Austrian visitors check out one of our wettest locations - on a sunny day :)

I added this in - because the supplies were getting low and then we could buy only the little one - which is going to last like 1 day and then we found a slightly larger one and then - salvation!! It was suggested that this represents Papa- / Mama- and baby bear!!  Hmm there is no breakfast like a Nuttella Breakfast - even my scouts know that!!!  In any case - up very early and ready to be picked up. I love doing this particular part.
A- it means I get a break from driving (it is 120km in and then another 120km back out again - along with the not so scary Homer Tunnel and steep drive to Milford and
B- we get to see places we might miss by ourselves as the locals know the little out and away from tourist route places!!  So we got picked up and had a lovely tour-guide - who stopped at several places - like the Mirror lakes - (early in the morning when there is no huff and puff from mother nature) and others.  Part of her job is also delivering the morning papers and the post - requiring us to stop at the LAST farm before you enter the National Park.  Luckily for us they were in the middle of shearing - so we were allowed to have a peek view of this quintessential NZ activity. It is hot sweaty back-breaking work - hmmm might be good for weight-loss. There are shearing gangs contracting out their skills and going from farm to farm . . . .
They have to do 3000 sheep - shearing them, getting the fleece clean and bundled up and then sell the wool - so that someone can knit a wooly jumper!!  :)  Doris finding the odour a bit much.  Surprisingly the only bonafide true to honest only kiwi in this group never has been inside a shearing gang building before - something I have :)   Soon it was time to be on the road again and a joke was shared - hmmmm something along the lines of using the shearers to work on  my beard??? Can't remember the punch line but it must have been a good one.

Looking up the Egglington valley and it is not looking promising.  I am reassuring the visitors that given the local usual weather patterns and current wider weather situation we will have sunshine at Milford - something they are just not yet willing to believe. They should know better by now.

The famous mirror lakes - hmmm well ok ponds, really not much of a lake is it?  It is certainly not as grand as say Lake Matheson.  That at least is a lake.  This little puddle however does do stunning Mirror images due to its clarity of water.  It is best when there is blue sky and some snow on the backdrop mountains (usually around early spring) - and early in the morning - as said before, later in the day there is usually a slight breeze blowing down the valley - and thus scattering the clouds!!  Still - even now it does do a reasonably good job!! - You certainly get the idea. 

Homer tunnel - hand hewn in and during the Depression area of 1930's and a miserable job that would have been.  Half the time it is buried under snow and at times the road is closed due to avalanches.  Occasionally the snow is so high that it is double the height of the roof entrance. You feel like driving in a Bob-sleigh course.  This image - and most of them following here -  do the GRAND vista no justice.

You just have to see with your naked eye - you just have to be there in person.  Would you believe if I told you there is another 1000m straight up before you run out of mountain??? In winter - there is not a single rock to be seen - it is white-out and way, way, way back in time this used to be all glacier country - must have been enormously deep glaciers!!!  However - as promised - we got blue sky and it should be even better on the other side!

We were booked on the Milford Wanderer which is half sailing boat and half diesel powered. It is the only boat that can be booked for a overnight stay in Milford Sound and grand that would be. Something to do on our Bucket list - or when we are rich and famous.   Hmmmm scrap the famous part - rich alone will do nicely!  So it  I S  a sailing boat and it does have a little part at the front of the boat looking like a gangway something rather and almost straight away there was no shortage of willing (female) volunteers to re-enact the famous scene from Titanic.  I refused to play Jack - rather admire the scenery - and take pictures!!

The Lady Bowen Falls - and you have a tour-boat for size comparison.  These particular falls also have a generator on the top somewhere that provides power to Milford sound - so that the "business" of tourism can flourish.  However at 10pm the power gets turned of and does not come back on 'till 5 or 6 am!! Must re-read Martina's blog - she did spend the night there in a back-packers place - and see what she said about that!  So yeah - for some 8 hours you are in blackout. Candles are a hot commodity. You used to be able to walk to the Falls and see some things - (such as the ONLY grave in Milford Sound) but no longer.  Seems there is too much risk now from a recent rockfall . . . .

