From Queenstown to Milford Sound

I posted my last update from Wanaka. It was quite a struggle to upload the many pictures there because the internet was very slow and bad. However, since it rained almost the whole day, I didn't have much to do and had enough time. In the afternoon, I drove towards Queenstown, the largest city in the region. But since I hoped for better weather the next day, I just drove through and slept halfway to Glenorchy. There is only a 45-kilometer one-way road from Queenstown to Glenorchy, so I had to drive back anyway. The weather hadn't changed the next morning, it was another cold and loud night due to the storm and rain. I was already back on the road by 6:00 a.m. and drove the short distance to Glenorchy. This little village has been used as a film location for many movies and must have beautiful mountain panoramas reflecting in the lake in good weather. But today, with the fog, you could hardly see five meters ahead. This trip was definitely not worth it. After a quick visit to the public restroom, I drove back to Queenstown. Since it was still pouring rain, I decided to go shopping first. After evaluating every product with my girlfriend via WhatsApp and then returning to the parking lot, the rain had at least stopped briefly. I took advantage of the opportunity, drove back to downtown Queenstown, and went for a stroll. Queenstown is a city on the South Island of New Zealand, located on the shores of Lake Wakatipu at the foot of the spectacular Southern Alps. Queenstown is mainly controlled by a very young backpacker audience, tourists, and many tour operators for the region. You can book and buy everything there, from bungee jumping to a bus tour to Milford Sound to a jet boat ride. Although I don't really like such cities, Queenstown had a beautiful charm and the hour I paid for parking passed by quickly. I couldn't resist and bought two t-shirts. After that, I continued my journey towards Milford Sound. First, it went a bit inland again before heading towards the mountains. I drove past beautiful landscapes that changed very quickly, lakes, and what felt like a million sheep and lambs. In the afternoon, I reached the small town of Manapouri. There, I treated myself to a paid campsite for the first time in a long time, including the luxury of unlimited hot showers, a lounge with a fireplace, and a large kitchen. I shaved, washed myself and my dishes, charged all my batteries, and ended the evening very calmly. The next morning, I made a brief stop in the town of Te Anau, the last populated town before Milford Sound. There, I took advantage of the offer to make a free internet call to my girlfriend at the library before setting off for Milford Sound in the early afternoon. There are a total of 120 kilometers between Te Anau and Milford Sound. However, the so-called Milford Road offers so many views and highlights that it can easily take two days if you want to take every hike and viewpoint. For me, on this day, the goal was to cover 80 kilometers on this road and sleep at the last cheap campsite before Milford Sound. I stopped at the well-known stops and squeezed in with 1000 other people for the best photo spot. Well, it wasn't that bad, but whenever a bus full of Asians arrived, it became crowded and hectic. I had selfie sticks in my face and I'm sure I'm in 10-20 Asian family photos :D I reached my camp, Cascade Creek, in the early afternoon. This was a huge park with the most necessary facilities (rainwater and pit toilets). When I arrived there, I was the only one, but in the evening there were probably 50 more campers on the site. But thanks to the scenery around it, it still felt like pure luxury. From there, you could take an hour-long hike to Lake Gunn. Since I didn't have cell phone reception and it was also in the afternoon, I walked through the wilderness and admired the beautiful green forest before reaching a small viewpoint of the lake. Back in the camper, I wrapped myself in my blanket, watched a movie on my laptop, and went to bed early after dinner. In Canada, I drove through the national parks and slept in the next town. In New Zealand, I sleep right in the middle of the beautiful wilderness. Unfortunately, this night was also very cold, so I woke up around 5:00 a.m. trying to reach the last remaining warmth of my hot water bottle with my feet. So I started very early on the last 40 kilometers towards Milford Sound. On this way, I made my first acquaintance with the kea, a very cheeky and curious mountain parrot. These birds are very intelligent and live in the New Zealand mountains. The birds often and gladly dismantle parked cars, destroying the rubber seals on the doors and the windshield wipers. Even when I drove away from the parking lot, the bird was still hanging on my roof. To get to Milford Sound, you have to go through the Homer Tunnel. This tunnel is 1.2 kilometers long and hardly illuminated. Water was dripping from the ceiling the whole time, a really strange feeling. When you came out on the other side, the landscape suddenly changed and you drove through a glacier valley in the mountains to the small town of Milford Sound. Milford Sound is a fjord in the southwest of the South Island of New Zealand. It is known for the towering peak of Mitre Peak as well as rainforests and waterfalls such as the Stirling Falls and Bowen Falls that cascade down its steep sides. Since my boat trip wasn't scheduled to start until 9:00 a.m., but I was there very early, I walked around the town a bit. It didn't really have much to offer, except for huge parking lots, a few tourist information centers, a campsite, and the harbor. But I passed the time and at 9:00 a.m., my boat started. I had paid a bit extra compared to the cheapest ride offered. For that, I was on a small and beautiful boat with 21 people instead of over 100 on a huge ship with a breakfast buffet. Although this also tempted me, especially the buffet :D The advantage of the small boat was that it could get much closer to everything. The boat trip through Milford Sound was truly the highlight I had hoped for. Along beautiful rock formations, many waterfalls, penguins, seals all the way to the sea. The waves were quite rough there and you had to hold on tight, but it was just amazing to be there and see all of it. On the way back from the sea to Milford Sound, we had a fast and cute companion, a dolphin. It swam along in front of the boat the whole time and used the wave created by the boat. After that, everyone was hanging upside down over the boat, trying to watch the dolphin. It was really difficult to decide where to look and marvel first. I would have liked to have six eyes and six hands to see and photograph everything. This changed only when our boat went directly under a waterfall and the 'brave', for me somewhat foolish people who had stayed outside, were soaked. Well, whatever floats their boat and if they find it funny. After about two hours, the boat trip ended in Milford Sound. Overall, it was truly one of the absolute highlights of my trip so far. Milford Sound is often referred to as the 8th wonder of the world, which I find a bit exaggerated, but it was still very close to perfect. After this experience, I ate something in the parking lot and watched another kea as it attacked the other cars, and then slowly drove back to Te Anau. On the way back, I made a few more stops that I had skipped in the morning. In addition to a water-carved gorge and a beautiful view of the Hollyford Valley, I also went through the Homer Tunnel again. After that, I drove out of the mountain region and continued on my way south. In the late afternoon, I arrived at a very beautiful beach. The sun was shining, it was relatively warm, and I had pretty much all to myself on my spot. It felt very good to be back at the beach and enjoy the warm rays of the sun after the long time in the cold and rainy mountain region, the West Coast, and Milford Sound. In the evening, I took my obligatory walk on the beach and took some beautiful pictures of the landscape. Especially in the background, you could still see the mountains of the fjord landscape, a truly unbeatable sight. When the sun set, the atmosphere was perfect. The last night was also the warmest since I arrived in New Zealand and I managed to sleep through without a hot water bottle for the first time :) Now I'm in Invercargill, trying to process what I experienced in the last few days. This city is not really a highlight, but it has very good and fast internet access at the library. I'm sitting here right now and watching the Champions League match of Schalke on the side. Today, it's all about taking a day off and giving myself some rest before the next highlight awaits me. I'm already going to the Catlins Coast tomorrow. Hopefully, I will see many animals and once again be amazed by the stunning landscape. I'm excited!