Travel Tips

There are three things you can't help but notice at Milford Sound. The first one is the cliffs. They tower above all else with a wondrous magnifience. In fact Mitre Peak is the highest cliff above water anywhere in the world. In places they are so sheer that base jumpers seek them out. They hem in the water in a threatening manner, almost causing claustrophobia with their bulky presence. So high are they that when you are on a boat you cannot see the tops. Often they are mist shrouded or clouds swirl around the upper slopes giving tormenting but fleeting glimpses of another world up there.

The water is everywhere. Encased in the glacier carved fiord to depths of hundreds of metres; pouring off the cliffs from a thousand crevices; at times spurting from unseen cracks in the rocks on its way to ultimately destroy all that you see. What nature creates, nature destroys. Never more graphically illustrated than in this fantasy land of waterfalls.

Always we talk about it. Anywhere in the world in any culture in any given day there is always talk about the weather. Before I left for New Zealand I was told there are two types of weather on the west coast; raining, and about-to-rain. I have found this not to be the case. The sun has shone as often as not but it is a place where you should always have a raincoat handy. In this extraordinary postcard I bought you see something your mind cannot grasp. A waterfall going nowhere. Actually, it is going somewhere. If it was a car it would be called reverse. The wind is so fierce it is literally blowing the waterfall in the direction of UP!

When you are on the cruise you can always hear water. On a clear day there are less waterfalls and gob-smacking views of the grandiose peaks. On wet days the waterfalls are sensational. The boat will bring you up close. Really close. I mean really really close. How close?

Till you're right up underneath the waterfall! Literally. If you're at the front of the boat you're standing in it.

I can't remember the name of this waterfall but I do have it somewhere. The relevance of this shot lies elsewhere. Please note the stream of spray from the bottom of the fall and, on the far right, the little clump of land it finishes on.

This is where the spray from the previous shot goes. 200 metres from the bottom of the falls are the graves of three sealers. Trying to view them in driving spray fanned by strong and gusty winds from the force of the falling water is not what you would call a pleasant experience, more an unforgettable one. My friend John cheerfully (I think) posed for this picture. I say I think because you cannot hear what anyone is saying. The noise is deafening.