It's shocking, even mindblowing, to be in a big boat so close to the thousand meter high cliff walls of a fiord. But as they say here, what happens above the water also happens below--these rock walls are sheer vertical both up and down.
The day we saw it, Milford Sound was featuring weather more typical of the region: overcast, with occasional rain. And like Doubtful Sound, the wind is pretty strong here, thanks to the fiord channelling and concentrating with ocean wind. Wind speeds can get as high as 200kph (120mph) here.
Fortunately, it was relatively calm, with winds ranging from perhaps 20-40mph over the course of the day.
One other Milford Sound factoid: This fiord is extremely difficult to see from the ocean: Even Captain Cook mistakenly sailed right past it--twice!
One final comment for any of you plotting and scheming your own trip to New Zealand. Even if you are forced to decide between these two fiord tours (Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound), you should still do them both. The fiords are quite different, and seeing Milford after seeing Doubtful gave us a much better idea of the different geological formations and wildlife that can be found in the varied microclimates of this region.
Seeing just one would have been like learning only half the story.
Oh, and here's one very interesting species I found right after leaving the boat: a three-toed tree-hugger. It's pretty cute, isn't it?
2 comments:
Laura looks really happy :)
Yeah, really happy! :)
I just love these tree ferns.....they are a throw-back to the dinosaur era....and very soft actually....
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