The locals were wrong. Milford Sound is far superior to Doubtful Sound, as a day trip. Today the weather was glorious and I think I have run out of adjectives and superlatives to describe just how beautiful it was today. To quote one of my favourite authors "I need better words"! (Answers on a postcard, prizes for correct author, book and character - and shame on you if you have to look it up!!).

It dawned a bit overcast and misty - yes Dad, I was up with the dawn, in fact I was up before the sun - but thankfully it cleared to the most glorious blue skied clear day, although our bus driver was frequently lamenting the lack of rain, saying it was much nicer in the rain. I disagree. We were on the "Bullet" bus, which is a specially designed bus for the tour operator I was with, named for its shape, not its speed. The front is lower than the back and it has huge windows and glass panels in the roof, so you can really get great views all along the bus. The seats are also positioned slightly on an angle, so they are more facing the windows than the front of the bus, again to encourage you to look out rather than at the back of the head of the person in front of you.

The drive to Milford Sound takes about 2 and bit hours and is quite possibly one of the most beautiful scenic drives I have ever seen. I was extremely glad I did take the bus option, as you can actually drive over to Milford Sound yourself and just pick up a cruise. This way I got to enjoy the amazing scenery and breathtaking views, without worrying about where I was driving, or worrying about not being able to stop somewhere in case I missed my cruise! On the way, we had frequent pit stops for photos, though you could quite easily stop a million times more, as there is always something to view or photograph. First real stop was at Mirror Lakes, which are wonderful small lakes, with the typical pure, crystal clear water in them, so you have these amazing views of the mountains reflected back in the lakes. Along the way, we went through farmed scrubland, to temperate rainforest, to huge beech forests and up into the most amazing glacial valleys in the mountains. Everywhere you looked was amazing, great waterfalls, fabulous hanging valleys and huge circular bowl like depressions up in the mountains. Many of the higher peaks have permanent icefields and small glaciers on them and you could see where there would be lots of waterfalls, if it was raining, but I preferred the sunny day and actually I think we did more than okay for waterfalls!

The Milford road takes you up into the mountains into Fiordland and over Wilmot pass, where you go through Homer Tunnel (another one built by hand, as was the Milford Road - it was The Depression, don't you know!) and then down through the Cleddau Valley, named by a welsh man of course, which is a wonderful example of a cirque and a hanging valley. (Cirque being the big bowl shaped depression at the start of a glacial valley).

Milford Sound isn't the biggest of the sounds in Fiordland, but it's the most well known, and quite frankly I can see why. Our cruise was on a trawler like ship, looks old, but is actually new and very comfortable. Also, it wasn't very full, so you weren't fighting for viewing space or seating, but I have to admit I pretty much spent the entire cruise out at the front of the ship in the bow viewing area, despite the cold. The weather is definitely turning here now, it's hitting freezing or close to at nights and it takes some time to warm up in the sun during the day, but it was such an amazing view, I inhaled a couple of cups of hot tea, zipped up my coat and stuck it out, as it was worth it.

The cruise was shorter than the Doubtful Sound one, as Milford Sound is much shorter, but we went out to the Tasman Sea, which was fun, saw fur seals and dolphins and sailed under some amazing waterfalls. It really was the most beautiful place I think I've ever been. Scarfed my lunch when we were coming back into the Sound from the Tasman Sea and then went back out to the bow deck for the rest of the trip.

On the bus trip back we stopped at this little stop called the Chasm, which is a wonderful waterfall that has carved some fantastic shapes and holes in the rocks below it, somewhere definitely worth a half an hour side trip. It takes about 15 mins to walk around the track, but it's hard not to stop for a while and marvel at what water can do. We also stopped to photo one of the few permanent waterfalls on the Milford Road, which again was spectacular. We also stopped to try some of the water, as almost every stream or river or waterfall was crystal clear clean water, only the occasional one, slightly opaque, with that hint of icy blue from the glacier. I don't think I will ever taste such clean, pure water again. Most of the rivers are running very low here at the moment, but those that are quite full are those almost fairytale boulder strewn ones that you could spend all day paddling up in search of fish and whatever, knowing you will be completely safe and disease free! Might have to seriously come back here in the summer and spend a week just paddling up glacial rivers and streams!!

Back to Te Anau a bit before 5pm, having taken far too many photos, but probably had one of the best viewing days on this entire holiday so far. Really, really glad I didn't miss the bus today, of all days.

Have one more day in Te Anau, so will probably go to the Gloworm caves across the lake and I heard about this little bird wildlife centre here that the Dept. of Conservation runs, that has some of New Zealand's rarest birds, so will try and find that as well.