Milford Sound Cruise

Though we wanted nothing more than hot showers (or maybe I'm just speaking for myself ...), the 1:20 bus that met us wasn't taking us back to our hostel in Queenstown. At least, not yet. First, we were driving to catch a 3:15 ferry at Milford Sound for a bit more sightseeing. The Sound (which, the bus driver AND the ferry driver informed us, is in fact a fiord) is well-known as a sight worth seeing in NZ, so I guess I can't complain too much. At least we got to sit down for awhile!

There are literally hundreds of waterfalls like this on in the Sound. For this reason, some people say it's best to visit during or immediately after a heavy rainfall, because the falls are all HUGE! I was pretty happy about the nice weather, though.

I don't think I've ever been so happy about free tea in my life. And Tim seems pretty content too.

There's something VERY cool about the way clouds cling to mountaintops in this country. The Maori name for New Zealand, Aotorea, means "Land of the Long White Cloud" ... it definitely fits.

Apparently, there are sometimes dolphins in the Sound, but our only wildlife sighting was this group of seals. It wasn't a colony, because apparently they're all male seals - I don't know what that makes this. A bachelor pad?