in which we find rain, NZ style

Week 3

Monday 4th February 2013

Milford Sound to Arrowtown

We had booked places with Mitre Peak Cruises back in Te Anau, so Monday morning, bright & early was the day for a scenic chug down Milford Sound to gasp & be awed by the spectacular scenery of the Sound.

We were woken up with plenty of time to spare by the sound of heavy rain bouncing off the camper roof. The day's forecast was talking of a mere 15cms of rain, l was so relieved that at this point we had not chosen to kayak down the sound.  The rain was still coming down in stair rods when it was getting up time, so decided to give the quick trip to the shower block a miss.

The check in time was 15 minutes before sailing [8.55am] so, intrepid travellers that we are,  proceeded to drive the camper through puddles, or should l say, floods, past spontaneous waterfalls crashing from every ledge & gully by the bucketful.

Now, the walk from the car park to the quayside is about 10 minutes the bulk of which is undercover, so after kitting up in wet weather gear, we took the plunge [literally], & proceeded to splash towards the covered board walk.  On arrival we quickly checked in then all 15 of us were herded to the vessel by its skipper.

 Despite the truly awful weather, Milford Sound gave off an eerie atmosphere.  All swirling mists & low clouds, mighty vertical cliffs soaring into the clouds with numerous waterfalls in full flood crashing into the sea below.  Being a small vessel, the captain took us right inside several of the larger waterfalls & in close to the walls of the Sound which dripped in greenery.  Fish could be seen swimming in the shallows at the base of the rocks, whilst sat out posing for the Tourist, were large numbers of fur seals.

The cruise lasted the morning & despite the weather, was wonderful, whilst the journey back to Te Anau was equally impressive.  The dry landscape & draught-stricken rivers had become a torrent of waterfalls & wild, white water rapids.

Milford Sound is a one road in & the same route back as are many of the destinations in New Zealand, so we retraced our route back past Lake Wakatipu, through Queenstown finally pitching camp at the Arrowtown Holiday Park.

today's mileage = 184 miles