Lake Te Anau, and Milford Sound

A couple of buses later and having to go back for a woman we'd missed i arrived in Te Anau late afternoon. I didn't know if i was staying for one or two nights, what i was really doing just that i wanted to get out and see milford sound otherwise i'd be really upset!!! and might have to walk around with my bottom lip out for at least a day. So i quiclky( well after waiting bout half hour to bloody well get checked in ...now i'm beginning to sound like that miserable English lad!!) i dumped my stuff in the dorm room which incidently had its own little kitchen and bathroom with a fridge outside. I hop footed it down to the info centre(yes again!!!), as i thought in a small town like this they would prob shut at 5ish. Got there and it was open ..yes alls good so far( later found out from the lady that they are actualy open till 8pm so i needent had rushed ..but nevermind).

I spoke to the lady, well i say spoke i just kinda blathered a load of rubbish bout wanting to see milford not too much money and want to be in queenstown by tues at the latest. Luckily there was a few options and one that wasn't to expensive and miracuosly could actually get me to queenstown by monday!!! woo hooo. So $150 odd dollars later i had a day trip to milford booked up for tomorrow and the bus to queenstown sorted for monday. All was good.

Met  a nice girl in the dorm, from bournemouth though  i think originally she is from germany.... she tried to persuade me i must go sky diving in queenstown ...but i really just didn't fancy throwing myself out of a plan and having to pay a few 100 dollars for the previlage. I just about managed to concoct some food in the minimilsed kitcheneete thingy then had a farely early night.

Milford sound trip( not actually a sound at all, actually a fjord as it was carved out by a glacier)

I had a lovely lazy morning, everybody else in the dorm had to be up early, but luckily they were'nt picking me up for my trip till 11, so it felt like my on little apartement. I strolled down the road to the town where i was getting picked up from, and was soon met by the eco tour bus, though we weren't setting sail till another 20 mins as they were havin g an early lunch break having come from queenstown, no worries this is the land to go with the flow.

Off we set first stop a bird sanctuary just down the road, which housed among other things the very rare takehe, similar to the less rare pukeko, though it cannot fly. There are hardly any of them left in the wild now. They are beautiful birds, quite short and stout though all the colours of the rainbow. Also a few Keas there too , very rare large parrots. Which are extremely clever.

A few more sight seeing spots along the way; beautiful vast valley with golden grass, but i can't remember the name of it, also mirror lakes, as there name suggests are beautiful crystal clear lakes that reflect the stunning mountainous backdrop perfectly. Also just before going through a very large tunnel in the mountains we also stopped to view the valley and there were wild keas( the large rare parrots), though they were very tame to the point where they were attacking all of the cars and the bus, trying to rip all the rubber seals from around the windows etc... cheeky little b*****s. We then passed through the slightly dodgy looking tunnel( which apparently was the hig point of that particular day in the year, where the locals race through the tunnel with either a torch or a pair of trainers but nothing else at all ...naked!!!, i'm still not sure if the bus driver was telling the truth about that ???), sounds like fun though!!

Through the tunnel and along many hair-pin bends through the mountains, then finally reaching Milford Sound, was a little gloomy weather though. We were booked on the smallest boat which suited me fine less annoying tourists to get in you're photos and a bit more personal. Our bus driver laid out a little afternoon tea for us then left us to it. So off we sailed, though a lot of cloud and mist over the peaks. It was still beautiful. The mitre peak is the tallest sea cliff in the world reaching approximately a mile into the sky, unfortunetely we couldn't quite see the top. We cruised alongside many of the stunning waterfalls and a couple of beautiful hanging valleys like that in the picture, with cloud lying in them. The weather was till a little gloomy in the soound though.

We pootled out to mouth just into the open sea( where the sun was actually shining) to take a look at post office island, named thus due to it once being the place where mail to the sound was delivered. Then we turned in a big swell, back to the sound whereupon we could see a few rainbows as we cruised back in, (the weather was picking up) it was beautiful though i couldn't quite capture the brightness of the coulours on the photos. As we were going back up to view more vast cliffs, beautiful waterfalls and different minerals in the rocks we came across a group of sunbathing fur seals, lolling about, there sooo cute and cuddly. There wasone pup as well further down that looked a little lost bless it .

We poked our nose( well the skipper poked the nose of the boat ) into one of the water falls so we all got nicely wet, no really it was a good feeling. And as we were approaching the end of the trip we looked back onto the stunning valleys with the sunshine now though cloud still hung very pictoresquely in the valleys. I felt very contented and happy and awe over this naturally beautiful place.

On our trip back we also stopped off at the chasm(probably spelt wrong) an amazing place in itself, we looked down upon this very step waterfall cutting almost a beautiful sculpture into the rock all around. The sound of the water was awesome such power of nature. This quote written on the site sums it up:

                                                  THE CHASM

The finest workers in stone are not copper or steel tools, but the gentle touches of air and water working at their leisure with a liberal allowance of time.

-- David Henry Thoreau

Then we headed back to Te Anau, where i made some dinner in the dorm and chatted with the other girls about there days and then got off to bed .

I forgot to say that on the trip, i was seating next to a lovely lady, a nurse from London who was very friendly and lovely to chat to along the journey , though i don't think ever got her name ...always the way.

The next day a took a walk beside the lake to get some more pictures, i love seeing the water planes even when there just parked up ...i must go on one one day. Then i caught my bus with the same bus chap as before who was very friendly and interested in what i was upto....so off to Queenstown i went.