The cruise takes a good 2-3 hours and takes you right from Milford sound end right out to the open ocean  and along the way you see - water - water - water - urm - wait water - and of course Mountains and more mountains and - two seal colony’s.  This one is named - so I am told - after a NZ politician who likes to pose . . . . and have his picture taken . . . . .      - just kidding    :)  

Surprisingly - given the annual rainfall - there are only four permanent waterfalls - varying in intensity.
First up - correct me  if I am wrong here - Bridal Falls??!?!  I was to busy taking a picture to listen to the commentary.
The intense rainfall creates dozens of temporary waterfalls cascading down the cliff faces, some reaching a thousand metres in length. :) wow what a sight that would be.  Smaller falls from such heights may never reach the bottom of the sound, drifting away in the wind. These temporary waterfalls are fed by rain water drenched moss and they last at most for a few days once the rain has stopped.
In rainy and stormy days tourists can admire the play of the wind with the numerous waterfalls in Milford Sound. When meeting the cliff face the powerful wind often goes upward and waterfalls with a vertical drop get caught by wind, causing the water to go upwards.

Papa-(bear)-razzi in great form! Look at his style - pose - and composure -as well as his winter-fat - urm belly as he takes a challenging picture.  OK scrap the belly comment :) Notice too the glare . . . . .  .  Personal comments aside (yes I do look great) urm - did you notice how close the boat is to the rock-face??  This is possible because the Milford Sound is actually a FJORD - carved out by the glacier and drops vertically for another 140 meters below the water line, so skippers can go within 1 or 2 meters of the rock-face - something that should come in handy on the return journey.  The falls are  quite thin and never thunderous - so the wind picks up the spray and moves them round like a net curtain in the breeze!!

Looking out into the open sea - yes there was a cold front that moved up and made everything cloudy out in the open sea!!  At least it did not rain - so there are some small blessings.

The other seal colony.  A mischievous  character once dubbed this the 'ladies club'  (with the Men's group on the other side - obviously) but I am not sure about that.

The sterling falls - close up.  Also usually called the 'Boat-wash' falls for obvious reasons. You get to within one meter of the cliff and the spray will soak everything, and I do mean everything.  Time to pack away the camera!!

well - it was a good wash.  The rinse cycle is just as great!!

The question was asked on board how high do you think the falls are and most people underestimate in a long shot - check the next photo

THAT boat is 30 meters long soooooo  :)  you do the maths . . . .

Yup - yet again.  4th time in Milford sound and of the fabled rain - not a hint!! Must have a special friend upstairs who looks after my travel plans.  We did walk the famous Milford track (Wilfried and Mamabears sister and myself in 1988 or so) - a 4 day hike - and sweated every day in 30 degrees along with the sunshine, while the rest of the country endured rain . . . . .   figures

Hey - how did this sneak in here??? hmmm a pre-valentine's day smooch???

I know he's happy - it was on his MUST-DO list and I was glad that we did and take/ showed Doris one of the most stunning places in New Zealand at the same time.

Mitre peak - almost without a hat!! Again - looks better in spring time with the snow and all . . .

Here cometh today's lesson ---->  Maori are believed to have discovered Milford Sound more than 1,000 years ago, returning seasonally to the fiord, collecting the much prized pounamu (greenstone). These treks from the east used traditional pathways across passes such as MacKinnon Pass on the Milford Track. The Maori named the sound Piopiotahi after the thrush-like piopio bird, which is now extinct. In 1912 John Grono was the first European settler to land in the sound. He named Milford Sound after Milford Haven in Wales.
The Maori name for Milford Sound, Piopiotahi, means "a single piopio", harking back to the legend of Maui trying to win immortality for mankind - when Maui died in the attempt, a piopio was said to have flown here in mourning. According to Maori Legend, Piopiotahi was carved out by Tu-te-raki-whanoa, an atua (godly figure) who was given the task of shaping the Fiordland coast. Chanting a powerful karakia (prayer), he hacked at the towering rock walls with his toki (adze) called Te Hamo.

 Here endeth today's lesson  :)

The lad decided on the spur of the moment to see if he could catch a heli-ride over the pass. And he did, experiencing a completely different look and feel of the Milford Sound. He was stoked!!

To proof it - and no photoshop - rather another 'selfie' taken some 1500m above sea-level - on the Ice of a glacier.

The green 'look' of the water is from the Ice grinding away on the rock - but you already knew that from reading about Lake Tekapo and Pukaki - same idea!!

It does make you feel small and insignificant when you see the homer tunnel entrance like that.

