Fiordland is home to Milford and Doubtful Sounds, three of the great walks (Kepler, Milford, and Routeburn), and some of the more amazing and iconic scenery in the country.
Highlights
Te Anau is the gateway to the Fiordlands
Milford and Doubtful Sounds
Kayaking or other boat trips
Three of the Great Walks (Kepler, Milford, Routeburn)
The drive out to Milford Sound from Te Anau is awesome. It is made better by all the DOC camp sites along the way. Once you get there the best place to stay is Te Anau Backpackers.
This nice little town is situated right on the lake and has a cool DOC Wildlife Centre – go and check out the Takahe (a larger version of the Pukeko that makes an unusual booming sound). Te Anau is also the start point for the popular Kepler track. This 4 day walk can be shortened to 3 days (the first 3 days are the best) by exiting the track at Rainbow Reach. The Kepler is a great track for backpackers as it essentially a loop and covers a variety of terrain. This is also the stagging point for the famous Milfiord Track. This is the most famous 4 day hike in New Zealand and is so popular you need to book way in advance.
On the way to Milford
Continuing on highway 94 this drive to Milford Sound is one of the most beautiful in NZ. There are lots of good places to stop and a number of DOC camping grounds are situated along the route. The camp at Lake Gunn is good.
There are two excellent walks along this route. The hike up to Lake Marian (3 hours return) is great, while the track up to Gertrude Saddle (longer and harder) provides absolutely awesome views. This is one of the best hikes day hikes in the South Island but is also very exposed to avalanche risk – do not attempt in the rain or poor weather. Swimming in Black Lake, you will see it on the way up, on a hot day is pretty sweet.
Homer tunnel – finished in 1952 is a dramatic way to access Milford.
The short Chasm walk on the left after the tunnel is good.
Milford Sound is a great spot but realistically to appreciate it you really need to go out in a boat – either take a kayak or on a day cruise. Note: If you're travelling into Milford Sound during the winter months, you may be stopped and asked to show you have snow-chains and that you know how to use them, so it might pay to have a set and have a practice too!
At Milford
To really experience the full granduer of Milford Sound you need to see it by some kind of floating vessel. Either go on a cruise or go kayaking with Rosco's Milford Sound Sea Kayaks. Ph: 03-249 8500 or: web: www.roscosmilfordkayaks.com
Kayaking with Roscos Milford Sounds Kayaks was my favorite thing. I felt really small it was a really cool feeling. The fiord is like 300 meters deep. It was really cool. It was really buggy there, but I still liked it. We did an 8am kayak trip so we were out of the sounds by 1 or 2 before the other tourists were there.
Posted 2009-05-28 10:35:51
3. Routeburn Track was the best hike ever Hector Dimaunahan (BU), Unregistered
I've done five of the Great Walks and the Routeburn track was the best track I've done. The views were stunning. We walked through the forest and past the tree line. The track was beautiful. It had 360 views from the top and you had mountain ranges all around, valleys in between, beautiful weather, lakes, conical hills. It was a hard climb up but the 360 views were amazing and made it all worth it.
Posted 2009-05-28 10:05:32
2. Finishing the Kepler track Jess Lax (Michigan), Unregistered
Finishing the Kepler Track was my favorite thing on our South Island trip. There were really pretty views on the hike. The last day was 13 hours which was slightly painful, and finishing was a combination of joy and pain and hallucination mixed with pain. At the end I decided to take a dip in the lake—naked. I was by myself and quite stinky so I went for a dip and exited the lake and put fresh clothes on which I hadn’t done in days and then I did the last hour barefoot. And on at the end of my walk I met a nice Israeli woman who made me ramen. It was pretty great.
Posted 2009-05-28 09:53:21
1. Horse-back riding in Te Anau Geetali Chitre (BU), Unregistered
Horse back riding in Te Anau was super super fun. Even though we did it in the rain, it was really cool. We were going through forests, pastures and farmlands, which was cool to see up close outside of a car. The company we used (High Ride) was good and friendly. They picked us and dropped us back in town.
