On Monday we ventured into the world of the Fiord Lands National Park. Our friend Jonny, who we’ve been staying with in Queenstown lent us his car, and we spent the nearly three hour drive gazing at the beautiful scenery and becoming increasingly grateful that we weren’t on a bus. The three of us pulled over several times to take pictures of the towering mountains, the rocks and trees separating only for the silver water falls that slid down. The Fiord Lands are from a totally different world. The base of the mountains are full of trees, about halfway up the rocks begin and reach all the way to the sky.
We camped in the park that night in a fairy like forest that was on the edge of a valley shadowed by the mountains. The next morning we woke up before the sun and made our way to Milford Sound. Here we boarded a boat and toured around the sound for two magical hours. Our captain brought us close to the mountains and under many water falls. There’s nothing quite like getting drenched by fresh glacier melt while in a maze of gigantic mountains.
A quick fact about Milford Sound, it’s not actually a “sound”. It was created by the movement of glaciers as they shifted toward the ocean and the valleys left behind were flooded with sea water. A sound is created in the same way but in a riverbed and is flooded with fresh water. I’m not sure why they still refer to it as Milford Sound, but technically it’s a fiord. (This is ain’t no alternative fact).
Our Milford cruise was much too short, I could have spent the whole day there. The brief visit assured me once again that I must come back to New Zealand and backpack through the Fiord Lands. Speaking of backpackers we picked up one on our way out of the park. He was a sweet guy, probably around 27, who was from Wisconsin and was backpacking around New Zealand. It was nice to talk to another American and hear how his traveling had been going. We dropped him off in Te Anu, the first town after the park, and continued on our journey back to Queenstown.
Today we met up with Jonny and while the other three play disc golf I am enjoying the homey-ness of a Queenstown coffee shop and trying to kick out a cold I managed to catch yesterday.
It’s Wednesday here (Tuesday for you Amerians) which means we (Raina and I) will be home in less than a week! Although the three of us are sad to leave New Zealand we are feeling ready to be back in our beds and to stop living out of our backpacks. I’m definitely ready to be home.
I will have a lot of waiting in airports to do next week so I try and write another post at some point, (and hopefully before then too).
Cheers!
Autumn Micketti 