Meanwhile - further along in our tour - and having picked up the fly-boy - 2 of our party got the opportunity to do a decent hike up the mountain while the rest of us shall we say more maturer (hmm ok ok lazier) folks had a more gentle stroll ahead - along with the guide. We got shown a true left over original part of the forest where trees have stood untouched since time began. There is moss everywhere - a testament to the wet nature of the area.

It is still untouched and the Beech trees are generally older then in most parts of the National Park - now there was a reason for that - but I forgot.  In any case - it was a gentle stroll through some pretty unspoiled nature and we saw many trees / ferns / moss and more moss and - yes - 3 french young tourists having had a riverside cooked lunch and indulging in a card game on a lazy sunny afternoon. It is all about location location location.

A so called Tree Burr - and prized by wood-turners.  Make a salad-bowl out of that and you can ask for $$$$ and some.  Not quite sure why the trees grow what is essentially pimples - but for some bizarre reason they do!

Ah there we go again - back into Lord of the Rings country.  In fact somewhere near Te Anau is - or rather was a film location.  LTR fans will lambast me - but I think it is the river scene claiming the foe thanks to . . . hmmm what was her name ? ?

The second short stroll was up and to the Marian Falls.  Noisy water falling down over rock after rock.  So ok 'Krimmler falls'  they are not - certainly they do lack in power - but still they were pretty spectacular and long!!

To get there you had to go across this particular bridge and a swinging bridge this is indeed.  I was pretty ok on it - but Bernhard and Mamabear had a more challenging time. In fact I made a video of him crossing on the return journey and yes he did good!!

Phewwww -- made it!!  From there it was afternoon tea in a special car park and lookout point, where we heard Tui and Bellbird and saw some southern rata and enjoyed the lovely warm afternoon sun.  Too many pictures to publish - as no doubt by now, I have you sent to sleep already.  Just a few more fun lines to read and check out the video . . . . .


PS - from the fabled rain - no sign at all



Fun facts:

• An underwater tourist observatory found in one of the bays of the sound provides viewing of black coral, usually only found in much deeper waters. A dark surface layer of fresh water, stained by tannins from the surrounding forest, allows the corals to grow close to the surface here.
•  Milford Sound has a permanent 7-12 meter layer of FRESH water over the sea-salt water.  Yes it is drinkable - bar for the tannins from the rock and forest above it!
• Milford Sound doesn't have rock-avalanches rather - accumulated rainwater can, at times, cause portions of the rain forest to lose their grip on the sheer cliff faces, resulting in tree avalanches into the sound. The regrowth of the rain forest after these avalanches can be seen in several locations along the sound.
• Only a 120 people actually live permanently at Milford sound - all servicing the tourism industry.
• Lush rain forests cling precariously to these cliffs, while seals, penguins, and dolphins frequent the waters and whales can be seen sometimes along with over a million of tourists.
• Milford Sound is an incredibly wet area with a mean annual rainfall of 6,813 mm on 182 days a year. With nearly 7 metres of rain a year, Milford is one of the wettest inhabited places on earth. Rainfall can reach 250 mm during a span of 24 hours.
• Not often talked about but the main-alpine fault line runs just outside the sound into the deep ocean and the area can and does get frequent shakes - some as large as 7.5 on the richter scale.
• Sand-flies - a subject best avoided. At Milford they breed prolific and they usually are double the size of "normal" sand-flies.  I avoided getting bitten once. Seem's they have developed a taste for fresh European or Asian blood!!   (Check out the deal I tried to make for when Martina was here ----->   Martina and the deal with sandflies   )
• Lastly - it is about 119km from Te Anau to Milford Sound and same back of course - so if you are driving - do check your PETROL levels - there is NO petrol after you leave Te Anau, and it is a long way to push your car back :)

