A pod of orcas was spotted off the rocks on Waiheke Island on Sunday. Video / Alex Toye
A pod of orcas cruising the Hauraki Gulf has been delighting fishermen and beach-goers for the past few days.
Yesterday the creatures were spotted close to shore between the Okahu Bay Wharf and Tamaki Yacht Club.
Shereena Sumeran came out of an event about 8pm to see the orcas gliding by.
"I saw these things pop out of the bay," she said. "They don't usually come up so close."
She said the group was divided in two with what looked like a mother and a calf trailing behind.
"They were beautiful, absolutely beautiful."
Sumeran spent some time soaking in the sight - a first for her.
"I go there quite often and I've never seen it before. It was so exciting."
On Sunday Alex Toye got an even closer view. He saw about nine orcas swimming just off the rocks where he was fishing at Te Whau Bay, Waiheke Island, at one point swimming right though his line.
"The orcas were on a frenzy, feeding on the stingray," he said.
They were so close Toye said he could almost have ridden on the back of one of the smaller creatures.
"They were scratching their bellies on the rocks I had been fishing on," he said.
Despite not catching much Toye said the experience made his day.
"I'm not going to lie, I went home with a pretty big smile on my face."
The 19-year-old disappeared without her wallet or mobile phone.