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Published: December 17th 2010
We were going to leave the motorhome at the campsite at Manapouri for our overnight cruise along the Doubtful Sound but when we walked down to the jetty (called Pearl Harbour) the night before we noticed an overnight ‘free’ carpark and was told that it was quite safe to leave it here. As we would have a long walk to the jetty with our overnight bag we decided that was what we would do. There are only about three regular boats that travel along Doubtful Sound, one takes 60 passengers and the other two 14. We decided to go with the latter and chose a boat called M.V. Tutoko II. Doubtful Sound is the second largest of Fiordland National Park’s 14 fiords and the deepest at 421m. It is three times larger than Milford Sound due to its greater length and has three distinct arms, Hall, Crooked and First, between Deep Cove and the open sea – a distance of over 40 kilometres. The soaring 900m sea cliff of Commander Peak makes an imposing entrance to Hall Arm, one of the most beautiful in all of Fiordland. Captain James Cook sighted the entrance to Doubtful Sound on his first voyage to
NZ in 1770 and called it Doubtful Harbour. It is remote, wild and imposing and to get to the Sound for our cruise was quite a challenge in itself. Firstly we had to cruise across the island studded Lake Manapouri for about an hour on a Real Journey’s ferry boat, before we arrived at the jetty in West Arm to catch the bus that would take us over the mountain pass. We expected the bus to be full but there was only one other couple and a group of nine fishermen who were spending a few days fishing on the Sounds. We headed over Wilmot Pass, on a 22km unsealed road which connects West Arm in Lake Manapouri to Deep Cove in Doubtful Sound. The road is one of NZ’s remotest and was built in the mid 1960s to provide heavy equipment access for the construction of a power station. Apparently floods, snow, mud and landslides lengthened the project from 12 months to two years. Due to the high rainfall in the Sounds the area is covered in podocarp forests with prolific growth of ferns and mosses which grew right up to the road edge, it was like driving through
the middle of a forest. Waterfalls and rivers abound as we followed the Spey Valley and we had a very scenic journey crossing the pass. The driver stopped at the top of the pass to give us our first view of Doubtful Sound, clouded in mist hundreds of feet below us in Deep Cove - quite awesome. He was quite amusing and a lot of banter went on between him and the local fishermen who came from all over NZ to fish in the unique setting of the Sounds where fish are plentiful. I just hoped he was keeping an eye on the narrow road but he was a really good driver which was just as well! As you can imagine there was not much traffic on this road, in fact the only vehicles were a couple of tour buses and the odd local DOC (Department of Conservation) 4WDs. We hardly saw anyone until a couple of walkers came out of one of the tracks towards the bottom of the pass and the driver said over the intercom, ‘these are just tourist give them a wave, they are quite friendly’! We finally arrived at the wharf and said goodbye to
the fishermen who had their own boat and then we realised it was only us and the other couple boarding our vessel, the Tutoko. As we got on we were greeted by Richard and Jen our captain and mate who were opening a bottle of champagne (this is the life). Everyone introduced themselves and we chatted to the other couple on the cruise, who were from Brisbane (David and Janine) and we soon came to know them quite well. With the capacity to take 14 guests we had the whole boat between the four of us – really lucky. We unpacked in our en-suite cabin which was pure luxury and wandered around the decks as it slid gently away from the wharf. Richard, the skipper said that the plan was for him to dive for some rock lobster (crayfish) for our dinner and we had to catch the fish to go with it, Jen would do the cooking. As David was the only fisherman amongst the four of us we hoped he would be able to catch enough for dinner to go with the rock lobster! We cruised around the sound with wonderful views on all sides for a couple
of hours and then put down anchor near to some rocks. Richard donned diving suit and asked if anyone wanted to join him, far too cold for us tourist, so he proceeded to dive in on his own. He said he would be about 30 minutes but we were getting concerned when he had not surfaced after about 45 minutes but Jen seemed unperturbed and managed the boat on her own. She was only 21 but already had her ‘masters certificate’ quite an achievement in one so young. Eventually Richard surfaced carrying a bag which he handed to Jen as he climbed back on board. The four of us stood around looking and could not believe it as Jen opened the bag and placed the contents in a large plastic tub. There were about 12 rock lobster of varying sizes some absolutely huge, dinner was caught but Richard said that would only be the starters (some starters) and that we still had to do some fishing……. We cruised all the way along Doubtful Sound and spotted several Fiordland Crested Penguins which have a distinctive yellow stripe over each eye and grow up to about 70cm tall and like the yellow
eyed ones are quite rare. We also saw hundreds of seals basking on the rocks as we neared the Tasman Sea where we were going to literally ‘fish for our supper’. However as we moved out of the calm of the sound into the Tasman it became quite rough and we were unable to fish so Richard brought the boat slightly back into the edge where the sound meets the sea and we threw our lines over the side. Within minutes Richard had caught a large fish but the rest of us were unlucky and we waiting patiently for something to nibble on our lines. Paul was the next one to say that he had something and duly brought up the biggest Blue Cod we had ever seen (not that we had seen one before – although we had eaten a couple since arriving in NZ as they are one of the best). Janine and I were getting quite despondent so we had a couple of drinks before trying again and at last Janine caught a small fish and then I had a nibble and caught this huggggggggggge fish - so plenty of food for dinner. As it turned out
