Environment: coastal issues, protection, a better way

The Bittersweet Arrival Of A Cyclone Swell

Derek MorrisonFeb 23, 20230

From a dark cloud of calamity emerges a swell like no other. This is the story of Cyclone Gabrielle … It’s a bittersweet tale for the surf community. While Cyclone Gabrielle tore communities apart throughout the North Island, days later its swell brought communities together. The ominous sight of Cyclone...

Watch: Cyclone Gabrielle Sweeps Into Canterbury

Derek MorrisonFeb 22, 2023February 22, 20230

Nineteen-year-old Chilean filmmaker Fernando Jara brings us this cinematic insight into the arrival of the Cyclone Gabrielle swell as it rolled into Christchurch and eventually found favour on the banks of Taylor’s Mistake. Fernando is a budding cinematographer who arrived in New Zealand when he was 15 to join his...

In Search Of The South

Jordan SparrowJan 4, 2023March 16, 20230

The Sub-Antarctic islands are a strange and mysterious place. A place where sea lions roam the mountain peaks, where penguins waddle through the remains of failed settlements, and where megaherb fields give you the feeling of being in the middle of a Dr. Seuss world. If you have ever felt...

Taranaki Rāhui Supported By Government As Kaimoana Stocks Under Threat

Craig AshworthDec 21, 2022December 21, 20220

The Government has banned collection of kaimoana from 70km of the Taranaki coast, giving legal backing to a rāhui that hapū placed on the area in January 2022. The two-year legal ban began on Friday, December 16, just before the summer holidays, when hapū of Taranaki iwi feared a fresh...

Girl In The Wind

Derek MorrisonDec 9, 2022December 12, 20220

Lucy Te Moananui is a special kind of adventurer. She stumbled across sailing while at school and pursued her passion, adding in scuba diving and eventually surfing when she arrived in New Zealand 16 years ago. In April 2023, the 39-year-old will line up on the start line of the...

Spinning Yarns with Sian: Derek Morrison

Derek MorrisonNov 29, 2022November 29, 20220

The Sea Society’s Sian Mair sits down with sea lion advocate and New Zealand Surf Journal founder, Derek Morrison, to discuss all things ocean inspired. From growing up in a rural location about as far from the sea as you could get to becoming inspired by the ocean. Sian explores,...

Film Review: The Yin & Yang Of Gerry Lopez

Isaac ChadwickNov 15, 2022November 15, 20220

Combining the talents of filmmaker Stacy Peralta, with the inimitable Gerry Lopez is a recipe for success. The Yin & Yang of Gerry Lopez explores the life of one of the most influential surfers and surfboard shapers of all time. Gerry is presented as an entrepreneur, a family man, a...

Shark Bait: A Dead Whale In The Lineup

Derek MorrisonAug 13, 2022August 15, 20220

Decomposing whale carcasses have been described as being like “crack cocaine” to great white sharks. So when a young humpback whale washed up in close proximity to some of Dunedin’s best waves, the alarm bells started ringing. According to shark expert Riley Elliott, that’s for good reason. “Whale blubber is...

Kiwi Coffee Company Partners With SurfAid

Derek MorrisonJul 1, 2022July 29, 20220

Following a successful pilot launch, Kiwi coffee roastery, Allpress, is launching a second run of its limited edition, not-for-profit single-origin Sumatran coffee in partnership with local humanitarian organisation, SurfAid. All proceeds will go towards improving the health and wellbeing of those living in isolated regions, connected to Allpress through surfing....

Surfing With Sea Lions: The Cheat Sheet

Derek MorrisonNov 3, 2021December 13, 20220

Surfing on the Otago Coast is a sublime experience most of the time, but the number of surfers who report supposed “near-death encounters” with sea lions is puzzling. According to Doc Coastal Otago Ranger Jim Fyfe, we’re reading them all wrong. In this film he offers us his cheat sheet...