The shadows were stretching across Lake Te Anau as we headed north to Milford Sound. It is hard to imagine a more spectacular road: first following the lakeshore, then passing through rainforest, climbing up into the mountains before squeezing its way through the Homer Tunnel and bursting out through a rock face high up above the sound. The road then descends rapidly by a series of switchbacks to sea level. The village of Milford Sound is nothing but a few hotels, a couple of houses, an airfield, a campsite and massive views. It is a very special place.
We slept the night in our tent and woke up early the next morning for a cruise on the sound. Mitre Peak, rising straight from sea level to over 1600m, had a few clouds around the summit, but otherwise the weather was perfect. So early in the morning, the water was near mirror-like. As we reached the open sea, some bottle-nosed dolphins joined the boat and entertained us with their jumps and dives. Despite the spectacular scenery, the dolphins were the real highlight.
Not a bad view from the boat
A dolphin in Milford Sound
In front of Mitre Peak
We left Milford Sound feeling a bit smug, as all the tourist busses were arriving and the cloud was closing in a bit. We knew we’d seen the best of it and it was time to move on. From Te Anau, we headed north towards the famous lakeside ski-resort of Queenstown, crossing latitude 45 degrees South in the process. We were entering a region of New Zealand called Central Otago, famous for massive high-country sheep stations, stark dry mountains and an abundance of cherries and apricots in the summer.
The drive from Kingston up the side of Lake Wakatipu to Queenstown was the highlight of this leg of the journey. All accommodation in Queenstown was booked out, so we drove through the Clutha Gorge to Cromwell. Cromwell is an old goldmining town and a good base to see the region.
We slept the night in our tent and woke up early the next morning for a cruise on the sound. Mitre Peak, rising straight from sea level to over 1600m, had a few clouds around the summit, but otherwise the weather was perfect. So early in the morning, the water was near mirror-like. As we reached the open sea, some bottle-nosed dolphins joined the boat and entertained us with their jumps and dives. Despite the spectacular scenery, the dolphins were the real highlight.
Not a bad view from the boat
A dolphin in Milford Sound
In front of Mitre Peak
We left Milford Sound feeling a bit smug, as all the tourist busses were arriving and the cloud was closing in a bit. We knew we’d seen the best of it and it was time to move on. From Te Anau, we headed north towards the famous lakeside ski-resort of Queenstown, crossing latitude 45 degrees South in the process. We were entering a region of New Zealand called Central Otago, famous for massive high-country sheep stations, stark dry mountains and an abundance of cherries and apricots in the summer.
The drive from Kingston up the side of Lake Wakatipu to Queenstown was the highlight of this leg of the journey. All accommodation in Queenstown was booked out, so we drove through the Clutha Gorge to Cromwell. Cromwell is an old goldmining town and a good base to see the region.
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