- There is no fuel on the 250km round trip from Te Anau to Milford Sound. Fill-up tank – check.
- Milford Sound is the most popular tourist attraction in New Zealand. Book a cruise before the lunch time rush – check.
- It is the busiest tourist road in New Zealand so allow at least 2 hours by car and more by motorhome; set alarm extra early – check.
We arrived in Milford
Sound in just 1hr 50mins and hardly saw any traffic. The final challenging descent from the tunnel
to Milford Sound was in thick cloud so we were not optimistic about a great
view from our cruise. But there was
still time for the low cloud to lift as we were so early!
We spent the time over a
coffee in the van finalising our battle strategy for engaging the enemy. As we had been warned, we could see that they
were already gathering everywhere and some of the bolder ones even had their
noses pressed against our van windows; damn cheek. It was clearly going to be tough out there.
Fortunately, it was just
a 10 minute walk to the cruise terminal which, incidentally, was reminiscent of
a modest international airport terminal.
Milford Sound Cruise Terminal
The scale of it, for such a remote location,
was rather surprising and not a bit typical of our experience elsewhere on our
tour. There was rigorous traffic management,
coach parking bays galore and covered walkways.
We found the check-in desk for our chosen cruise and we were issued with
boarding passes for Pride of Milford at Gate 10.
Pride of Milford
As our enormous three
decked catamaran docked after its breakfast cruise, there were only a small
number of early birds disembarking. Thankfully,
looking around, it was clear that our cruise would be very lightly loaded too
so there would be ample opportunity to move around and get best views of the scenery.
Fortunately the low cloud had begun to lift a little too. Apparently, there are 260 days with rain in Milford Sound so it is to be expected. We also learnt that it was originally named Milford Haven after the Welsh port but the name was later changed to Milford Sound. Further, it is not actually a Sound at all as Sounds are drowned river valleys. Milford Sound is actually a flooded glacial valley so it is a fjord.
Not too Crowded on the Top Deck
Fortunately the low cloud had begun to lift a little too. Apparently, there are 260 days with rain in Milford Sound so it is to be expected. We also learnt that it was originally named Milford Haven after the Welsh port but the name was later changed to Milford Sound. Further, it is not actually a Sound at all as Sounds are drowned river valleys. Milford Sound is actually a flooded glacial valley so it is a fjord.
Milford Sound
Whatever its name, reflecting
on our day, we concluded that the awesome scale of the scenery we saw on our drive
to Milford Sound and during the cruise is beyond our capability to express in
words or to capture in a few holiday snaps. Milford Sound really does have to be experienced. But if you do, you must take heed of the
warnings and also go prepared to battle the infamous Milford Midges.
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