From Sea to Summit in the Rain

We woke to rain in the Milford Sound aboard the Wanderer, so all was right in Fiordland National Park. After a hearty hot breakfast, we put on our wool caps and raincoats to enjoy the new waterfalls emerging down the sides of the fiord (proper spelling in NZ, not fjord). We got to spend time in the wheelhouse with the captain, checking out the instruments and getting warm for a bit. He can sit in his chair and steer the ship's wheel with his foot. The boat cruised out to the Tasman Sea and we kept a watch out for crested penguins heading back out to sea after nesting along the shores over the past few months. The best we could do was see a pair of white blurs swimming under water. We did catch some fur seals up a bit closer than we did on our Doubtful Sound cruise.

For most of this trip, the daytime temperatures have been about perfect -- probably between the mid 60s to the low-to-mid 70s, depending upon sun or rain. We are at the 45th parallel south, which is equivalent to about Portland, or the northern border of Vermont. The long summer daylight hours have made it easy to fit in our outdoor pursuits, but make it a bit late to stay up for stargazing, usually, and the clouds aren't always cooperative.

Back on land by 9:30 a.m., Courtney drove us up and over the pass again, through the national park, to another of New Zealand's Great Walks -- the Routeburn Track. This can be a 3 day/2 night trek, with stops at government-owned huts along the way. Our hike was an out-and-back to Key Summit in the dense rainforest. We donned our rain gear, including rain pants and began the 1000 foot climb over 4.5 miles. Because of the weather, we didn’t get the far-ranging summit views, but the terrain on top was a beautiful alpine rock garden.Read more