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Hi,
Time for an update from Dunedin, Te Anau and Milford Sound. It was a long drive on Saturday morning from Mount Cook, south and east, to Dunedin on the coast. We shared out the driving between all of us, and as usual the scenery was spectacular. It gradually changed from snowcapped mountains to craggy peaks and then rolling hills. The last third of our journey was by the coast, and we saw plenty of wet and rugged shoreline. We arrived in Dunedin about four hours later. We liked Dunedin as it felt pretty atmospheric, built on steep hills down to the port area, full of bluestone Victorian architecture and with good views over to the Otago Peninsula. The place totally changed at night, when the city seemed driven by its large student population, and all the bars and clubs in the Octagon, Dunedin's main drag were heaving.
That day we visited Cadbury World, which we knew wouldn't be as good as the one at home, but was slightly disappointing as we had to do a shortened tour as it was the weekend. However, we did get to taste plenty of chocolate, watch a ton of chocolate plummet down the inside of a silo and see how many of the chocolates were made. Jo got really into answering our guide's questions and bagged us a lot of free chocolate! We also visited the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame, inside Dunedin train station, apparently the most photographed building in the whole country. It was very beautiful, with stained glass windows featuring trains, and wood used liberally throughout inside. The Hall of Fame had some interesting items, including the kayak used by an Olympic medal winning team, various jerseys, bats and balls, and even a champion woodcutter exhibition. We went out for drinks that evening in the Octagon and had a bit of a late one...
On our second day in Dunedin, we woke late and took the short trip out into the suburbs to the world's steepest residential street, Baldwin Street. We wisely decided to park at the bottom and walk up, as we didn't reckon much to our car's brakes! Stating the obvious, but it was really steep, and in some of the photos we look slightly horizontal...The afternoon was spent out on the Otago Peninsula with Elm Wildlife Tours. The peninsula was a highlight in itself, as the coastal road winded along by the natural harbour and past steep hills and plenty of wildlife. The first stop was at the Royal Albatross Centre, although unfortunately it's a difficult time of year to spot any. The centre, however, was really interesting, giving plenty of information on their huge size, diet, life, different species etc...We even tried to stretch our arms as wide as its wingspan and couldn't even get close! Later, we were taken to some private farmland on the other side of the peninsula, passing an area on the way where we spotted herons, kingfisher and black swans. At the farm we walked down a steep cliffside to the beach which Yellow-Eyed Penguins and Hooker Sea Lions call home. We were really lucky to see them both, and close up as well, and apparently our guide said it was one of the best trips she had been on recently. At one point there were around 13 penguins nestled on the cliff in front of us, right by our hide. They were very cute, waddling along, and would stand with their wings outstretched when they got too hot. The sealions became playful and boisterous as the afternoon progressed...The biggest males were huge and surprisingly quick on land. You wouldn't want one to run at you! We also walked over to an area with New Zealand Fur Seals, although these were very shy and wouldn't let you anywhere near as close. Our afternoon was complete when we spotted a Bullers Albatross in the distance, ticking off the 'Big Four' on our list.
Yesterday brought another long drive from Dunedin across to Te Anau in Fiordland, on the south-west side of the South Island. Te Anau is a small place, with a very friendly and relaxed vibe, which we were using as a jumping off point for Milford Sound today. It sits beside the second largest lake in NZ, Lake Te Anau, and we passed the rest of the day by going on a really cool excursion to the Te Anau Glowworm Caves. We weren't allowed cameras inside, but trust me it was pretty special. A sleek catamaran took us across the lake in about half an hour later, and we watched a short documentary on the funny things, with loads of interesting facts. They emit their light to catch insects on web-like strands they hang from the cave's ceiling. They only eat for 90 days whilst larvae, and then when they turn into flies they only live for 3 days, and have no mouth! The caves were incredible...Fast-flowing angry water had hewn its way through layers of limestone and sandstone, purifying itself in the process. The effect was huge cathedral-height caverns, waterfalls and whirl pools. At the back of the cave system was the glowworm grotto. We got into a tiny boat, turned off the lights and our guide steered us out into the water. It was pitch black and silent, except for the furious water further down, and the worms shined like stars in the night sky, literally in their hundreds and thousands.
Today was probably my best day in NZ so far. We drove one of the most scenic roads that I've ever been on between Te Anau and Milford Sound. We stopped on the way at some lakes which reflected the mountains behind perfectly in the water, walked through red beech forest covered in bright green moss everywhere, stopped at amazing viewpoints overlooking snowcapped mountains and huge lakes and rivers, and also walked up to some waterfalls which tumbled down suddenly from the mountains. The final part of the road took us through the Homer Tunnel, a 1.2 kilometre tunnel carved through the mountainside which emerged from the Hollyford Valley into the Cleddau Valley. We stopped here at The Chasm, an interesting and awesome set of eroded boulders, caused by the Cleddau River which plunges through the middle of them with plenty of unrestrained energy. What made the day that little extra special was the weather: it was one of the 150 days or so in a year they get at the Sound when it doesn't rain, with plenty of blue sky and the odd white puffy cloud. The late afternoon was spent on a boat, doing our Milford Sound cruise. We got beautiful views of Mitre Peak, spotted New Zealand Fur Seals, and dolphins in the distance, and went right under pretty waterfalls falling right off the sheer slopes and into the deep Sound. We went right out along the Sound and actually into the Tasman Sea, with nothing in between us and Australia. It was really good, partly because all the massive tour buses had gone, and partly because we went on a smaller boat. This meant we only had to share the experience with 20 or so other people. It was a pretty perfect day!
Tomorrow we drive on to Queenstown, where we're going to be indulging in plenty of daredevil activities during the three days we are there. I'll keep you all posted!
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