Milford Sound and Waterfalls!

Mitford Sound is really a glacier-carved fiord in the southwest portion of the South Island in Fiordland National Park characterized by cascading waterfalls and steep cliffs in the middle of a rainforest.  Assessable by a single road and one-lane bridges, we are traveling in a caravan of cars and buses to reach this natural attraction.  Over one-half million people visit here each year, actually over seven months since the road is frequently closed due to snow or flooding.

We receive a weather report.  Good news!  It’s very windy, but no avalanches today!

In 1862, the first Europeans followed a Māori track which they had established on their travels to the sound to hunt seals, fish, and “tuna”.  Calling it, “the lake of swirling waters”, the only way to the sound for years was by air, boat, or foot until 1953.

Construction started on roads in 1929, but it took 24 years to complete the project, and then it was only a gravel roadway.  It included a 3/4 mile one-lane Homer Tunnel through a mountain; although, construction stopped 1939-1945 due to WWII.  The road is now paved, but the one-lane tunnel remains, and we must wait our turn!

The road was built slowly by 100 men in repetitive sections.  They would establish a camp, complete one section of road, and move on to another camp and a new section of road.  These men enjoyed their alcohol in the evenings, and more than one man died falling over the cliffs surrounding the project.  It became known as the “Devil’s Staircase”!

In 1877, Donald Sutherland built three huts which he rented out; although, he was basically squatting since he didn’t own the land nor have a permit.  He married Elizabeth Samuels, a resourceful and wealthy woman, bought the land, and in 1881, they officially opened their business.  Forty people arrived by ship to stay at their hotel and chalet initially.

Sutherland died in 1918 in his sleep, and he was so heavy his wife couldn’t move the body for five weeks until the ship returned with help!  She continued to run the business until she died in 1923.  At that time, the government decided to reclaim the land and turn it into a national park.

It’s about a 4-hour journey by bus so we stop a couple of times along the way.  Te Anau has been the Gateway to Mitford Sound for 104 years.  It’s a great place for a comfort stop and food, but all the other buses think so too!

For hours we pass sheep and cows both with their newborns.  The lambs are especially adorable frolicking, nursing, chasing mom, and collapsing in exhaustion.  The twins and triplets lie together, and some babies must only be a few days old.

In the late 1970’s, there were numerous deer in the mountains destroying the native forests, and wars developed with hunters shooting, tranquilizing, and capturing the animals from helicopters.  Young men especially were getting hurt jumping out of helicopters with nets, helicopter crashes, and fighting over territory, and within a ten year period, multiple lives were lost.  Deer are now raised commercially for their velvet and meat, and we pass pens with deer lying passively on the ground.

A few years ago the New Zealand Prime Minister called the country’s Air Force about transporting he and his staff on an official state visit.  He was told that the air force’s plane was broken!  He and his staff flew commercial.

New Zealand Air Force’s symbol is a flightless bird, the kiwi.  Hummm!

We board the ship to start the two hour cruise along the fiord.  After a boxed lunch, I head outside, but it’s raining which adds to the cold…it was 43 earlier…from the wind.  The front decks are all open, and although, that is where I would prefer to be, I discover the back decks are covered!  I can’t hear the naturalist’s commentary as well over the speakers, but by watching the direction of the wind-driven rain and standing on the opposite side, my camera, phone, and I are mostly dry.  Win, win!

The water is deep blue, and the cliffs soar above us with moss and shrubs clinging to the rocky sides.  Landslides are evident both here and earlier driving to the park.  “Anchor trees” on the sides hold soil in place and other shrubs grow around it.  If it falls, it takes trees, shrubs, rocks, and dirt all down in a vicious pile of debris.

The mountains are covered with snow, but the tops are shrouded with a thin veil of mist.  The all-stars today are the waterfalls!  

The rain has fueled the falls which are magnificent as they cascade down the rocks.  I look up and trace the water as it first tumbles over the top and begins it’s long and often crooked descent.  Some falls are gentle and quiet while others are thunderous with their power as they finally end their journey in the fiord’s waters below.  There are singular falls straight down the mountain and others twist and combine and separate again.

I click pictures and take videos trying to capture the majesty of Milford Sound.  Some people prefer it on a sunny day with blue skies above.  I think the good Lord has treated me to a special rainy day to show off His action rather than passive beauty of nature.  Thank you, Lord!

It’s a 4-hour return trip to Queenstown and lots more sheep and lambs, cow and calves with an occasional deer farm to keep us company and entertained.  As we near the end of our excursion, a beautiful rainbow blankets the mountains and welcomes us home!