Day 14 – January 7:
Milford Sound Day! An iconic point of NZ is this area on the South Island; all the Fjords! Milford Sound is inaccurately named; a sound is a body of water cut through the mountains to the sea by a river. A fjord is a body of water cut through the mountains to the sea by a glacier; Milford and all the others are fjords.
Our day started with hotel breakfast and a tour guide picking us up (with 10 others) to drive the <2hrs to Milford. This road/drive is one of the most famous (in the top 10 according to Lonely Planet). It goes around a big part of the lake, through farm land, a valley surrounded by the “Misty Mountains” of LOTR fame, and lots of epic mountain passes with stunning views. We made several stops along the way and our guide was very good and insightful. We also got to meet our first Kea bird. These are highly intelligent and inquisitive parrots. They are compared to tenacious 4 year old’s for not only their curiosity, but there massive destructiveness just for the sake of it.
The tour brought us directly to the boat terminal for a 2-hour tour of the sound/fjord. Lunches included. Not sure what else can capture the beauty of this place other than the pictures, but we saw sea lions, birds, and got dunked in a water fall. Following that, we learned there was an accident on that famous road to this place (which is also the ONLY road to this place) that kept us here for 3 more hours than planned. Not a big deal since our guide showed us that much more! More walks, birds, and things to see which was just amazing.
A result of that delay meant everyone in Te Anu returned late and there was no dinner to be had except back at the hotel (which was fine). We had another brief delay when Molly left her phone in the tour van and we had to “Find my Phone” all around town to track the vehicle to its station.
A quick note about the pictures...they are not in order, and it is a pain to do that. So enjoy the beauty however it comes at you!
New Zealand Day 15
Milford Sound Day! An iconic point of NZ is this area on the South Island; all the Fjords! Milford Sound is inaccurately named; a sound is a body of water cut through the mountains to the sea by a river. A fjord is a body of water cut through the mountains to the sea by a glacier; Milford and all the others are fjords.
Our day started with hotel breakfast and a tour guide picking us up (with 10 others) to drive the <2hrs to Milford. This road/drive is one of the most famous (in the top 10 according to Lonely Planet). It goes around a big part of the lake, through farm land, a valley surrounded by the “Misty Mountains” of LOTR fame, and lots of epic mountain passes with stunning views. We made several stops along the way and our guide was very good and insightful. We also got to meet our first Kea bird. These are highly intelligent and inquisitive parrots. They are compared to tenacious 4 year old’s for not only their curiosity, but there massive destructiveness just for the sake of it.
The tour brought us directly to the boat terminal for a 2-hour tour of the sound/fjord. Lunches included. Not sure what else can capture the beauty of this place other than the pictures, but we saw sea lions, birds, and got dunked in a water fall. Following that, we learned there was an accident on that famous road to this place (which is also the ONLY road to this place) that kept us here for 3 more hours than planned. Not a big deal since our guide showed us that much more! More walks, birds, and things to see which was just amazing.
A result of that delay meant everyone in Te Anu returned late and there was no dinner to be had except back at the hotel (which was fine). We had another brief delay when Molly left her phone in the tour van and we had to “Find my Phone” all around town to track the vehicle to its station.
A quick note about the pictures...they are not in order, and it is a pain to do that. So enjoy the beauty however it comes at you!
New Zealand Day 15
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In the mist! |