This is me wearing my Virginia Tech shirt for what seemed like the 50th time of the trip, although we had only been on our travels for three days. The lake beside me was part of the extended arm of lake Wakatipu leading toward Te Anau.
Te Anau is the last bit of civilization before you head into Fiordland. Te Anau is also home to my new friend, the Giant Pukeko bird.
It did not take long before Denise and I concluded that Fiordland National Reserve was named appropriately. The road leading to Milford Sound was delicately wound through the valleys created by a series of ancient glaciers. To each side of the road, the mountains protruded higher than any sky scraper created by man.
A couple hours and a few doses of Dramamine later, we made it to Milford Sound, a small settlement that is home to Mitre Peak and the Milford Sound. Mitre peak is the tallest of the mountains in the area.
This stop on our trip was truly amazing. The weather at the time was perfect considering it rains 330 days out of the year here. There wasn't a cloud in the sky this day my freinds.
There is a fleet of cruise ships that are based in the township of Milford Sound, and they do tours of the sound daily. We jumped on this massive ship and took a 3 hour cruise out the ocean and back.
The sound itself is the deepest sound out of the 13 that cut through the south west coast of the South Island. You can only reach two of the sounds by car, Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound. The other 11 you have to reach via water craft entering each one from the ocean. This bloke below decided to visit all of them paddling his kayak.
It is difficult to get a sense of scale when you are out on the sound. To either side are shear cliffs which seem pretty high, but then the tour guide gives you some facts about the actual high stating that they are "twice as tall as the Empire State building". It is hard to believe, but true!
It seems impossible to relate, so I snapped this picture above of a boat right up close to on of the cliffs.... The boat is the tiny speck at the base of the mountain. Crazy eh?
Like I said, we had an absolutely beautiful day for the cruise, and the sound was calm and still.
The waterfalls were especially wonderful. They three times the height of Niagara Falls, and drop strait into the sound. Ordinarily, there would be literally hundreds of small waterfalls cascading from the mountain peaks due to rainfalls in the area, however, there had not been a good rainfall the days prior to our arrival.
The cruise was spectacular! It will be one of the most memorable parts of our stay in New Zealand. 
1 comment:
once again, stellar pictures!!!
hope ya'll are doing well...
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