Fiordland National Park, New Zealand

November 12, 2012 Monday

Milford Sound is at the lower south west side of the South Island of New Zealand.  Sunday we went quite a ways up into it in the morning, and it looks very much like the fjords of Alaska, without the glaciers breaking off and forming icebergs.  The mountains drop vertically into the water without leveling off for beaches.  There are too many waterfalls of varying sizes to count.  There is enough water from these waterfalls to cover the salt water with 15 feet of fresh water.  There is 27 feet of rain per year in the area.  The Sound is part of the Fiordland National Park, which covers 3.1 million acres, about 5% of New Zealand.  There are 14 long fiords in the Park, some as long as 40 miles.  Milford, considered the most beautiful, is only 11 miles deep.   We sailed part way into the Sound then turned around and sailed out, which took about two hours.

From 1pm to 2pm we were cruising Thompson Sound, where we saw dolphins and seals.  The mountains are more rounded, not as vertical or jagged.  We came out at Dusky Sound, which was much the same as Thompson.  Inside the Sounds the water was flat, but when we were back into the ocean, the waves were the highest we have seen on this trip, and it rained hard.  John relied on his accu-pressure wrist bands, which really work for him.

It gets light early, 6am ish, and stays light until well after 9pm.  Very much like spring in our hemisphere.  It is as unsettling as the sun going round north of us.  John has ongoing problems with directions, but Colleen adapts well.  She is the navigator of this crew!

Tomorrow we will be in the town of Wellington, the capitol of New Zealand.  It is at the south end of the north island, only about 20 miles across a straight from the south island.  Auckland was the original capital city, but the capital was moved because Wellington is situated more centrally.

Colleen & John