Milford Sounds

You hear everyone gush about Milford Sounds, and one has to wonder, “Is it all hype?” The answer is ABSOLUTELY NOT! Now, most people usually make it a day trip from Queenstown, but based on my experience today, I would advise that this is not the way to go. First of all, does riding on a tour bus for six hours [stopping for photo ops], sitting on a boat tour, and finally driving the four hours back to Queenstown sound like a good time? Yeah, didn’t think so.

I was determined to kayak in Milford Sounds. I wanted to be close to the wildlife and actually “experience” the beautiful Fiordland National Park. I realized that there was no way to do any sort of trip with Queenstown as my “base of operations”. I decided to take a bus to Te Anau, a more manageable driving distance of two hours to Milford, with many kayaking tours leaving from the small town. [Te Anau is the location of numerous lakes, including Lake Te Anau, which is the second largest lake in New Zealand after Lake Taupo in the North Island, and it is the host to glow worm caves… more on that later!] George recommended Roscos Milford Kayaks so I decided on the Day Safari experience.

Our guide, Harlan, pulled up at the YHA Hostel where he picked up two other travelers and I [Richard became my kayaking buddy, an experienced Australian traveler who had been all over the world.] It was pitch black and we all fell asleep during the first portion of the drive; poor Harlan was telling stories and facts to a snoozing van of four passengers! We passed Lake Gunn and I sort of came to life as we entered the curvy roads into the Fiordland National Park. Apparently, the township of Te Anau was originally not in its current location, however someone decided to build a pub in what is now Te Anau. Sure enough, where there is beer, the people follow! Human predictability at its finest!

We stopped at the Milford Sound Lodge, where I was informed by our drivers [Scott and Harlan] that coffee was available for purchase. After that long black I was practically a whole new person. I laughed hysterically as they told us about the annual Naked Run held on April 1^st where people race through the 1.4km long tunnel into Milford Sounds buck naked; usually some ingenius kiwi creates some sort of rolling machine to carry beverages and other victuals for the run. The Roscos Milford Kayaking staff created a rolling green kayak that was used as a chilly bin/eski/cooler for over a hundred alcoholic provisions. Apparently, one fellow created a motorized chilly bin that he was able to ride on while drinking. Ah, those kiwis!

We arrived at the illustrious “green tent” where we were outfitted in the most haute couture of kayaking gear by Harlan and his compatriots: green and yellow striped thermal tights and a green and red striped thermal shirt, with a dark green fleece, spray skirt, yellow splash jacket, and a purple and yellow PFD made up my delightful outfit of the day! We had a short lesson on the basic safety procedures for kayaking and then we set off into the surprisingly not too chilly water of the Milford Sounds. Thankfully, the sun was out after a night of heavy rainfall [the south western portion of NZ is one of the rainiest regions in the entire world! Fun Fact!]

I would say the one sacrifice I made when I decided to kayak was the amount of pictures I was able to take. Even so, no picture I have the skillset to take would fully acknowledge the beauty of the Milford Sounds fiords. [The Milford Sounds are technically fiords, and not “sounds”, because they were carved by glaciers and not be rivers.] Harlan also told us a Maori legend, with many common day colloquialisms and non-traditional word choices, about the creation of the fiords.

My Aussie paddle-buddy and I battled the strong wind for the 13km trip, with the last 4km stretch facing directly into the wind. It was one of those moments where it did not matter how hard I paddled, regardless of my efforts, we did not move forward at all. It was all we could do to NOT be pushed backwards! Thankfully, Harlan stopped for little breaks in different areas protected from the wind to tell stories and have snack breaks. We learned about the Bowan Falls, named after Lady Elizabeth Bowan, wife of one of the original explorers of the Milford Sound area.

At the nature reserve, we learned about the takahe bird, which originally was thought to be extinct, before the little colony in Milford was discovered. In an effort to breed more of the species, several birds were captured and put under protective care to reproduce; only then, did scientists realize that all the captured birds were MALE! OOPS! We also saw several seals, one of whom looked like he was posing for us, with his snout positioned directly towards the sky.

We arrived back to the kayak beach, where we stripped off our wet gear and changed before heading back to the Milford Sound Lodge for lunch. We hung out for about an hour before heading back to Te Anau, taking breaks for photo opportunities. Obviously, multiple jokes about taking selfies were made, as we bemoaned the existence of the selfie stick, which, if you were unaware, has been banned in many European museums! All I can say is, “Good Riddance!” Selfie sticks are one of the most obnoxious devices on the planet. Apparently, the Bluetooth connection utilized by selfie sticks to take photos actually poses a safety rick because of its interference with emergency/security communications; although, I think it would simply be hilarious if they were banned merely for being repugnant.

Anyway, enjoy what photos I did take!