Fiordland

The trip from Queenstown to Te Anau was a bit wet to say the least; it seems that whenever we have a distance to travel the weather is always bad. Thank goodness Tony does the driving. We arrived in Te Anau and the lake was shrouded in mist, we couldn’t see a thing which makes a change.
Next day dawned and we had beautiful weather again and we set off for Milford Sound which was a 120km drive.
Once again the scenery was outstandingly stunning; along the way we saw masses of lilac, purple, white wild lupins, just beautiful. It also seems that yellow broom is very abundant here, it borders the roads everywhere.
Once again the roads were very winding, Tony has definitely driven me around the bend many times since we got here
We drove through the Homer Tunnel which is a one lane tunnel through the mountain and came out at The Cleddau Valley, an amazing sight as a very twisting steep road took us down to the Valley.
We had booked a boat trip along the Milford Sound which would take us out to the Tasman Sea and back, a trip lasting about two hours. It was one of the smaller craft which meant we got a closer look at the many waterfalls cascading down along the way, sometimes a bit too close.
There was even a cruise liner anchored in the Sound and it looked tiny against the massive sheer rock face, we got neck ache looking up and still couldn’t see the sky.
We saw fur seals sunning themselves on the appropriately named Seal Rock, and we also saw a small pod of Dolphins. It’s hard to describe the magnifigance of Milford Sound and pictures do not do justice it’s size and splendour.
Once again it was another memorable day.

After another overnight stay in Te Anau we left for Invercargill, for once I drove, the roads were very straight for a change.
We decided to take a walk around Queens Park which is in the centre of the city; it was so peaceful, beautifully laid out, with an aviary and small animal area in the centre.
From there we headed for Bluff where Stirling Point is the New Zealand equivalent of Lands End in UK. Another high point was Bluff Hill, where another 360 degree view of the surrounding area could be seen, which included Stewart Island. Unfortunately it was a bit misty so not as clear a view as we have had in the past.
The weather this far south has been a bit chilly and we have had to resort to wearing some of our warmer items of clothing.