     
Night - have fun

Austrian visitors pretend to be Hobbits

Everyone is still buzzing from yesterdays excursion! How could we possibly top that???  Fear not - the journey into middle earth is not yet over. Running - well - ok driving along the highway of excitement with the occasional pitstop.  First up - - the underwhelming Te Anau Wildlife Centre.  Efforts are being made to increase the population of the native Takehe - a bird previously thought extinct. The Wildlife Centre is open from dawn until dusk and entry is by a gold coin donation. The aviaries and pens that house the birds are set in beautiful grounds with views of the lake. Free flying birds enjoy the trees planted there and the ducks like the water edge below the boardwalk by the lake.  ok - so much for the advertizing ---->  http://www.te-anau-wildlife-centre/
It is a pretty open and often underused centre - although many school children go and visit and one should not underestimate the work done to INCREASE the population of the Takehe. The Takahē was once thought to be extinct, but in the 1948 it hit world headlines when an Invercargill doctor, Geoffrey Orbell, rediscovered the bird high in the tussock grasslands of the remote Murchison Mountains, Fiordland. Even today, despite years of conservation effort, the takahē remains critically endangered. That’s due to man-kinds stupid ideas to introduce pests like the rabbit / weasel / stoats / rats to name a few - and our flightless birds have never encountered natural predators before- so it is not in their genes to fight.
The nice thing about the centre is that it also attracts a good number of Tui and while hard to spot - you can hear them sing - along with the Bellbird!!
From there it was on to the beginning of the Kepler Track and someone had to have a pitstop - well - this is what we call a longdrop - but you may know this as a 'plumps-klo'. I should have warned the fella - there will be one or two flies - very large flies - that may decide to seek the light . . . . . .    Nah - better to let him find out for himself . .    :D     some Hitchcock-erian moments later - we were ready! 
From there is was back to the sound of click, click along the way.  Basically we walked in on the Track for about an hour or so to the Brod Bay, located almost opposite the Te Anau town itself. It is a natural rainforest with a lot of Beech and occasional Rimu tree's and with a tonne of ferns. I would need to research that fact, yet I am sure we have over - yes over 150 different species of ferns in NZ.  Sadly the famous silver fern is mostly in the North Island. Brod bay is a popular spot for boaties to come to and have a picnic - and on this day this was no exception with three being there dropping of what looked like a family gathering.   Along the way - impressions of the track - I leave you now to scroll and ponder NZ best beauty spot in silence - no cricket sound - no boatie sound and if you be so kind and turn of your radio/ coffeemaker - that would be grand!

Yes - ok - back into reality - Samson he is not - (thankfully) and it did kind of remind me of the story line of the two twin towers guarding mordor. ahhhh - banish the thought.  It is also a very uncomfortable look for a rest - having trudged in for 45 minutes.  Or did he seriously think he was guarding some secret entrance to some secret underground fern world?? No fear Laddie - the trees will keep on standing with or without your help - probably for another several hundred years!!

Our Koru - The koru (Māori for "loop") is a spiral shape based on the shape of a new unfurling silver fern frond and symbolizing new life, growth, strength and peace. and not often found just like that - in its prime state - and very difficult to take as a photo - but in this case . . . . . . .

Some of our more unwelcome visitors.  One wonders HOW they got to NZ in the first place - they are not native to our shores

Just testing the water - is it warm enough to get my feet wet? Is it deep enough to jump - urm - bungy jump into - well yes further out into the lake - urm - the sea bed drops away to some 150 meters plus.  Once is enough perhaps?

For some strange reason a group photo was called for. Was that due to the fact he knew we were going underground into the cave of a certain dragon - no wait - urm - well - ok worm - or just because I can?? Either way - after some three attempts . . .

Voila - the final product.  Darn - I could have sworn I saw a hobbit running behind the picture - hmmmm  let me go and check . . . ..    for foot prints

Yet another Koru = not as grand as the previous one . . .

Occasionally the ferns shed their leaves - naturally - it is a hard job keeping it very green and so in this case there were several branches that had done it's job and were surplus to requirements - so they die back - making room for yet another Koru - who will become a great leafy thing - then make room for yet another  - ah you get the picture.  I took  this as it was unusual to see so many in one spot.  Must photoshop this - the colours were more brown - almost golden . . . .

Ah yes the fern garden - as far as the eye can see.  To put it into human terms - the leaves grow up to your hips or waist - so it becomes a sea of green moving leaves. 

David Attenborough in training - classic pose! I was expecting a lecture from the famous man - hearing of the fantastic moss found only in this place - with surrounding animal life and the wonders of modern photography highlighting . . .   hmmmm   ok  ok  lets just stick with the pose for now!!   His "selling" of the nature program will need some polish but hey - everyone has to start somewhere . . . .
Although I think that NZ sells itself pretty well.

