We carried on driving down the West Coast and reached the town of Hokitika, which was a small town with not a great deal to do. However, we decided to drive out to the river estuary to have a look at some white baiters. White baiting is a big deal in New Zealand and we are here in peak season. Unlike whitebait we know these are tiny little fish, almost like tadpoles, that leave the ocean in the spring to make their way rivers and in doing so have to pass the bulk of kiwis who seem to be fishing (or actually standing with a big net in the water) there. Supposedly whitebait can fetch a very good price hence the popularity of catching them. That said almost everyone we saw had empty nets and having bought ourselves a whitebait patty we weren't really sure what all the fuss was about, in is an big deal here though with whitebait reports on the radio in the morning so we were glad we'd come to have a look.