Milford Saturday 1/26/08

We have referred to our Kiwi coach Bryce in previous posts, and we won’t do it much anymore, but, this is his day. When he first reviewed our itinerary, this day had a late wakeup followed by a leisurely lunch and a relaxing 3-hour drive to Te Anau for the night. He suggested that we change that to get up and be in the car before sunrise, drive 5 hours to Milford Sound, take the boat cruise, and then drive another two hours back to Te Anau for the night. We tried to explain that didn’t seem like our preferred mode of travel. He said’ "You’re lazy, stupid, fat Americans if you can’t drag your sorry arses out of bed in the morning for the experience of a lifetime" or something like that.

After a 4:30 alarm we dragged our sorry arses out of bed, had a bite of breakfast left in our room the night before, and we are on the road at 6:00 sharp with a couple words for Bryce. Now, as we start around the east leg of the lake and turn south we are starting to get a little sun reflecting off the tops of the mountains around us while the full moon is still up behind us. The road south winds around another leg of the lake and the sun is appearing on the horizon as we travel through some green valleys that are dotted with mist and thousands of grazing sheep. We turn back west and there is a line of clouds to our left and sunshine to our right and we seem to be traveling right along a straight line separating the two. It is a unique perspective and we feel like we are in a special effects experiment.

We arrived in Te Anau at 8:00, an hour ahead of schedule, where we grab a coffee and bathroom break. It is about 60-degrees with bright blue skies as we look out at Lake Te Anau and sip a long black. Back on the road to Milford we parallel the lake for about 20 miles and then start heading up past lakes and rivers, always with the mountains as a backdrop with sun shining through patches of morning mist. The valley becomes more and more narrow with the mountains closing in from both sides as well as straight ahead. If you ever feel a need for insignificance in your life, this is the drive for you. A few decades ago some intrepid engineers punched a hole through the mountain leading to Milford sound to open the area to fat Americans. The tunnel is one-way so you wait up to 15 minutes for your green light to pass through. The parking area on the Te Anau side of the tunnel is populated by the Kea bird which is a mountain parrot said to have the curiosity and intelligence of a 3-year old and has been known to unzip camera cases and unsnap purses to swipe whatever it can. We have an intimate relationship with a certain 3-year old so we decide we can afford to pass on these guys.

Once through the tunnel we started a twisty carnival ride down the mountain zooming out to the edge of the cliff and curling back into the downhill switch back. We hadn't seen the water yet but you can see the valley heading out to what must be the Tasman Sea. We are accompanied on the trip down by roaring rivers and waterfalls. We get to the visitor's center just as the 9:55 tour is leaving so we book an 11:25 trip on Mitre Peak tours that was recommended by one of our fellow travelers in Q'town. This is a deep water harbor at the eastern tip of the sound and there are a half dozen tour boats lined up of varying sizes. We picked our's because it is a smaller boat and goes places that the bigger ones can't. We nibble some of our supplies we purchased yesterday, do a woodsy nature walk, and get on board at 11:15. There is nothing we can say to describe the next couple hours. Straight up cliifs, waterfalls that seem to be coming right out of the sky, 1000 foot deep water that is fresh on top and salt on the bottom, fur seals basking in the sun, sailing under one of the waterfalls (John was a "hero" because he stayed outside; Mary was a "pussycat" because she did not), and venturing out into the Tasman where Captain Cook once anchored because he missed the entrance to the sound. Buy the DVD or catch it on travel channel because we do not have the talent to capture what Kipling called one of the true wonders of the natural world.

We stopped at the mirror lakes on our way back to Te Anau where the crystal clear waters are supposed to reflect the surrounding mountains (not so much) but we did watch ducks and trout swimming from top to bottom as clearly as if they were suspended in air. The scenery returning was so good that a local highway patrolman thought John should be reminded of his earthly responsibilities of driving the speed limit which will cost more than Mary might make with many more casino trips. When we checked in at Te Anau Lodge, our hosts Matt and Chloe (he from the North Island and she a London lass) decided that it was beer-o-clock and we gradually mellowed out from a very very big day. We walked the mile into town, ate at the recommended Redcliff Cafe (Mary, Scallop appetizer; John, the groper ((their term, not mine)) fish special served over a warm potato salad), and then headed back for some chocolate cake and red wine in the lounge at the Lodge.

Okay Bryce, you win. No, actually we won because we finally listened to your advice. It was one of our best-ever days and it turned out to be eerily like the description of your day doing the same thing. The guides said it is really good when it is a little cloudy and rainy, but we'll take this one, thank you very much.

No Newspaper today!