Decided to do a 360 wheelie and show what you see.  It is not David Attenborough - and yes I was indeed standing on a slippery tree trunk - so had fun trying NOT to fall of and make a fool of myself - but we got there.  Pity that the nearby motorboat spoiled the sound of silence . . . .

Looking down the length of the lake. Somewhere in the distant is the start of the Milford Sound Track and the Homer tunnel and the Sound itself . . . .

Looking back from Te Anau to Brod Bay - across the lake.  It was a reasonably sandy beach . . .   no wonder it is a favourite place to hang out.

Hey man - look at me - I was fishing - and look what I found!!!!!

Later in the afternoon - having extracted ourselves from the ferns and the beauty that is the beginning of the Kepler Track - we hitched a ride on a boat, and while waiting to - urm - leave we saw these to Asian boys who played a interesting game of chicken - it goes like this: - you play paper, scissors, rock and who ever looses goes 2 steps deeper into the water.  Well one was better in playing the game then the other - so one chap was getting in deep - then the game came to a sudden stop - they realized that they still had their cellphones still in the pockets - which needed to be dropped back their girlfriends on shore (who where totally dis-interested in this semi macho game) and started again - with the predictable result - more things to be rescued from pockets and re-starting the game, with still the same guy getting deeper and deeper into the water - sadly the boat had to leave - I was quite contend watching this little side show of games-man ship!!!  Hmmm wonder if I can get my scouts to play this game??? We soon got compensated by a de-tour of the lake trip to see some nice NZ scenery and see the trees and water  and  -contemplated our caving experience soon to be tested.

We would be experience a mysterious underground world of rushing water before drifting in silent darkness beneath the luminous shimmer of thousands of glowworms.  Our trip to the Te Anau Glowworm Caves began with a cruise to the western shores of Lake Te Anau on one of the purpose-built scenic cruise vessels (we hitched a ride on) . At the entry to the caves at Cavern House, are the informative displays and you can learn, if you so wish, learn about this geological wonder before we joined our guide underground. On the tour of the caves, our friendly guide pointed out the highlights and shared her knowledge of the caves and its history. This underground world is astonishingly beautiful. By geological standards the caves are very young (12,000 years) and are still being carved out by the force of the river that flows through them. The result is a twisting network of limestone passages filled with sculpted rock, whirlpools and a roaring underground waterfall and I do mean roaring. 
Deep inside the caves, beyond the roar of the water, we caught yet another small boat into a silent hidden grotto inhabited by thousands of glowworms, unique to New Zealand. In the subterranean darkness, they produce a glittering display that is nothing short of extraordinary. Well it was meant to be silent, except for one little boy from urm - not our shores - who could not be controlled by his parents and was allowed to spoil the experience for everyone else by giving a running cometary. Which part of total silence required now, did his parents not understand???? I ask you - total frustration here . . . .
The following images have been borrowed from the net - as you are not allowed to take ANY pictures inside - to do so would ruin your night vision and the Glow-worms would get a freight and actually turn off their - urm - light bulbs.
The ceiling however looked just like the night sky on a good day - or like you spot in Tekapo - full of individual stars . . ..

The entrance where you have to duck. Cousin Doris wondering HOW her Mum managed here . . . .  you almost practically waddling in here

The glow worms - fishing for food

:D

The boat -a  special photo made - normally this is in total and I do mean total darkness - well apart from the glow-bugs glowing . . .

The cave system. We go in only so far.  Whatever possessed someone to go in there with primitive lighting and things back in the 1940's is beyond me.

Not our milky-way - but a worm colony - all busy fishing for food . . . .









Soon it was time to get out and see the daylight again - here is our boat again taking us back to Te Anau. Te Anau is a shortened form of “Te Ana-au” which means “the cave of the swirling water current" - meaning that local Maori already knew about the caves long before European re-discovered the caves.







The trip back was rather special with the sun coming out just like that and the resulting dusk and clouds and water and mountains combining into a stunning backdrop. Not surprisingly the two lads must have long given up on their game of chicken.  I suspect either they got too cold - or more likely - their Girlfriends gave one look and - yup we are outta here. Still not half bad to come back to - is it?


Hmmmm what can I say - the creator being back on deck today - tossing some random clouds and sun together for us to enjoy!!!





Dinner and bed - its been a long and beautiful day - but tomorrow we have to be up early as we are catching a guided bus tour into Milford Sound!!

Night Golumn - hmm David - ok ok - urm - 'little Bro'  :)