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| Milford Sounds |
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| Mirror Lake |
The drive was beautiful, firstly stopping at Mirror Lakes
which, as the guide book had promised, has a perfect reflection of the
magnificent mountains behind. The quirky sign made me smile with the reflection
spelling out the name of the lake.
Further south we passed fields of lupins with their purple
and pinks creating an oil painting effect against the landscape and their sweet smell filling the car with the scent of
spring.
We’d rearranged our plans to reach Milford sooner because we
were warned of heavy rainfall which may close the road leading in and out of
the tiny town. As we drove past the
incredible glacial mountains and through the avalanche zone we quickly realised
why it would be unsafe to drive in bad weather.
Luckily we were graced with sunshine and as we drove through
the Homer Tunnel, carved through the mountain, the chill in the air dispersed
like the wispy clouds.
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| Driving to Milford through the clouds |
Pre-booked onto the 11:10 Mitre Peak cruise we eagerly
strode to the front of the queue to get a good seat on top-deck.
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| Tour boat on Milford Sounds |
Milford Sounds is sighted at the most impressive in Fiordland.
The deep blue water contrasting with the looming cliffs above was an awesome sight.
We passed incredible fresh waterfalls; one at 162 meters is much higher than Niagara
Falls (but not as wide of course!)
There was an icy chill in the air as the boat meandered
through the Sounds, passing the fishing areas where crayfish is caught and
within 48 hours on sale in China.
Sailing further towards the Tasman Sea we turned at St Annes
Point. Heading back through the sheer cliffs, the 75 birth boat felt like a tiny
speck.
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| Seal colony |
We passed a seal colony, watching the young male seals
basking in the sunshine was a perfect end to the journey.
With some energy left as we drove back we put on our walking
boots and hiked to Key Summit. A beautiful three hour walk through a mixture of
vegetation including the native New Zealand forest, alpine tracks and a nature
walk at the top explaining the history of the land.
The breath-taking views of the Hollyford, Greenstone and Eglington Valleys in the late afternoon sun was my favourite part of the day.
The breath-taking views of the Hollyford, Greenstone and Eglington Valleys in the late afternoon sun was my favourite part of the day.
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| Key summit trek |
It is a long way to go for a two hour cruise but the views
and stops en-route made it worthwhile. If I were to go again I think I’d do one
of the overnight cruises and if my budget allowed I’d take a helicopter flight
too...
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