster of the deep.

This creature reaches 12m and weighs up to 300 kilograms, but it has never been viewed in its natural habitat, the deep ocean abyss.

In 1965 the crew of a Soviet tanker witnessed a titanic struggle between a giant squid and a sperm whale. Neither animal survived.

The giant squid is firmly entrenched in human imagination, with tales from seafaring mythology surviving through films, novels and poetry. Even Alfred Lord Tennyson has written of the creature:

Below the thunders of the upper deep,

Far, far beneath in the abysmal sea,

His ancient, dreamless, uninvaded sleep

The Kraken sleepeth...

The giant squid is often depicted as a great sea monster – as in the film Pirates of the Caribbean, where Kraken wraps its tentacles around the ship and drags it to the depths of the ocean.

But the final line of Tennyson’s poem is closer to the truth: “In roaring he shall rise and on the surface die”.

Just as I ponder my chance of seeing a giant squid, the captain turns the catamaran towards a sperm whale on the surface.

Sperm whales spend most of their time beneath the surface, and only about 10 minutes above.

It’s a narrow window of opportunity, and I’m on the edge of my seat, camera in hand, ready to rush to the deck as the catamaran slows.

Luck is on our side. We speed from one whale to next, in total seeing eight, which is a high success rate. Sperm Whales are impressive – they grow up to 20m and weigh more than 50 tonnes.

After two hours, it’s time to head back, but we spot another whale en route. For five minutes, we watch as it floats over the waves before diving.

Suddenly, the whale launches out of the water in an astonishing aerobatic display before crashing back into the ocean.

Marine biologists aren’t sure why whales breach. One theory is the splashing sound is a way of communicating; another is that it’s part of a courting ritual. Perhaps it’s simply a fun thing to do.

DESTINATION

Kaikoura, NZ

Getting There: Qantas, Jetstar or Virgin Blue

Tours: Flying Kiwi (www.flyingkiwi.com) has tours ranging from three to 28 days; adventure options include whale watching and dolphin swimming. Whale watch: booking essential; $125 adults, $60 for children 3-15. www.whalewatch.co.nz

More: www.newzealand.com/travel