Milford Sound/ Doubtful sound, which cruise to take?

Lee wrote:
Peter thanks so much for the added information. My friend is actually
being picked up in Queenston for her trek, so I will make my way to
Te
Anau and then on to Milford Sound.
I read the 'preview of your book and it looks great. In order to
download the book, I'm assuming I have to 'tick' off download and
proceed from there.. But I have no idea what 2086 KB means. I have a
fairly old computer, which I really just use for my travel research
and emails. So I don't know if I dare to download something so big. (
It sounds big to me!). I will definately watch for the birds. I'm not
familiar with them, but I'm sure I will be!

2086 KB is 2 megabytes, which should fit on any computer. If you didn't
have 2 megs spare on your hard disk, then your computer would be acting
up in all sorts of odd ways.

If you have dialup, then the file might take a while to download. You
can judge by how long the preview took - that's about 5-10% of the
total.

Any other 'must sees'?

Heh! One or two...

Franz Josef Glacier. Not too many glaciers in the world that are so
accessible, and it's a dramatic setting.

The drive from Christchurch through Arthurs Pass over the Southern
Alps. You drive out through the flat and fertile Canturbury Plains with
the snowcapped Southern Alps growing ever more prominent. Along the way
in early summer you will see vast fields of wildflowers, their colours
shimmering in pastel shades into the distance. Some heartbreakingly
beautiful lakes, green grass sloping down to still, clear water, the
mountains rising beyond. The pass itself - there's a lookout right at
the top where you can see the highway passing over a viaduct that is a
pretty spectacular engineering feat.

Christchurch has possibly the world's best botanic garden, full of huge
old trees, quiet gardens, a rose garden that sprawls over a couple of
acres. I took a punt ride along the River Avon which circles the
gardens and it was just heavenly. There's a restaurant up in the hills
called "Sign of the Takahoe" which is modelled after a European hunting
lodge. Possibly a bit pricey for dinner, but a devonshire tea is an
affordable and thoroughly enjoyable experience. Great view, great
ambience.

Cadbury's Chocolate factory in Dunedin if you have a sweet tooth. You
have to book ahead, but you'll be bombarded with samples and
entertained by the jolly guide. The highlight is a closeup experience
with tons of liquid chocolate cascading down in front of you. Head for
one of the coffee shops on the Octagon a block away in the centre of
the city to wash down the sweetness. And check out the railway station
- an amazing confection of Victorian Gothic candy-striped stonework.
There's an albatross colony at the end of a hair-raising drive beside
the harbour and it is a wonderful experience to see the great birds
gliding in. Seals and other wildlife are visible from the cliff walk.

Kaikora has sperm whales and other marine mammals in great numbers
feeding a few kilometres offshore where the fault that runs through the
South Island runs into the sea, creating a series of ridges and
trenches that provide plentiful food.

The Marlborough Sounds are an intricate network of islands and
peninsulas - great for sailing, but be careful of where you go - the
wreck of the Admiral Lermontov cruiseliner has some awesome diving just
under the surface.

On the North Island, Wellington has the magnificent national museum of
Te Papa. You need a day (or two) to do it justice. A stunning location
on the water's edge, it is just full of awesome exhibits. The wildlife
gallery alone could occupy a morning. It has the skeleton of a blue
whale hung from the ceiling, stretching on and on and on...

Check out the "beehive" while you are in town - it is a huge circular
building that is part of the parliamentary buildings.

Rotorua is another tick on the tourist trail. A little hokey, but the
geysers and boiling mud are genuine enough, and the Maori cultural
displays are great fun. If you want to see more genuine Maori folk,
you'll need to go out to East Cape where the movie Whale Rider was
filmed. A scenic location in its own right.

Waitomo Caverns hold a special magic for me. There's an underground
river running through the caves and you can go "blackwater rafting"
underground. The highlight is seeing the thousands of glowworms above
the silent water, forming a natural galaxy deep below the surface.

North of Auckland are some giant trees in great forests and the
stunningly beautiful setting of Waitangi in the bay of Islands, where
the nation of New Zealand was born 160 years ago.

Can you tell I love New Zealand? Chock a block full of scenery,
friendly people, great beer, unspoilt and uncrowded but set up for
tourists. No wonder the locals call it Godzone.

Pete

Oh yeah. A morning balloon flight out of Christchurch over the
patchwork farmland with the distant mountains spotlit in the level
light of the rising sun is unforgettable.

(Lee), on 11 Sep 2004 20:40:47 -0700, said

If I have the time, would it be a good idea to do the cruises on both
Sounds, or would it be better to spend the time elsewhere? Also, I
can't decide on a day cruise or the overnight cruise. Are there any
advantages to taking the overnight cruise? Do they go further? Any
thoughts on this would be appreciated. I'm really confused as to what
would be the best. I do want to take a smaller boat.

Hi Lee.

