After a very rainy night we were happy to see sunshine for our Milford Sound excursion. We boarded the tour bus at 7:00 am for a more than five hour drive from Queenstown to Milford Sound. The bus stopped along the way to allow us to take pictures.
The drive itself wound its way along mountain sides and around lakes, and I was glad that I got to be a passenger and take in the scenery. The mountains and the valleys were spectacular. Milford Sound is located in Fjordland National Park and is a UNESCO world heritage site. It is misnamed as it is actually a fjord, not a sound. Apparently Milford Sound sounds better than Milford Fjord?!? The sound opens up into the Tasman Sea and New Zealand itself is located in the South Pacific Ocean.
We saw many sheep, and cows, and deer. Sheep were once the staple of New Zealand farmers but now many have converted to dairy cows or deer. While there were once 70 million sheep in New Zealand, there are now 27 million. The deer are farmed as a solution to an overpopulation of wild deer. All mammals that now live in New Zealand, except for a couple of species of bats, have been introduced and many are considered pests. The New Zealand government is committed to eradicating them and residents are encouraged to kill opossums, rabbits, rats, and weasels because these animals are destroying bird and plant species. We saw a lot of squished opossums and rabbits on the roads!
After the long but beautiful drive we arrived in Milford Sound and boarded our boat for a two hour cruise. The cruise itself was windy and wet as we got close to a few waterfalls, but it also started to rain. Milford Sound is a must see if you are ever in New Zealand.
The drive back to Queenstown was shorter, about four hours, with less stopping. But still as picturesque.
It's All About The Journey 