Fiordland - A Big Bay adventure — Nick Crarer Photography

Back in the 1920’s and 1930’s Davey Gunn would drive a thousand cattle up and down the Hollyford Valley, enduring/enjoying Fiordland’s harsh environment. These days you can hop in a small aeroplane or helicopter at Glenorchy/Wanaka/Milford Sound and land on the sand 30 minutes later at Big Bay.

I came across Awarua Guides a few years ago when I was looking for a New Zealand photography adventure a bit different from the norm. This YouTube video I stumbled across was exactly what I was after. Remote New Zealand with everything a landscape photographer could ask for. Fiordland is known for its fickle weather (7 metres of rainfall annually with 200 rain-fall days. Wellington for comparison gets 1.3 metres a year and is considered a NZ city with poor weather) which provides beautiful moody photo opportunities and time to read your favourite book while you wait for the rain to ease.

I was in contact with Warrick Mitchell (owner/operator of Awarua Guides) a few times a day leading up to the start of my trip. The weather was constantly changing a few days out and our original extraction point of Wanaka became unfavourable. I jumped in my camper-van and drove down to Glenorchy where I met Shaun (flying the plane in the 3rd image down), a pilot with over 5500 Milford flights under his belt and years of experience landing on the beach at Big Bay. We loaded my tramping pack and camera gear into the plane and took off in beautiful conditions.

I had spoken with my photographer friends Lindsay Keats and Craig Robertson a few weeks earlier about how to get the most out of scenic flights as a photographer and they had some great advice: never touch the windows with your lens. Don’t prop yourself up against the windows with any part of your body and keep a fast shutter speed to eliminate the effects of plane’s vibrations whilst flying (it’s okay to shoot at high ISO too). One thing you can’t usually control though is the skill level of the pilot or if they understand the ‘requirements’ of a photographer. The pilot is very important in this scenario and my pilot Shaun Ferris was just brilliant. Over the years he had worked closely with New Zealand landscape photography legend, Andris Apse, and it was evident from the outset. Photographing landscapes out of a plane’s window, the wings can often get in the way but Shaun would let me know he was about to tilt the plane so I had a clear view of the landscape below and the wing was up and out of the way. Having never done an aerial shoot I was a bit nervous that I wouldn’t get many shots but Shaun ensured I came away with a bunch of photos I was really happy with.

A short while later it was time to land at Big Bay, usually done at low tide. Shaun did a couple of passes before lining up the shingle landing strip. The tide had crept too high for a sand landing. If he had said something like, “Shit, this is touch and go!” or “We might not make it, cross your fingers”, I would have been bloody nervous but he was a picture of calm and it was obvious he had done this many times before. As Shaun slowed the plane down to around 50km/h to land I looked below to see Warrick and Carly on the beach on a quad bike greeting us with a friendly wave. I felt calm and relaxed only for the team on the ground to later tell me they could quite easily tell who was the pilot and who was the ‘first-timer’, as I appeared to sit bolt upright in my seat.

The crew took my gear back to base and I wandered along the beach towards the river, where there was a row-boat waiting for me to make the crossing. I get to the boat and from across the river Warrick yells out something like, “You okay to get across?”. I had never rowed a boat before but how hard could it be, right? “Yeah mate, I’m fine”. I waited for Warrick to walk away and I dragged the little water craft into the water and hopped in. The oars were built-in so I had a 50/50 chance of sitting the correct way. I tried both directions but it was obvious which way I had to face and no-one had seen my clumsy trial-and-error efforts so off I paddled, across the mighty Awarua. Out of the bushes on the far bank appeared not just Warrick, but Carly and these two young fellas, Dylan and T, eager to watch the Wellington Powerhouse steam across the river. Half-way across my arms got a bit tangled and my ability was questioned, “Are you sure you’re okay mate?”. “Yeah, why do you ask?”. “Well, you’re paddling backwards”. Ahhhhh shit!

The next few days were a real mixture of activities. I spent most of my mornings shooting sunrise along the beach or close-by the river and sunsets doing the same. During the day I would read a book or go for another wander to photograph the abundance of native birds. There’s also a wonderful wood-fired hot tub to soak in after a long day of adventuring.

