Dragged from our dreams at 6am by our alarms, our initial view out of the van wasn’t quite as stunning as the day before but was still lovely with the surrounding hills bathed in the orange light of dawn. After a shave, packing the bedding and putting the van back into day mode, I was off to make porridge. The kitchen at this campsite was rather nice, with a hot water boiler on the wall and multiple hobs.
It turns out that these hobs, combined with the temperature being considerably warmer than the day before, were much better at heating the saucepan than the gas cooker used in the mountain kitchen, meaning there was quite a layer of burnt porridge on the bottom of the pan! Not ideal. However, once fed and with the burnt porridge soaking in washing up liquid in the back of the van, we headed off for Milford Sound.
In my head this drive was only going to take us an hour. Oh how wrong I was! A check for directions on Google Maps revealed a driving time of two and half hours! So much for making the 9.30am cruise giving we were leaving Te Anau at 8am! Luckily my card had been declined when I tried to book the day before else we’d have lost out!
Laura took the first driving stint and after filling up, we were off, heading down the road described in Laura’s pocket guidebook of New Zealand as “one of the world’s finest Alpine drives.” The road begins by passing alongside lakes and through woodland, but soon begins to rise as it hugs the mountainside. The road is lined by lush vegetation with the greens contrasting with the greys of the rock. At times, the edge of the road is the edge of the cliff as the mountainside drops away.
As the road continues to climb, the snowy peaks get ever closer and ever more spectacular. The rockslides that appear once the vegetation ends were scattered with red colour rocks that looked very much like they had been covered in red paint. As we were to learn later in the day, this red colouring is a natural phenomenon. Finally reaching the high point in the road, we came to a traffic light, signalling the entrance to the Homer tunnel which grants access to Milford Sound.
Driving through it brought back memories from 11 years before when passing through with Dad, Jamie and Auntie Mon. However, the views that were to follow in Milford Sound were all new to me as the Sound was inhabited by a cloud last time I had visited and so nothing could be seen!
The weather this time was grey, but the clouds were where they belong and so we could see!
After parking, we walked up to the visitor centre to book onto our cruise. The surrounding mountains create a real sense of being fully enclosed. We decided to go for the Encounter Cruise, a 2 hour 15 minute cruise that promised to get us up close with the rock cliffs and waterfalls.
Come 12.15 we boarded our vessel and with a warm welcome from the crew, we headed out into the Sound. As the captain pointed out, this was an Encounter Cruise and so he urged that everyone leave the comfort and shelter of the seats indoors and head out on deck to get the best experience. Ever adventurous and wrapped up best we could, Laura and I found ourselves a spot in front of the wheelhouse looking out over the bow of the boat.
Sailing out into the Sound, our first treat was a waterfall plunging into the waters below. Due to the way it impacted the rock wall at its start, the water was forced out and away from the cliff creating a water buttress. According to our ever knowledgeable guides, this river is used to provide hydroelectric power to the town.
Cruising further out into the Sound, Mitre Peak deigned to emerge from its blanket of cloud to watch us pass by below. On the other side of the Sound (I can’t say the other shore due to the complete absence of shore line as rock cliffs meet water without even the slightest hint of a beach) we got to see a lion and an elephant! Well, mountains that, if your imagination is working, look like a lion and an elephant!
So when is a Sound not a Sound? When it is actually a fjord! According to our guide, sounds are formed by the action of rivers. Well, Milford Sound is clearly glacially formed and so should actually be called Milford Fjord. But the name has stuck and is now world renown so little point in changing it!
Encouraged by our enthusiastic boat crew we remained standing at the front of the boat as she continued out along the Sound. Our skipper then headed the vessel towards the sheer rock walls so we could take a look at the vegetation that clings to the surface. Shrubs and lichen cling to the steepest walls whilst trees have found themselves a home on the slopes.
It was then explained to us that the clear scars in the vegetation on the mountainsides were either caused by avalanches or tree-valanches! Tree-valanches occur, at least according to our guide, when the tree at the top can no longer hold the weight of the trees lower down and so gives way, causing all below it to collapse. I had never heard of such a phenomenon before, although it makes perfect sense. Also dotted throughout the rock wall were sections of red rock. The name escapes me but our guide assured us that these had had the potential to become rubies had they been squashed and heated a little more!
In keeping with the promised nature of the Encounter cruise, the skipper struck the nose the boat under a waterfall. Whilst not a raging torrent, it was enough to give those at the front of the main deck a bit of wash! We survived with just a fine misting from our perch at the front of the top deck. Continuing our voyage along the Sound it was getting rather blustery. And with good reason; we were approaching Windy Point! Here the winds whip along the Sound and around a headland. This was enhanced by an approaching storm that was due to hit that evening. It certainly was windy! Without the wheelhouse to lean on we’d have been blown backwards!!
We were granted a respite from the wind as we headed towards another rockface. Without too much warning, the bow of the boat was thrust under another waterfall, this one coming far enough onboard to get us top deckers wet! It was certainly refreshing!!
Beating a hasty retreat indoors, we found our way down to the main deck for a cup of tea to warm up and to collect our packed lunches. Whilst doing this, the boat was reaching the approach to the Sound from the sea and turning around to head back in.
Soon we were encouraged back on deck by our guides as we were approaching a group of young male seals sunning themselves and practising play fighting on a series of boulders emerging from the water. Quite how they managed to get up onto the boulders was in itself quite impressive!
After sticking us under yet another waterfall, we were heading towards the Discovery Centre and preparing to disembark when the Captain abruptly interrupted the guide to point out a group of 11 penguins swimming in front of the boat! None of the crew had seen so many in one group before. What a treat!! It turns out that nesting season was coming to an end and in fact a research team were currently in the Sound counting and measuring the young.
After docking at the Discovery Centre we descended below the water’s surface inside an observation column designed to provide a view of life in the Sound below the surface. Turns out the water is quite murky in the Sound, but this didn’t stop us seeing a variety of fish, starfish and coral. There was even a fish that changes sex as it gets older!
Our final trip back from the floating Discovery Centre to shore was on board a different larger vessel. Whilst we had been underwater, the clouds had cleared and we were treated to blue sky views of the Sound. And it was gorgeous. It was a brilliant end to our time cruising. This was definitely the calm before the storm though as we were advised that the road out of Milford Sound would be closed at 5.30pm and so to leave town soon if we didn’t want to spend the night.
Once back on solid ground and a quick change of clothes in the back of the van later, we hit the road, winding our way up and out. Stopping at the traffic lights of the Homer tunnel, I came face to face with a kea standing on the bonnet trying to steal our window wiper! Luckily he wasn’t successful and the lights changed before he could mount a second attack. The car behind had a kea riding on the roofbox until the entrance of the tunnel.
Once through, we were retracing our footsteps back through Te Anau heading to Queenstown.
Evening was drawing in as we drove, although we did relatively well, making it to our campsite in Queenstown for 8.45pm. Once parked and fed, and after the heater had helped warm the van to an acceptable temperature, we snuggled down in anticipation of an adrenaline filled day to come!!