Day 6 Fiordland, New Zealand

Fiordland National Park

 

Our Captain announces sea conditions, usually twice a day. The later few announcements have warned us of high seas and strong winds, especially as we near New Zealand. Conversations with some passengers have warned us of the possibility the ship may not be able to enter the various fiords if the weather is bad. Well, we had a little rocking and rolling but not enough to cause sea sickness or hinder our movement around the ship, quite mild actually. So we were up and warmly dressed to go out onto the front observation deck on deck 11 to see the entrance to Milford Sound.

Fiordland was established in 1952 and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is on the South Island of New Zealand and is 1.2 million-hectare terrain free for wildlife to roam, from dolphins and seals in the water, to a variety of birds, including the flightless parrots known as kakapos and kiwis. New Zealand does not have any native manuals.

We stood on the open deck as the ship sailed into Fiordland about 7.45am. The cold wind came off the land and out through Milford Sound straight to the front of the ship where we were standing. We managed to stay there for about 3 hours before returning to the warmth of the ship and breakfast. 

The ship left Milford Sound about 10am then sailed south to Thompson Sound where it entered about 1pm and exited an hour later before sailing to Dusky Sound to enter just after 3pm and exiting about an hour later.

The sun rarely shone whilst we were in the sounds, the clouds were low in Milford Sound but had lifted by the time we sailed through the other two sounds. We were fortunate it had rained heavily the night before which afforded us plenty of waterfalls. The sounds were created when glaciers slowly moved through to the sea, sculpturing the fiords. Now that I have seen the three Sounds, I would rate Milford as the most dramatic. The land has been dramatically cut away by the glacier those many 1,000s centuries ago leaving vertical cliffs where waterfalls fall straight into the sea. As we looked through the low cloud cover, over the closest ridges to the higher peaks behind, we noticed these higher peaks were snow-capped, and we were told, most of the snow stays on these peaks year round. Brrr, it was cold out there on the front deck.

When the ship sailed into Milford Sound it had to negotiate around the narrow bends until the sound opened up to a wider point just before the lodge, which accommodates hikers, kayakers and tourists who visit the area. There is also an underwater observation area which goes 30 feet down into the water of the sound so tourists can see the aquatic sea life swim past.  We were lucky it had rained so much the night before as we saw many waterfalls, some 100's metres high, cascading into the water. Apparently they dry up fairly quickly if it hasn't rained recently.

The other Sounds are less dramatic but still special and breathtaking with their lush vegetation and crystal-clear waters.

The ship commemorated Veterans Day at 11am this morning and held a couple of services at 11.15am. Either an Interdenominational or a Non-religious. Then a Veterans' get together in the Razzmatazz Lounge at 2.30pm. Hats off to Princess who honoured Veterans for their service.

PS Drink of the Day 'Kiwi Sangria' (Bacardi Limon, Apple Schnapps, Sauvignon Blanc, fresh kiwi and lemon)