Today we left Queenstown to head to Milford Sound. Along the way we did a 4 hour hike up to a mountain lake (Lake Marian) that sits in a closed hanging glacial valley. The path went through what we’re now coming to expect as the truly magical New Zealand temperate rain forest. Tall beach trees, ferns, moss. The first half hour was fairly level as we hiked up along a creek to a waterfall. Then it became much steeper, with lots of rocks and branches, and a few awkward scrambles. Lake Marian was beautiful, surrounded by peaks. We spent close to an hour there. No bugs, no rain, warm enough to sit and eat lunch and enjoy the sights and sounds and smells.
The weather forecast called for rain starting in the PM, and we were once again fortunate as it held off until we were getting back into the van after the hike. The training hikes I did are certainly paying off; I finished the hike, hopped into the van for the ride to Milford Sound, and when we got out I expected to do the hobble I’ve been doing after long hikes at home. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised that I didn’t stiffen up at all.
After Lake Marian, we drove to Milford Sound. This is a national park, and we’re staying in a rustic lodge with private rooms but shared bathrooms (one for men, one for women). The power (including the heat) is provided by generators, which are shut off from 11:00 at night until 6:30 in the morning.
Milford Sound is actually a fjord. Sounds are carved out by rivers and filled with sea water; fjords are carved by glaciers. The mountains surrounding Milford drop straight down to the water, so you are surrounded by these hulking shapes rising vertically out of the edge of the fjord. In the clouds and rain, they look a bit ghostly. The area gets something like 7 meters of rainfall a year (more than 250 inches), and of course we’re expecting rain tomorrow. But they say the rain brings out the waterfalls. And the lodge is well designed for rain. Rooms open to the outside, and when you go out of your room you’re on a deck that goes all the way around the lodge. The deck keeps you from having to walk in the mud (especially nice if you are heading to the bathroom after dark), and is covered top and sides with a clear plexiglass which allows light in during the day but keeps the rain off.
We’ll be kayaking tomorrow morning. Breakfast at 6:30, be packed and ready to leave at 7:00, and at the kayak dock by 7:15 to do the paddle before it gets windy. Fortunately this is our earliest start of the trip. Usually we have a far more civilized schedule.
At dinner our guides announced that they were going to do a bungy jump on the way to Mt. Cook day after tomorrow and invited us to join them. I’m tempted to do so, but we shall see. It’s pretty safe; the only risk is a very rare retinal issue. But I’m rather partial to my retinas, so may pass. Stay tuned to find out what I end up doing!
Today's pictures are here.
No comments:
Post a Comment