Paul did catch the biggest fish of the day but he also caught the smallest which had to be thrown back in. Richard asked how we would like the fish cooked and proceeded to produce the most wonderful fish we have ever tasted until Jen produced the rock lobster which was superb. We had a wonderful day on the boat and after a few more drinks, Richard put up anchor in a small secluded bay with no-one around, apart from us and we all drifted off to sleep to the sound of silence. After a very comfortable nights sleep we were awoken by the engine starting as Richard started off for our return journey. Jen cooked up a delightful breakfast including lobster scrambled eggs as we cruised back down the sounds. On deck I saw two dolphins swimming in the distance but they had disappeared by the time I found my camera which was a shame. As we lazed about the decks Richard called over the intercom for us all to gather on the foredeck. He had manoeuvred the boat underneath the edge of a giant waterfall and we stretched out empty glasses to fill with fresh water, the purest
water you will ever taste. Later he pulled into a small inlet and turned off the engines and we all listened to the sounds of the birds and water apart from that there was nothing but silence - pure bliss. It was sad to say goodbye to everyone but we hope to meet up with David and Janine next year in Brisbane as they have asked us to visit them. Our Captain and Mate, Richard and Jen said goodbye on the jetty as they waiting for the next group of tourist to arrive (what a life they have) and our bus was waiting to take us back over Wilmot Pass to the other side to catch the ferry boat back to Manapouri. On arrival back at our motorhome which was still secure in the carpark we set off for Te Anau. We were planning to stay for a few days to visit Milford Sound which we had seen on our previous wonderful helicopter trip. We were going to drive down the Milford Road (a one way road as it ends at the sound) as it is a stunning alpine drive but it is quite long at 71 miles and takes
2 to 2½ hours without allowing for any stops. Scenic day cruises depart from the bottom to take you around Milford Sound. You then have to return up the same road so we decided the best option was to get someone else to do the driving so we could both enjoy the day and the views. We booked a day tour with Trips and Tramps a small company with a personal approach. Steve our local guide shared his passion for the area with stories that gave us an excellent insight into the history, whilst at the same time provided a relaxing journey. We stopped at several places for short walks and scenic views with our first stop at the Mirror Lakes (small tarns famous for their mountain reflections) just as we entered the Fiordland National Park itself. We travelled through the green grass of the lowland pastures and tussock country, through strands of native bush and into the rocky, mountainous area around the Homer Tunnel. The tunnel is preceded by a spectacular high walled ice carved nature amphitheatre. Work on the tunnel began in 1935 providing work for the otherwise un-employed during the Depression and wasn’t completed until 1953. Rough-hewn,
the tunnel has a steep east-to-west gradient but emerges after 1207m into the spectacular Cleddau Canyon on the Milford side. The completion of the tunnel (1.2km) through a mountain was an extraordinary achievement of the time in extreme conditions. The tunnel remains largely unmodified since then, there is limited internal lighting within the tunnel and traffic lights control the traffic as the tunnel has two narrow sections with a passing bay and either end. As we travelled through it was good to see the light showing through from the other end! We continued down the other side of the canyon and about 10 kilometres from Milford we stopped for a walk at The Chasm where the Claddau River plunges through eroded boulders in a narrow chasm, the 22m Upper Fall. About 16m lower it cascades again under a natural rock bridge to another waterfall. It was quite a unique feature and we had a lovely walk and view. We finally arrived at the bottom in Milford Sound and joined a boat for a short cruise along the Sound. We met a delightful lady called Mary from Loughborough who actually went to school with the wife of Doctor David Firebrace of
Gratton Surgery in Sutton Scotney (our local surgery at home). The Milford Sound is much higher and steeper than Doubtful Sound although a lot shorter in length to the Tasman Sea. Dominated by the unforgettable Mitre Peak, a 1692 metre pinnacle of rock and the Lady Bowen Falls which plummeted 162 metres over the cliff face as well as the Three Sisters waterfalls. As we cruised along there were many spectacular falls a truly unbelievable sight and not to be missed if you ever get the opportunity. At one point the boat manoeuvred really close to a waterfall and I was out on deck watching when my glasses got covered in spray from the force of the falls and I could not see. I turned to get back into the boat but forgot about the step over and fell into the boat cracking my ribs on a bar before landing on the captain’s lap. (boat’s and me do not seem to agree!). The captain asked if I was OK and feeling very stupid I just said ‘fine’ and got up but my ribs were really sore, will have to have a stiff drink when I get back!! The boat finally
moored back in Milford and we got back on our transport for our return to Te Anau. Steve our guide stopped at several more view points and also pulled in alongside the river for freshly brewed coffee including yummy biscuits made by his wife and children that morning – a little personal touch. As we neared Te Anau we saw several helicopters flying with deer hanging below and he said they were used to catch feral deer which were then lowered to the farms. There was a huge demand from foreign markets for feral venison which has a stronger taste than farmed. We have noticed a considerable number of deer in the fields as we travelled around NZ and had not realised that most of this was exported and that they could not keep up with the demand. As we said goodbye to Steve he recommended that we watch the film, Ata Whenua - Shadowland which was showing at the local cinema. Later we walked into Te Anau to watch it before going out for dinner. It was a very comfortable experience sitting in huge seats with a glass of local Sauvignon Blanc on the side table whilst watching the film which was a cinematic experience of fiordland set to music with stunning photography and scenery a true reflection of what we had seen on our memorable visit to the Fiordlands.
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Charmian
non-member comment
Wow!!
You must have run out of superlatives to describe your travels - I think we are a little drunk by it all (literally - as we are opening a bottle or 2 every time we hear from you! You have done so much & achieved so much, does it feel like you have worked all your lives to get to just this point? To say it sounds amazing or brilliant is obviously understating our response to your blog, but can't think of any other way to comment. Just enjoy it all & soak it up, at least you are not in snow-laden England!! Lots of love to you both xx