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fiordland
Gaze in awe at the world’s
highest sea cliffs, which rise sheer out of the deep, silent
waters of Milford Sound.
Fiordland National Park’s majesty and raw power is nowhere
more evident than in Milford Sound, one of New Zealand’s
most famous tourist destinations. This breathtakingly beautiful
fiord was carved by an ancient glacier that extended out to sea,
then later retreated 10,000 years ago and allowed the sea to
flood in. Thirteen other fiords are spread along the coast. Some
are 650 metres deep and penetrate 40 km inland.
This park is the most extensive wilderness area in New Zealand
and one of the largest national parks in the world. It is part of
the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage Area. The park is a place of
extremes. It has New Zealand’s highest rainfall, highest
waterfall, highest cliffs, deepest lakes, and most shallow black
corals (in Milford Sound). Don’t be put off by the rainfall
statistics (7 metres each year). When it rains, the sheer cliffs
come alive with hundreds of waterfalls cascading down into the
fiords - an incredible sight.
The gateway to Fiordland is the town of Te Anau, which has an
outstanding visitor centre. Here you can organise bus and boat
cruises or aerial sightseeing throughout Fiordland, including
Milford, Doubtful Sound and Lake Manapouri. You can also arrange
hut and campsite bookings for the 500 km of walking tracks that
criss-cross the park. The most famous tracks are; Milford,
Routeburn, Greenstone-Caples, Hollyford, Kepler and Dusky. The
Milford Track is a 54 km, 4 day tramp, which has been dubbed
‘The Finest Walk in the World’. It pays to book these
tramps well in advance.
The diverse flora and fauna includes 700 plants found only in
Fiordland, and a strange flightless moorhen called the takahe.
The fiords are home to penguins, dolphins and New Zealand fur
seals. Fiordland’s landscape of fiords, lakes, mountains,
glaciers and forests is a living remnant of the ancient
super-continent Gondwana.
Tread carefully as you wander this ancient mountain fastness, and
enjoy it’s wilderness to the full.
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