National_Geographic_Traveller_India-May_2018

MAY 2018 | NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER INDIA 93

NEW ZEALAND

MILFORD SOUND

FLY OVER A FJORD

The cruise ship has just
slid into the Tasman Sea, but
it looks like it’s curtain time.
Colossal rock faces emerge
on either side of the water,
high enough to scrape the
skies. Ancient rainforests
cling to cliffs like velvety
shrouds (sometimes, rain
or snow loosen the trees
on the rock face, causing
a ‘tree avalanche’). This
is Milford Sound, a fjord in
Fiordland National Park. It
sees one million visitors each
year, and is the favourite pin-
up of New Zealand.
Many choose to tramp the
four-day Milford Tra ck—

counted as one of the best

hikes of the world—to

reach Milford Sound. But

kayaking and 1.5-hour cruise

rides are equally dramatic

ways to discover it. The

deeper the ship goes, the

more Middle-earthian the

fjord looks to me. The wind

buffets us, and we sway

like a bunch of drunks on

deck; waterfalls cascade

down 500 feet like veils of

mythical mist. I spot fur

seals sunbathing on rocks,

but not the dolphins and rare

Fiordland crested penguins

that live in this region. My

face is stiff as ice, but inside

I am hopelessly melting.

It takes a five-hour bus

ride to reach Milford Sound

from Queenstown. I return

by helicopter, after a

scenic f light that gives me

unprecedented views of

this region sculpted by Ice

Age glaciers. Milford Sound

might seem like all

mountain, but from that

height I see how no two faces

of granite are the same.

Some cliffs poke the pillows

of clouds, others are topped

with snow. Some mountains

are two-toned like I never

imagined—their bottoms are

green with rainforest and

top halves are golden

brown rock. From this

height rivers look like

squiggles drawn by a

toddler. Our helicopter is

but a white speck in this

raw, rugged region, which

is often called the eighth

wonder of the world. I know

then—the whole world might

come to Milford Sound,

but everybody leaves with

their own special story.

(www.realjourneys.co.nz;

day-trip packages include

coach from Queenstown,

cruise, and scenic flight

back to Queenstown, from

NZD614/`29,500.)

Cliffs rise as high as 3,000

feet in Milford Sound, dwarfing

the mightiest of cruise ships

gliding through the fjord. PHOTO COURTESY:

ROB SUISTED