Waiting for sunshine in Fiordland is like hoping for a lottery win. Average precipitation is somewhere around 8000mm a year, about 8-9 times as much as in Motueka. So we spent the last couple of days circling the wettest region of the country, checking the weather forecast every couple of hours. But it’s always the same: Rain today, rain tomorrow, rain the day after tomorrow and rain predicted for the next 10 days too. We finally gave up and said: OK, let’s just go there and hope for the best.
Our motel host in Te Anau told us that the weather forecast isn’t worth much anyway, because Doubtful Sound has a totally different weather than Milford Sound or Te Anau. Yay… ;)
We booked the early morning tour with Real Journeys that consists of three parts:
An one hour catamaran trip across Lake Manapouri to get to the Manapouri power station.
A 3/4h bus trip over a mountain pass to get to Doubtful Sound, which is actuallly a fiord.
A 3 hour catamaran trip through the steep mountains out to the Tasman Sea and back.
Drizzle on Lake Manapouri
In a super fast catamaran…off we go across Lake Manapouri…while the weather is all but inviting.1h later: Arrived at the Manapouri power station.
Fog on Wilmot Pass
We could barely see the waterfalls around…and had no view down to the sound at all.
It’s getting dry on Doubtful Sound!
Leaving the pier.After some moments of rain…and some hot chocolate…and circling an island where some crazy guy…used to live and look for gold…also the other folks on the cruise got a bit disappointed by the weather.Even the bridge was very quiet.But then the rain stopped…and revealed dramatic mountain after mountain,…and clearer and clearer views.It’s indeed a lot of pictures here…but the truth is…this cruise provided awesome views…for everyone on board.To waterfalls…the sound…and even more waterfalls.
Windy at the Tasman Sea and seals colony
Gales began to blow water up the sky.Crushing waves as we hit the Tasman Sea.Then there was this tiny rocky island…with heaps of seals on.Everyone on board lined up to get the best pictures.This is what we got.We were pretty close to them.Yet at a safe distance.
Dramatic scenery
The steep mountains at Doubtful Sound..with their U-shaped glacier valleys…are truly magnificent…and majestic.The almost always available clouds do the rest.
Silence and a sneak peek of sunshine on the way back
On our way back…we stopped at a side arm…where we got VERY close to a verticall wall…with a waterfall.The next amazing experience…besides a blown off waterfall…was turning the ship engines off for a couple of minutes…to enjoy pure silence…respectively, listening to the sounds of nature only.Then we made our way back…to the pier where we started.
The fog has gone, but the rain stayed at the pass
Back over the mountain pass, rain had us again…but the fog was gone, so we could have an amazing view to the sound.
Sunshine on the way back across Lake Manapouri
It’s unbelievable, …but the weather on the other side of the mountain…was totally different…and several degrees warmer.Sun on either side…of the catamaran.Our conclusion was…that it probably has to be that way to make it a perfect trip. :)
