Milford Sound

2 April 2011

My life is fabulous, but it isn’t perfect.  I was over-the-top excited for my cruise on Milford Sound today.  Unfortunately I may have been too excited because I didn’t sleep so well last night.  I kept having nightmares and waking up in a panic.  

When it was time to shower for the day I took a really hot, steamy shower.  Which made the fire alarm in my building go off.  (This is quite a common occurrence with New Zealand fire alarms.  We had this issue a number of times at the hotel in Fox Glacier.)  So I woke up all my neighbors at 7 am on a Saturday morning.  I, of course, had just gotten out of the shower when it went off.  I threw on some clothes and stood in the cold with wet hair feeling ridiculous.  

When we were finally able to go back into the building I was worried I would be late to pick up the coach to Milford Sound.  Fortunately I cut some corners and made it in time.

I learned so much on my journey out to Milford. The journey takes about two hours from Te Anau.  We passed a very neat valley called Knob Flats because when the glacier came through it flattened all the land except for some areas where there was a hole in the glacier.  So it is this flat land with little hills all over.  It was so cool looking!

We went through the Homer Tunnel.  The road and tunnel to Milford Sound was built during the Depression when the government sent men out there with shovels and pick axes to make the road -- even though by then they already had much better equipment for road-making!  The men needed jobs so this is what the government did.  The tunnel opened in 1954.  It’s kind of shocking to go through.  It is one lane and it doesn’t feel safe, but thousands of tourists drive through it everyday so it must be OK!

Did I mention I got this trip for free?  Because I’m working at a hotel and may sometimes need to sell the trips to guests one of the local companies offered to let me visit Milford Sound for free.  They even paid for a picnic lunch for me!  I feel so blessed because this trip tops my experiences in New Zealand so far.

The amazing thing about Milford Sound is that it is a deep fjord surrounded by towering mountains.  (I learned the difference between a fjord and a sound.  A fjord is created by a glacier and then it is filled with ocean water.  A sound is created by a river bed and then filled with ocean water.  Milford Sound is a misnomer because it is a fjord.)  The most famous mountain is Mitre Peak which reaches 1,682 meters.  Many of these mountains are sheer rock walls rising almost vertically out of the fjord.  

Cascading down all these cliff faces are waterfalls.  The first one we saw is called Fairy Falls and we even saw a rainbow in it.  Because the fjord is so freaking deep the cruise boat can go right up to the cliff face.  One of the best moments I had was when we went right up to the Striling Falls.  There are not words to describe how I felt when I saw the water free fall right in front of me and then spray me as it hit the sea.  I stood out on the front of the boat and I was sprayed by a waterfall.  I can’t put the feeling into words, but it was magnificent.  

Our cruise went all the way out into the Tasman Sea.  This was the only part I didn’t enjoy because I can get a bit sea sick.  The nature expert onboard said this was very calm for the Tasman so I’m grateful for that at least.  

On our way back we saw a New Zealand Fur Seal basking on a big rock.  I was on the “nature” cruise as opposed to the “scenic” cruise.  But I know that just because nature is in the name doesn’t mean they guarantee you’ll see any nature.  Just when I thought I’d go relax inside the boat again the nature expert called out that there were bottlenose dolphins beside the cruise.  

Amazing.  Incredible.  The most amazing thing I could have seen. The dolphins were like the cherry on top of the whole experience!  There was a whole pod with maybe 10 dolphins in it.  We watched them play and spray and dive and flop!  Wow.  I was squealing like a little kid every time they rose above the surface.  I feel so blessed to have seen them.  I guess it doesn’t happen everyday.  What an incredible experience.

I wish everyone I know could come to Milford Sound.  I seriously think it is one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had in my travels.  It ranks right up there with the walk on the Gold Coast of South Africa, Mont St. Michel and the Loire Valley in France, and Arches National Park and Canyonlands in the US.  And so far it is the best adventure experience I’ve had in New Zealand.