Milford Fjord

Milford Sound

On arrival in Te Anau I had intended to spend a few days exploring the town and local area, but more abysmal weather changed my plans. So after just one night in Te Anau I left for Milford Sound. Part of the Kiwi Experience pass includes a two hour boat tour of the Sound, well actually as we were all informed it's a Fjord, as it was formed by glacial activity. The tour also included a buffet lunch. I was incredibly excited by the lunch, I mean the fjord.
Kiwi Experience seems to have a monopoly on annoying drivers, it's imperative they all have a nickname, I mean how will the passengers relate to someone called, heaven forbid, James?
Our driver introduced himself, at first I thought he said his name was Jess, I thought how restrained? That was until I heard someone call him "Cheese". Yes Cheese. From that point on I decided I wouldn't need to ask the driver any questions.
The drive out to Milford Sound is incredibly long and surprisingly perilous. The road cuts through high mountains, where avalanches are common. Only a week before the road had been closed for two days after an avalanche. The snow banks on either side of the road were several feet high. We spotted several small avalanches as we drove along.

The snow banks on the road to Milford Sound

We stopped at the last photo opportunity, further on it's too dangerous to stop in because of avalanches. As we stepped from the coach, snow began to fall. Before I arrived in New Zealand I knew I would be out of season, but I had no idea how far. From talking to locals, I now understand warmer days don't arrive until mid January.
We were fortunate as we pulled into the small ferry terminal, the sun shone through the clouds and for the whole two hours on the water it remained rain free. There is an advantage to being out of season, all the recent rainfall had created some great waterfalls, that in turn created rainbows as they hit the water.
Being typical backpackers we all dug into the buffet before taking a look at the scenery. Once the food had settled I wandered onto the deck to take in the views. The scale of the place is hard to take in. Cliffs looms up high out of the water. The ship's captain took us close to one waterfall and explained it was three times as high as Niagara. He also took us close to some seals, although I think this is a shame, surely they'd prefer to be left alone.

A Rainbow


The two hours passed quickly and we were soon back on the coach making the four hour return trip to Queenstown.