Wellington Journal: South Island Days 8

07 April 2009

South Island Days 8 – 9: Into the Wild

When we first talked about traveling the south island, those friends of ours who’d been to New Zealand were ecstatic. Oh yes! You have to see the south island! When X and I went, we just rented a camper-van, or found a tent and hitch-hiked, or traveled with a band of barefoot missionaries or something. It didn’t take long to figure out that these people were not traveling with multiple children and that they had visited New Zealand in their early twenties, or for a honeymoon, or in some other way that didn’t exactly match what our experience would be. So while we welcomed their suggestions for fantastic sights, we decided right at the beginning that we’d stick with hotels; not even the wimpy kind of car-camping we do in Colorado for us this time.

The one almost-exception to this was Milford Sound. Many of our NZ-experienced friends had declared that Milford Sound was the be-all and end-all of south island beauty. But it was going to take some effort: as you can see from the map, Milford Sound (point “C”) is out by itself, not on the way to anywhere. So Sara plotted a course that took us from Dunedin (point “A”) through Te Anau (point “B”), where we could take a boat trip through glow-worm caves, and then out to Milford Sound. We’d stay the night at Milford Sound Lodge, take the boat tour through the fiords the next day, and then head out to Cardrona (point “D”) to spend the night. This, it turns out, was a perfect plan for our family: just enough boating and almost-camping to get a feel for the wilderness, not so much that we’d regret bringing a toddler. And let me tell you: it was worth it.

Before I get too far into Milford Sound, though, I should mention the glow-worm caves of Te Anau. First of all, I really liked the little town of Te Anau. I’m not sure what struck my fancy; maybe it just reminded me of the one-horse tourist towns in North Carolina that I visited in my youth (I’m looking at you, Spivey’s Corner). Maybe I was finally over my virus, pushing through to good health and everything just felt better. In any case, I bought an excellent rain jacket there and we had lunch; somehow, that was very satisfying. Then it was time for the glow-worm cave boat trip.

I wish I could have taken pictures inside the glow-worm caves themselves, but the best I can offer are shots from the trip out to the caves. Inside the caves it’s wet, dark and unfortunately not a great place for a 2 year old. After a long walk through caverns and over waterfalls, all the people on the tour are herded onto what feels like a large flat rowboat, and the guide pulls you out among the glow-worms. All of the lights are off, the worms are spectacular and the silence is phenomenal. Or I imagine it would be, if we didn’t have a toddler with us. Mostly I felt bad for the others on our tour, and for Sara who ended up with thankless task of trying to explain how inside-the-cave-voice is even quieter than regular inside-voice.

(I should point out that A) she really wasn’t that bad, and B) that was probably the worst of the whole trip, for which I’m very grateful.)

On the way to the glow worm caves

Outside of Te Anau, on the way to Milford Sound

Okay, on to Milford Sound. Milford Sound has got to be one of the most beautiful places on the south island, if not the whole of New Zealand. It also has sand flies the size of kitchen appliances. Billions of them. So if you’re looking at these pictures and wondering why it’s not overrun with million-dollar beach houses, that’s it. But for a day, even the sand flies were worth it.

We stayed at Milford Sound Lodge, and it was quite comfortable for that one night. Four bunks to a room; toilet, kitchen and all other amenities shared with the other guests. And there were quite a few of those other guests; this was probably the busiest place we stayed at. “Guests” feels like the wrong word, too. Maybe “outdoorsmen/women” or “adventurers”. Rugged individuals wearing the kind of rugged outdoorsy clothes we wear in Boulder, but in this case because it was actually necessary. For everyone else at the lodge, this was obviously the high comfort point of their travels. People were putting together lavish feasts on the shared stoves and looked to be staying up playing guitar late into the night. We cooked some noodles and fell asleep.

Above the Milford Sound Lodge

A view inside our bunk room

The next day we took our boat trip, and that’s not something that I’ll easily forget anytime soon. The girls mostly stayed inside by the window reading Harry Potter, venturing out for particular sights or just to stretch their legs. Which was fine. But I think that Sara and I, given the chance, would’ve just stood at a railing the whole time and stared. This was the kind of scenery that just gazing at makes you feel like you’re meditating. My pictures won’t do it justice, of course, but I’ll try all the same.

The Milford Sound Dock