Day 15 - Sailing the Fjords

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Today we woke from the rocking of the ship to smooth sailing into Milford Sound. The massive Millennium slowed to a crawl as we entered into the massive fjord. We quickly jumped out bed and grabbed our cameras…

The morning was narrated by Naturalist Craig Ward who was somewhere near the bridge with a set of high-powered binoculars. He spotted wildlife and would make announcements over the ship’s intercom system. During the sailing of Milford Sound, we were treated to some penguins and seals along the shore with numerous breeds of birds circling overhead.

The views were amazing as numerous waterfalls lined the fjord. These waterfalls were flowing heavily as they had been fed by recent rain/snow combined with melting snows at higher altitudes. The weather this morning also saw showers roll in followed by sun followed by more showers and then more sun.

Once the Millennium reached the deepest portion of the fjord, the ship completed a delicate 180-degree turn and we sailed back through the fjord. Our next destination was Doubtful Sound and it would take approximately 2.5 hours to arrive there after we got back into the open ocean.

In order to reach Doubtful Sound, we would need to sail through Thompson Sound. Again the Millennium was surrounded by deep walls and flowing waterfalls. Doubtful Sound was given its name by Captain Cook who did not want to venture in through the narrow entrance to the fjord because he was doubtful whether he would find a harbor there and then be able to get out again. Doubtful Sound is also a popular tourist destination, second in popularity to Milford Sound.

After sailing through Doubtful Sound, the Millennium set sail for Dusky Sound. Dusky Sound was only an hour away and is New Zealand’s largest fjord. Once again the weather shifted between rain and sunshine and we were treated to a rainbow from our stateroom balcony.

After clearing the fjord, we set sail for Dunedin.

We ate dinner in the Metropolitan Restaurant again along with our tablemates Melitta, Karen, and Peter. After dinner Kip went to the casino where they were hosting a “Casino Royale” party. The crew played no-limit Texas Hold’em while Kip played a combination of 3-card poker, Caribbean stud poker, and blackjack. It was a good night as he was able to triple his money!

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Photos

Milford Sound
Words could never do the photo justice...

Doubtful Sound
The ship sails through Doubtful Sound.