One evening we went diving for crayfish, another water activity I hadn’t done before. The five of us took off down the river, over the sandbar and out to sea where we were joined by a small group of Hector’s dolphins. They seemed to enjoy playing in the wake of the boat and cruising up and down the waves. 20 minutes later we were diving in crystal clear water looking for crayfish and checking out old ship anchors and the like. Maybe surprisingly, the water was warmer than that of most Wellington beaches so even after an hour or two in the water I wasn’t feeling the cold. Warrick and Carly came back to the boat with a good catch and as sunset approached we were on our way back to camp. The sunset was an absolute ripper with the most unique looking cloud formations, probably the best of the trip. Usually I would be a bit bummed not to have my camera on me but standing on the boat, looking back towards the raging red skies, I was content to just watch this one while in the company of great folk.

Now I’m not a foodie by any stretch of the imagination but it would be remiss of me not to mention the amazing meals. Warrick is an outstanding chef and served up culinary delights all week. Crayfish, venison and fresh vegetables were on the menu for much of the week in one form or another and each meal was just as delicious as the last. I’m not a big eater but if you are, you can’t go wrong with Warrick in charge.

I also have to pay special mention to Warrick Mitchell because without him this 5-star experience just wouldn’t be possible. From our very first email back in 2018 til the day I left Big Bay almost two years later, Warrick was a joy to deal with and is the most knowledgable, genuine and interesting guide I’ve ever met. He’s knowledgable without being a know-it-all, he’s funny without needing to try too hard and he’s just genuinely interested in all of his guests which kind of makes it feel like you’re catching up with an old friend you haven’t seen in a while. I honestly rate Warrick just as highly as the trip itself, an unexpected highlight of my time in Fiordland.

Details

Where: Big Bay, Fiordland

Who: Awarua Guides

What: Remote and wild environment experience - Photography, snorkelling, hiking, surfing, fishing, kayaking, great food and more.

Why: As a photographer it is getting harder and harder to find those unique spots, spots that haven’t been seen and photographed a million times. This was the reason I chose Fiordland and the experience I had with Warrick and Co is the reason I’ll go back.

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 153mm, 1/1000, f/8, ISO320

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 64mm, 1/2500, f/8, ISO800

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 58mm, 1/2000, f/8, ISO800

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 50mm, 1/1600, f/7.1, ISO800

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 50mm, 1/1250, f/6.4, ISO800

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 64mm, 1/800, f/7.1, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 200mm, 1/400, f/8, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 45mm, 6.5sec, f/13, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 117mm, 1/400, f/5.6, ISO160

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 160mm, 1/200, f/6.4, ISO160

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 200mm, 1/500, f/6.4, ISO500

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 140mm, 10sec, f/14, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF23mm - Settings: 23mm, 1/1.6, f/8, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF23mm - Settings: 23mm, 1/100, f/7.1, ISO640

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF23mm - Settings: 23mm, 1/60, f/5.6, ISO1600

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF23mm - Settings: 23mm, 1/125, f/5.6, ISO400

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF23mm - Settings: 23mm, 1/100, f/8, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 100mm, 1/320, f/8, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 200mm, 1/200, f/7.1, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF23mm - Settings: 23mm, 3sec, f/8, ISO100

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 132mm, 1/125, f/6.4, ISO400

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 115mm, 1/125, f/6.4, ISO400

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 200mm, 1/200, f/8, ISO160

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 200mm, 1/200, f/8, ISO400

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 130mm, 1/160, f/7.1, ISO1250

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF100-200mm - Settings: 100mm, 1/200, f/7.1, ISO640

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 49mm, 1/1000, f/8, ISO320

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 58mm, 1/1000, f/8, ISO320

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 55mm, 1/1600, f/8, ISO320

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 53mm, 1/1600, f/8, ISO320

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 42mm, 1/1600, f/8, ISO320

Fujifilm GFX50S - Lens: GF32-64mm - Settings: 58mm, 1/1600, f/8, ISO320

Fiordland - A Big Bay adventure

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