After a full days driving continuing on the Southern Scenic Route, with a stop off to try and make our millions on Gemstone Beach (sadly we found we were more likely to win the lottery than find any gems!), we arrived to Milford Sound in the glorious sunshine with a welcome from the swarms of sandflies!
Milford Sound isn't actually a 'sound' but a Fjord, calved out by glaciers (the early British explorers obviously didn't know their geography and it certainly didn't resemble Milford Haven, after which it was named). The alternative creation story according to Maori legend was that the Fjordlands were cut out by Tu-te-raki-whanoa and his magical adaze Te Hamo. He started in the far south where he created a rough coastline, but by the time he reached Milford Sound he had perfected his technique and calved an awe-inspiring fjord. Whichever theory you believe, it is certainly stunning! As Rudyard Kipling put it "the eighth wonder of the world".
We joined one of the cruise boats that circled the sound (highly recommend Mitre Cruises - a nice intimate boat, 2hr cruise taking you further out than most others plus free tea and coffee!!). Though it was cloudy, it added to the atmosphere with Mitre Peak rising dramatically out of the water (1683m).
The cruise showed the grandeur of the fiord and the wildlife in the area. We got up close with a hundred or so fur seals at Seal Point, that were playfully swimming in the water (interestingly they eat stones and rotate in the water to digest their food!) and spotted 3 fjordland crested penguins; another addition to our wildlife count!
The spectacular finale to the cruise involved us getting soaking wet! They took us a little too up close to a huge gushing waterfall without warning (much to the Captains amusement I'm sure!) drenching the bow and us!
After a change of clothes we headed up The Hollyford Road via the quirky Gunns Camp with its brightly coloured corrugated tin cabins, and up to the Humbolt Falls which were over 200m tall.
We finished our tour of the fjordlands with a tramp up to Key Summit, the start of the Routeburn Track - one off the overnight guided walking routes that makes this area "the walking capital of the world".
Milford Sound isn't actually a 'sound' but a Fjord, calved out by glaciers (the early British explorers obviously didn't know their geography and it certainly didn't resemble Milford Haven, after which it was named). The alternative creation story according to Maori legend was that the Fjordlands were cut out by Tu-te-raki-whanoa and his magical adaze Te Hamo. He started in the far south where he created a rough coastline, but by the time he reached Milford Sound he had perfected his technique and calved an awe-inspiring fjord. Whichever theory you believe, it is certainly stunning! As Rudyard Kipling put it "the eighth wonder of the world".
Milford Sound in the cloud! (24th Nov 2013)
Fjordland Crested Penguin (24th Nov 2013)
Fur seals (24th Nov 2013)
After a change of clothes we headed up The Hollyford Road via the quirky Gunns Camp with its brightly coloured corrugated tin cabins, and up to the Humbolt Falls which were over 200m tall.
Gunn's camp (25th Nov 2013)
Almost at Key Summit, before the cloud line! (25th Nov 2013)
No comments:
Post a Comment