I had planned to do the Milford Sound excursion on my trip in Feb
2002, booked over 8 months prior. But we had a fax, believe it or not,
in our Franz Joseph stop saying that Milford was full, but would we do
the Doubtful overnight instead.

Well, we were a bit miffed at first, having booked so early, and that
it could slightly affect our travel plans.

However, it was truly one of the major highlights of the trip for us
in the end. Doubtful Sound is amazing.

http://www.btinternet.com/~nz2002

(Lee), on 11 Sep 2004 20:40:47 -0700, said

If I have the time, would it be a good idea to do the cruises on both
Sounds, or would it be better to spend the time elsewhere? Also, I
can't decide on a day cruise or the overnight cruise. Are there any
advantages to taking the overnight cruise? Do they go further? Any
thoughts on this would be appreciated. I'm really confused as to what
would be the best. I do want to take a smaller boat.

Hi Lee.

I had planned to do the Milford Sound excursion on my trip in Feb
2002, booked over 8 months prior. But we had a fax, believe it or not,
in our Franz Joseph stop saying that Milford was full, but would we do
the Doubtful overnight instead.

Well, we were a bit miffed at first, having booked so early, and that
it could slightly affect our travel plans.

However, it was truly one of the major highlights of the trip for us
in the end. Doubtful Sound is amazing.

http://www.btinternet.com/~nz2002

Doubtful Sound wrote:

However, it was truly one of the major highlights of the trip for us
in the end. Doubtful Sound is amazing.

http://www.btinternet.com/~nz2002

Wow! You had some amazing weather for your trip. And some awesome
photographs. Those dolphins nearly jumped into my lap!

You've pretty much captured New Zealand in your pictures. Almost
everywhere you look there's a superb view.

Pete, impressed

Doubtful Sound wrote:

However, it was truly one of the major highlights of the trip for us
in the end. Doubtful Sound is amazing.

http://www.btinternet.com/~nz2002

Wow! You had some amazing weather for your trip. And some awesome
photographs. Those dolphins nearly jumped into my lap!

You've pretty much captured New Zealand in your pictures. Almost
everywhere you look there's a superb view.

Pete, impressed

(Lee) wrote in message . com...
Thank you all so very much for the information. And a great big thak
you to you, Peter. I really appreciate all the great advice and
information. I raelly enjoyed reading the passage from your book.
Although I haven't been on the tour yet, it makes it all come alive.
For sure I'll be booking the overnight tour on the same boat you were
on. We will be staying in Queenston the night before, as my friend is
doing the 4 day Milford trek. I will srop her off and then spend a
quiet morning on my own before heading out to the boat. By what you
are saying, I don't want to head out too early. I don't want to get
too tangled up with tour buses. So I think I'll head out around lunch
time.

(snip)

Just to check you know that it is five hours from Queenstown to
Milford Sound?

The NZ Department of Conservation (www.doc.govt.nz), a wonderful
organisation, produce a leaflet on the Milford Road drive. Apart from
the suggestion to overnight in Te Anau (which will also avoid an early
start for your friend, although the first day of the Milford Track
walk is only an hour on track, plus the transfer), they suggest times
to leave to avoid the buses. I think it is either before 0800 or after
1100 from Te Anau. There are some sights en route which you will want
to stop at.

Remember the industrial strength sandfly repellent; you want
Ultraguard which you can buy in NZ. It won't keep them away but it
mostly stops them biting. Cover up arms and legs in light colours
(they like dark colours). The repellent is high in DEET and DIMP which
damage plastics and can be hard on sensitive skins; if this is a
problem the local remedy is a mix of Dettol and baby oil, but nothing
will keep them away totally. The legend is that the sandflies were
created to ensure that people left Milford, as it is so beautiful that
otherwise no one would.

ensure your fuel tank is filled at Te Anau - the Milford station only
works if you have an NZ EFTPOS card.


We did kayaking on Milford Sound, plus an afternoon boat trip; pick a
small boat. The Milford Deep observatory is a must-see, try to visit
it if you can. We also kayaked on Doubtful Sound which is possibly
even better than Milford.

enjoy
Helen

Helen, thank you so much for all the added information. Sorry it's
taken me so long to respond. I haven't been on this site for awhile.
My freind will be picked up in Queenstown for her Milford trek, early
in the morning, so I'll head out before 8am on my drive to Milford
Sound. I really did't realize it was so far. But leaving before 7 am
will allow me to beat the tour buses and also give me plenty of time
for the drive. I will make sure I have lots of protection from the
sandflys. Would ift be worth my while to bring my bug jacket, or
should I just stick to deet repellent? And I'll make sure I have
enough gas.
Thanks for the great web government website. I've saved it and it
looks great.
I did book the small boat for my overnight cruise. The MV Friendship I
think it's called. IT's all very exciting and I really appreciate all
the advice.



