So I think I last left things at Te Anau - sorry about the rushed ending, I'm a bit more prepared this time and have bought an hour of internet. I'm sitting in a McDonalds McCyberMcCafe (I dont know if there are that many Mc's in there really but when will they ever stop!)
So it was good to have a rest day at Te Anau - that afternoon I walked to the Control Gates with my Ipod which was nice for a bit of a relaxing break and I think it was while I was walking along alone and looking out at the mist just rolling over these huge mountains down to the lake and the air was freezing my nose off that I first realised - I'm on holiday and I can let everything go! Its amazingly invigorating and there is something to be said about the clean mountain air even if it is very very cold!
Alarm was set the next morning for six thirty (meant to be seven but Mum takes a good hour to get ready so dad and I were a bit sneaky and she didnt even realise until we were driving out of Te Anau and it was still dark...) It gets dark about five thirty here and doesnt get light in the morning until 8am. It makes for really really short days and lots of sleep as we dont even stir until 7:30 - anybody who knows me knows that is a sleep in for me. We think it is because of the latitude - we are about 600km below Tassie at present which also explains the cold!
We drove into Milford Sound cursing the fact that it was still drizzling outside but it turned out to be an absolute blessing in disguise. The Milford Road was absolutely incredible - I have never seen anything like it in my whole life. HUGE mountains rise up either side of road and they are covered in thick green vegetation to a point then they are bare which is obviously the snow line. The tops of the mountains were covered in snow and this dense mist just undulated over the tops of the mountains making them look totally ethereal. What was amazing though was the waterfalls - literally THOUSANDS of them. So many waterfalls the mountains looked like they were leaking and some came from up so high streams of water just seemed to pour out of the clouds. I have never heard so many cries of "look to the left" "oh my god" and "look at that one" in my life. It was a surreal experience. We did three short walks on the way in including one to this place called the Chasm where all the waterfalls in a particular area meet and fly down into this smoothly polished granite hole producing huge amounts of spray and a thunderous sound. We arrived into the head of Milford Sound at about 11am and caught the next boat ride up the river. We had a smaller boat with no tour groups which was great and got to see really close to the fiord walls. Milford was actually incorrectly named and is a fiord not a sound which means it was carved out by a glacier. The boat took us out to the Tasman and then on the way back right up close to this huge waterfall which poured down and created a blizzard like blast of wind - he did warn us at the beginning that it would wash the boat but Dad and I had apparently been conveniently out of speaker range and got stuck outside when they locked the doors and got absolutely drenched. Mitre Peak rises straight from the water in the fiord hitting heights of over 1200m and just at a convenient moment the clouds cleared and sun hit the top of the peak providing a spectacular view. headed back out after a quick lunch in the van and made it back to a freecamp beside a river just outside of Lake Manapouri. Milford has been everyones highlight so far and the rain was just an absolute godsend as apparently only 2 of the waterfalls were permanent and the rest are temporary and can dry up within 2 hours of the last rain as the water just pours down into the lakes.
We have decided to head south - it was going to be too many kilometres to drive and some backtracking back up through Queenstown to do our original route up the West Coast via the glaciers so they will have to wait for another day. Instead we drove to Invercargill the southernmost big city in New Zealand to fuel up and fill up with food and then drove through to the Catlins Coast which is the south coast of the south island. We stopped at Slope Point which is 46degrees 40minutes south and the southernmost point of NZ south Island for some photos. I figure it is probably the furthest south I will ever get to in my life unless I head to Antarctica - which is unlikely although I am coping surprising well with the cold. The walks on the Catlins Coast are pretty amazing - we had to go through a gate and along some farmers property to get to Slope Point - dodging the sheep poo. Most of the tracks are closed Sept to November for the lambing season - it actually is more rural than the NW coast of Tasmania - if thats possible. In fact Lize i think there would be plenty of rural reporting for you to do down here! I must admit I am learning a lot about sheep as dad imparts his knowledge of breeding and shearing as he drives along... hmmm interesting conversations thats for sure. The rural scenery is beautiful though and apparently it is the richest farming land in NZ in that area.
We stayed the night at a place called Curio Bay - shoddy campsite so we showered in the van which was surprisingly good but we then ran out of water which was not soooo good when the only supply at the campsite was bore water...oops. Still we got directed down to the coast at a quarter to five where we saw three gorgeous yellow-eyed penguins come in to nest for the night and a little fur seal. The penguins are very rare - hence only 3 but so beautiful in their little dinner suits - it looks like somebody to forgot to cut them a seam in their trousers when they walk!
Next day we wandered along the Catlins saw two more waterfalls although Milford has spoilt us a bit in that area and I dont think anything else will compare and then wandered along through another farm to a place called Jacks Blowhole where we had to jump fences and treck through mud and yet more sheep poo - worth it though to see the blowhole and the coastal scenery and then we drove on late yesterday through to Dunedin which is where we are now.
This morning we walked past the University of Dunedin which has some stunning Victorian architecture and then into the Otago museum for a bit of cultural heritage. About to grab some lunch in town somewhere once the parents come and find me and then heading up the coast again so hopefully the weather will get a leetle bit warmer!
Relations are still going well with mum and dad - we are playing cards every night as we always do on the yacht and they have their usual couple of scotchs. Mum and I grate a little bit but we havent had a roaring argument yet and overall it has been a great experience. I cant wait to get up to Auckland and head off on the yacht as although all this is great there is this huge anticipation that my real adventure and trip doesnt start until we set sail for Vanuatu or New Caledonia towards the end of June. Still it is nice to wind down and relax rather than jumping straight on the boat and I cant get over how beautiful New Zealand is.
Plan for the next few days is to head up the coast to the seafood and wine country of the North South Island - bring it on I say!
Much love to you all! xx
