Milford Sound
When the day visitors depart a silence descends. An overnight cruise amidst spectacular Milford Sound, is a ‘once in a lifetime’ experience.
Real Journeys offers three overnight cruise options at Milford Sound. Each cruise offers passengers a relaxing opportunity to explore the magnificent scenery and wildlife of Milford Sound. They do, however, differ in terms of accommodation – Milford Mariner private cabins with ensuite bathrooms (60 passengers), Milford Wanderer bunk style accommodation (61 passengers) and M.V. Friendship bunk-style accommodation (12 passengers).
The Milford Mariner offers you a very special dinner, bed and breakfast experience. On board the Milford Mariner you will cruise the full length of this spectacular fiord to the Tasman Sea before anchoring for the night in sheltered Harrison Cove. With our nature guide you can go exploring in the tender craft and kayaks or simply relax on deck. After the days activities, enjoy a delicious evening buffet in the spacious saloon before retiring to your private cabin.
Real Journeys
P.O. Box 1, Lakefront Drive
Te Anau, New Zealand
Freephone 0800 65 65 01 (within NZ)
Tel +64 3 249 7416
Fax +64 3 249 7022
Email reservations@realjourneys.co.nz
http://www.realjourneys.co.nz
From Wikipedia
Milford Sound, also known as Piopiotahi in Maori, is located in the south west of New Zealand's South Island. Although called Milford Sound, it is more accurately classified as a fjord. Milford Sound, the most famous tourist site of New Zealand, is situated within the Fiordland National Park which is in turn part of the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage site.
Milford Sound is named for Milford Haven in Wales, and the Cleddau River which flows into it is similarly named for its Welsh namesake. The Maori name for the sound, Piopiotahi, means first native thrush.
Geography
Milford Sound runs 15 kilometres inland from the Tasman Sea and is surrounded by sheer rock faces that rise 1200 metres or more on either side. Lush rain forests cling precariously to these cliffs, while seals, penguins, and dolphins frequent the waters.
With a mean annual rainfall of 6813 mm on 182 days a year, a high level even for the West Coast, Milford Sound is known as the wettest place in New Zealand and one of the wettest in the world. Rainfall can reach 250 mm during a span of 24 hours. The rainfall creates dozens of temporary waterfalls (as well as a number of major, more permanent ones) cascading down the cliff faces, some reaching a thousand meters in length. Smaller falls from such heights may never reach the bottom of the sound, drifting away in the wind.
Accumulated rainwater can at times cause portions of the rain forest to lose their grip on the sheer cliff faces, resulting in tree avalanches into the Sound. The regrowth of the rain forest after these avalanches can be seen in several locations along the Sound.
Tourism
Overview
The natural beauty of this landscape draws thousands of visitors each day, with over 550,000 in total per year. This makes the Sound one of New Zealand's most visited tourist spots, and also the most famous New Zealand tourist destination, even with its remote location and the long journey from the nearest population centres. Almost all tourists going to the sound also take one of the boat tours which usually last between 1-2 hours. They are offered by several companies, departing from the Milford Sound Visitors' Centre.
Hiking (tramping, in New Zealand English) and canoeing are also possible. A small number of companies also provides overnight boat trips. There is otherwise only limited accommodation at the sound, and only a very small percentage of tourists stay more than the day.
An underwater observatory provides viewing of black coral, usually only found in much deeper waters. A dark surface layer of fresh water, stained by tannins from the surrounding forest, allows the corals to grow close to the surface here.
Transport
Main article: Transport in Milford Sound
Milford Sound is located about five hours' drive from Queenstown, many tour buses to the Sound depart from there, with some tourists also departing from the closer (and much smaller) tourism centre of Te Anau. There are also scenic flights by light aircraft and helicopter tours. The drive to Milford Sound itself passes through unspoiled mountain landscapes before entering the 1.2-kilometer Homer Tunnel which emerges into rain-forest carpeted canyons that descend to the sound. The mountain road is very winding, and while of high standards, very prone to avalanches and closures during the winter half of the year.
The long distance to the Sound means that tourist operators from Queenstown all depart very early in the day, arriving back only late in the evening - this ensures that most tourists visit Milford Sound within a few hours around midday, leading to some congestion on the roads and at the tourist facilities during the main season. This peak time demand is also the reason for the large number of tour boats available at the Sound at the same time.
Over the years, various options of short-cutting the distance to Milford Sound from Queenstown have been mooted, including a gondola route, a new tunnel from Queenstown, or a monorail from near Lake Wakatipu to Te Anau Downs. All would cut short the long round trip via Te Anau, thus allowing tourism to be spread out over more of the day. While the Gondola is considered to be out of the running after the DOC refused it for environmental reasons, the two other options are aiming to start consenting processes in 2007.
Milford Sound can also be reached on foot as the final destination of the several-day Milford Track.
Other aspects
On 8 February 2004 a spill of 13,000 litres of diesel fuel was discovered, resulting in a 2 kilometer oil spill which closed the sound for two days while intensive cleanup activities were completed. Apparently a hose was used to displace the fuel from the tanks of one of the tour vessels, and various government officials claimed it appeared to be an act of ecoterrorism motivated by rising numbers of tourists to the park, though more details did not become known. The spill has been removed and damage to the park's wildlife appears to have been minimal.
Near Milford Sound are also locations used to film some of the scenes of the Argonath in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.