Milford Sound & Southern Scenic Route

After we had booked a boat tour in Milford Sound a few days earlier, of course with a 50% discount through Bookme ;-) , Fiordland National Park was our next destination. The weather forecast for our booked day was very good, but unfortunately we had to endure a lot of rain before. Therefore, we stayed the night before our boat tour at the last DOC campground before Milford Sound (about 1 hour drive). However, we made a short stop at the Mirror Lakes before that.

When we arrived at the campground, we had to cope with constant rain at 12°C and some sandflies, but we managed to pass the time with card games, sorting pictures, reading, and another pancake feast under difficult conditions, which were successfully mastered =D.

However, during the night, we were shocked to find out that our beloved air mattress had a leak and despite our best preparations for the cold, we were slowly getting closer to the ground. In those moments, at about 3°C and no insulation towards the ground, there was a moment when we really wished we were back in our cozy bed in Germany ;-)

Therefore, getting up early the next morning was not too difficult for us, and we already set off towards Milford Sound after packing up our tent at 7:30. In the end, it was a good decision because we were able to grab one of the last official parking spaces and didn't have to use the overflow parking with a half-hour hike. We were rewarded with a bright blue sky for our boat tour, and the abundant rain from the previous days led to countless waterfalls that can only be seen for up to 24 hours after heavy rain and then dry up again. At this point, any thoughts of the warm bed in Germany had completely disappeared, because the sunlight also allowed us to see rainbows in the waterfalls =) In addition to the waterfalls, we also had the chance to see some sea lions during the 2-hour tour.

By the way, the name Milford Sound is somewhat misleading, as a sound is actually formed by water, while a fiord, as in Milford's case, was created by glaciers.

After our tour, we drove all the way to Dunedin on the Southern Scenic Route, but first we had to deal with the problem of the air mattress. The small hole was quickly found, but unfortunately it was not possible to repair it with the adhesive patch that was included with the purchase, as it was in an inconvenient location. Fortunately, the next campground was able to lend us a mattress, and the air mattress could be easily exchanged at the Warehouse in Invercargill the following day (the original receipt must of course be provided ;-)

The Southern Scenic Route was quite enjoyable for us. Notable stops we made were at Nugget Point, which is definitely worth a visit, as well as the Purakaunui Falls. In addition, we made a stop in Invercargill and visited Bluff, the southernmost city in New Zealand (excluding Stewart Island), and took a few pictures at Sterling Point, the beginning or end of Highway 1, which runs the entire length of New Zealand to Cape Reinga on the North Island. For those with less time, we think Nugget Point and the Purakaunui Falls are sufficient.

In addition, we visited Dunedin, where we saw the most beautiful train station ever and drove up and down the steepest street in the world (Baldwin Street) =). After that, we eagerly drove along the Otego Peninsula. However, in our opinion, this can be skipped, as both the penguin tours and the visit to the Royal Albatross Colony are excessively expensive and therefore we decided to skip them. Unfortunately, we also had no luck at Nugget Point and could not observe any yellow-eyed penguins, which belong to one of the rarest penguin species in the world. However, we were lucky to come across an absolute hidden gem later on during our trip, which we will share in the next post...