Thursday, December 8, 2011
Today was an early morning day for us since we were entering the Fjordland National Park, in the very southern part of the south island of New Zealand, quite early and we wanted to make sure we got a great spot on the bow of the ship to see the entry into the park. We would be cruising 3 different “sounds” within the park.
Fjords are valleys carved by the pressure and power of glaciers during successive ice ages, which are then flooded as the ice melts, which causes the sea levels to rise.
The first sound we cruised through was Milford Sound, which is 10 miles long and is the most visited of all the Fjords in the area. The large amount of precipitation in this area annually leaves a 10-13 foot layer of permanent fresh water above the warmer sea water. This has allowed for diver sea life in the waters of this fjord, with various species of sponges, corals and fish. It was quite overcast as we entered Milford Sound, which presented a mystical, enchanting atmosphere. As we made our way around the sound and paused in front of one of the largest waterfalls in Milford, the clouds began to open up around us and the tips of the most famous landmark in Milford Sound, Mitre Peak, began to peek through, giving us a true idea of how large the valley was through which we were cruising!
After we existed Milford Sound, we made our way through the other two main sounds in the Fjordland National Park, Doubtful Sound and Dusky Sound. Each of these Fjords provided a beautiful, serene setting to start our entry to New Zealand and left us with a sense of wonderment and enchantment. We were excited to explore the ports and cities that lay ahead of us!
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