The long white cloud that New Zealand is named for!
We booked a coach and cruise with Te Anau Top 10. There were only seven of us on the small coach. Our driver & guide, Reece, was very informative and full of help.
The weather was not good. It had been raining for the last 10 hours and was still raining.
The road to Milford Sound was originally built during the great depression by men with pick axes and wheelbarrows. The weather conditions were hash. No warmth, rain, and, near Homer Tunnel, no sun from April to October! The road was finally fully paved in 1991.
We stopped at Mirror Lake on the way to Homer Tunnel. Indeed it was beautiful to see and there was a mirror rainbow. There was a sign of Mirror Lake upside down so you could read the writing in the lake surface.
We stopped at Knobs Flat for toilet. The facility is closed at 3pm every day. Nobody knows why so early. The last tour bus does not leave Milford Sound till later.
You can track up Milford Sound in 4 days. The cheap way costs only NZ$300, where you would need to carry your own food and bedding and accommodation basic. Or, you can go the posh way. About NZ$1700, with a guide, hot shower and gourmet meals.
We stopped at a village called Homer, but it is now vacant. It shows the condition people lived in those days. The National Park is strict about villages along the Milford Sound. There is none. Not even a cafe insight.
We also stopped at the Chasm. This was rather a surprise. We could hear the roar of a waterfall. When we got nearer, it was a very spectacular sight. The water has bored big holes on the rocks. The holes are right through. Imagine a round sphere with holes through it.
We also saw lots of waterfalls. Most of these were temporary because of the rain. We saw a frozen one by Homer tunnel which showed how cold up it was up there.
We arrived at the cruise terminal – no cafe. Our boat was skippered by an Englishman called Darren. It was a small company, and it was not as crowded as those big ones.
Milford Sound was not a sound, but a fiord. It was first founded by a welsh man and named it after his beloved home town Milford Haven. The second founder, also a Welshman names it Milford Sound as Milford of the South. Captain Cook did not land here.
Darren the skipper bought the boat closed to several water falls. Richard was brave to go out and stood under the falls. He said it was like somebody with a fire host coming at you. Lots of water falling on to your head. We also had water from the fall collected for us to drink. The colour was a bit yellowish. An "alcohol free chardonnay" the captain called it. The second time under the falls, there were more people braving the shower. They were soaked. This time they took off their shoes and rolled up their trousers.
Lunch was sandwiches and pumpkin soup included in the tour.
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