The drive to Milford Sound was along the start of the Southern Scenic Route, it was as good if not better than any other route we have taken in the country. The swooping corners and steep climbs are worth it, as there is something new to admire every minute. We stopped at look out points along the way, including some more mirrored lakes. There was also a tunnel which was carved through the mountain, it was very dark and the rock of the mountain was not covered on the sides. We checked in at the Milford Sound Lodge and chilled writing the blog in the lounge area, then hit the hay, ready for our early morning cruise we had booked for the following morning. We woke a little after 7.30am with heavy rain crashing on top of the van, which wasn't the best weather for a cruise, although we were told that the Milford Sound is best when it's raining.

We boarded the boat at 9.00am with clear weather and began the tour, along the way the captain gave an informative commentary. He told us that after just 1 hour of rain there can be up to 1,000 waterfalls that appear down the mountain faces. He then went on to say astonishingly, 7m of rain falls a year at the sounds and the record amount of rainfall in 24 hours was 22inches. WOW! The sites we saw were truly amazing. The Fiord was created during the ice age when glaciers eroded the valley, in places it is 300m deep! The tallest mountain is Mitre Peak which is one of the tallest mountains in the world to rise directly from the sea bed. We thought we had a pretty calm morning on the water until we reached the end of the Fiordlands and in to the Tasman Sea where it was fairly rough. It didn't last long though as the boat turned round and we began our route back to the harbour, stopping off again at various points this time with a much more closer look at the two largest waterfalls and a close up of the seals. The cruise was very worthwhile doing as we were able to explore the whole Fiord.

We then headed for the Catlins along the Southern Scenic Route. Just out of Te Anu we saw the film crew filming the Hobbit! We were told they were in town and Rachel got quite excited. There was 2 big security people on the layby where all the vans were but unfortunately did not see any of the stars! About an hour down the road we came across a herd of sheep in the road. J was asleep at the time so Rachel woke him by which time we were surrounded. When we say herd of sheep, we mean about 500-600 sheep being patrolled by only 2 farmers and 4 sheep dog running along the road towards us. They were so funny trying to run away from the dogs. We were glad to have seen something so stereotypical of New Zealand. We waited in the van for about 10 minutes until the sheep passed and we could continue our journey. We were both quite tired so broke the journey up staying at Colac Bay, the town itself did not have much more than a pub and campsite so we had a quiet evening before heading off the following morning to Invercargill.