(Helen Gerald) wrote in message . com...
(Lee) wrote in message . com...
Thank you all so very much for the information. And a great big thak
you to you, Peter. I really appreciate all the great advice and
information. I raelly enjoyed reading the passage from your book.
Although I haven't been on the tour yet, it makes it all come alive.
For sure I'll be booking the overnight tour on the same boat you were
on. We will be staying in Queenston the night before, as my friend is
doing the 4 day Milford trek. I will srop her off and then spend a
quiet morning on my own before heading out to the boat. By what you
are saying, I don't want to head out too early. I don't want to get
too tangled up with tour buses. So I think I'll head out around lunch
time.

(snip)

Just to check you know that it is five hours from Queenstown to
Milford Sound?

The NZ Department of Conservation (www.doc.govt.nz), a wonderful
organisation, produce a leaflet on the Milford Road drive. Apart from
the suggestion to overnight in Te Anau (which will also avoid an early
start for your friend, although the first day of the Milford Track
walk is only an hour on track, plus the transfer), they suggest times
to leave to avoid the buses. I think it is either before 0800 or after
1100 from Te Anau. There are some sights en route which you will want
to stop at.

Remember the industrial strength sandfly repellent; you want
Ultraguard which you can buy in NZ. It won't keep them away but it
mostly stops them biting. Cover up arms and legs in light colours
(they like dark colours). The repellent is high in DEET and DIMP which
damage plastics and can be hard on sensitive skins; if this is a
problem the local remedy is a mix of Dettol and baby oil, but nothing
will keep them away totally. The legend is that the sandflies were
created to ensure that people left Milford, as it is so beautiful that
otherwise no one would.

ensure your fuel tank is filled at Te Anau - the Milford station only
works if you have an NZ EFTPOS card.


We did kayaking on Milford Sound, plus an afternoon boat trip; pick a
small boat. The Milford Deep observatory is a must-see, try to visit
it if you can. We also kayaked on Doubtful Sound which is possibly
even better than Milford.

enjoy
Helen

Helen, thank you so much for all the added information. Sorry it's
taken me so long to respond. I haven't been on this site for awhile.
My freind will be picked up in Queenstown for her Milford trek, early
in the morning, so I'll head out before 8am on my drive to Milford
Sound. I really did't realize it was so far. But leaving before 7 am
will allow me to beat the tour buses and also give me plenty of time
for the drive. I will make sure I have lots of protection from the
sandflys. Would ift be worth my while to bring my bug jacket, or
should I just stick to deet repellent? And I'll make sure I have
enough gas.
Thanks for the great web government website. I've saved it and it
looks great.
I did book the small boat for my overnight cruise. The MV Friendship I
think it's called. IT's all very exciting and I really appreciate all
the advice.



(Helen Gerald) wrote in message . com...
(Lee) wrote in message . com...
Thank you all so very much for the information. And a great big thak
you to you, Peter. I really appreciate all the great advice and
information. I raelly enjoyed reading the passage from your book.
Although I haven't been on the tour yet, it makes it all come alive.
For sure I'll be booking the overnight tour on the same boat you were
on. We will be staying in Queenston the night before, as my friend is
doing the 4 day Milford trek. I will srop her off and then spend a
quiet morning on my own before heading out to the boat. By what you
are saying, I don't want to head out too early. I don't want to get
too tangled up with tour buses. So I think I'll head out around lunch
time.

(snip)

Just to check you know that it is five hours from Queenstown to
Milford Sound?

The NZ Department of Conservation (www.doc.govt.nz), a wonderful
organisation, produce a leaflet on the Milford Road drive. Apart from
the suggestion to overnight in Te Anau (which will also avoid an early
start for your friend, although the first day of the Milford Track
walk is only an hour on track, plus the transfer), they suggest times
to leave to avoid the buses. I think it is either before 0800 or after
1100 from Te Anau. There are some sights en route which you will want
to stop at.

Remember the industrial strength sandfly repellent; you want
Ultraguard which you can buy in NZ. It won't keep them away but it
mostly stops them biting. Cover up arms and legs in light colours
(they like dark colours). The repellent is high in DEET and DIMP which
damage plastics and can be hard on sensitive skins; if this is a
problem the local remedy is a mix of Dettol and baby oil, but nothing
will keep them away totally. The legend is that the sandflies were
created to ensure that people left Milford, as it is so beautiful that
otherwise no one would.

ensure your fuel tank is filled at Te Anau - the Milford station only
works if you have an NZ EFTPOS card.


We did kayaking on Milford Sound, plus an afternoon boat trip; pick a
small boat. The Milford Deep observatory is a must-see, try to visit
it if you can. We also kayaked on Doubtful Sound which is possibly
even better than Milford.

enjoy
Helen

"Peter, Thanks so much for all the added , wonderful ideas. chocolate
factory tour? Oh sounds wonderful! YOu've given me so many great ideas
and I appreciate it.

"Peter, Thanks so much for all the added , wonderful ideas. chocolate
factory tour? Oh sounds wonderful! YOu've given me so many great ideas
and I appreciate it.