Milford Sound

Day 54 - 11/2/23

We left early to make the 2 hour drive (120 km) in time - but it was worth it. We went out on a smaller boat. This had the advantage that it could get close to the waterfalls because of the shallower draft.

The captain entertained us with a few stories. It was a real relief to have a guide who actually had an easy-to-understand loudspeaker system, who didn't mumble and, above all, spoke good British English.

We drove through Milford Sound to the opening of the Tasman Sea. The waves suddenly increased significantly and the small boat moved along with us quite a bit.

According to the captain, the winds that rush through the sound can be biting cold and violently strong. Wind speeds of over 300 km/h have been measured, so it's not just a "stiff breeze".

The area around the Sound is considered earthquake prone (magnitudes up to 9) and is apparently overdue because such an earthquake hits the Sound on average every 300 years and the last quake was now 320 years ago.