Wakey Wakey on the Water

We've been a wee bit out of touch the last couple of weeks, as we've had company and been running all over creation! Yay to the brave souls who venture to make the never-ending journey to the bottom of the world, just to come out and play with us. 

First adventure I'll share was the cruise we did in Doubtful Sound.

Doubtful Sound is more difficult to get to than it's more widely known cousin Milford Sound. You start at Lake Manapouri where a 1 hour boat ride lets you out on the other side, then a 45 minute bus ride takes you over Wilmot Pass (above) to drop you at the dock at Deep Cove.

There, you board a lovely 3 mast ship that meanders through several of the Sound's arms, and goes all the way out into the Tasman Sea.

I think Milford must be more widely known than Doubtful just because it's easier to get to, because truly, it can't possibly get much prettier than this.

The story has it that when Captain Cook first spotted it, he called it Doubtful because he was doubtful that he'd get back out. 

The sheer faces plunge into the water to depths as low as the peaks are high.

The highest peak on this sound is around 1100 meters tall.

For scale, note the tiny white speck between where the two mountains touch the water in the center of this pic. That is a tour boat. Also note the waterfalls coming off the side. I lost count at around 50. 

This is our lovely little schooner. Sans sails. The water looks black because of tannins that wash off the mountainsides, and because of the light refraction. There is SO much rain in the Fiordlands, that the seawater is topped off with anywhere between 3 and 9 METERS of freshwater on top of the saltwater.

There was some of this.

And some of this. Yes, I jumped in. Yes, it is quite cold. But the gorgeous soups waiting in the galley cured that quickly.

Approaching the Tasman.

The Tasman Sea is square into the Roaring 40s.

The boat feels like a roller coaster. 

The waves pound against the rocks that guard the entrance to the Sound while the sea lions bask in the sunlight, completely unperturbed by us or the sea spray.

Albatross and Mollymawks skim the water looking for a meal.

On the way back into the Sound, the Captain unfurled the sails and cut the engines.

  It's heavenly.

And beautiful.

And instantly transports you to another time.

We cruised into the protected enclave as the sun was sinking. And like magic, the most incredible feast was waiting in the galley when we came below deck.

In the middle of the Fiords, when the sun goes down, if there are no clouds, the temperature plummets.

Our cozy little room with the yummiest hot shower ever. 

The sun rising over the Fiords.

The clouds quickly lifted and the water stilled to create the most perfect mirror images.

The Captain pulled up right under a waterfall and you could fill your glasses to drink straight from the pure running water.

Cheers y'all!

Here Fishy Fishy Fishy

One of the great things about New Zealand is the abundance of super-fresh seafood.

A friend called and asked if we wanted to come out floundering that afternoon. Um, heck yes! I've been waiting to get to go out.

So we headed for the coast, armed with nets. And bugspray, since it was a warm and not very windy day. Sandflies. Oh, sandflies LOVE me.

In the foothills of the Fiordlands is a great floundering beach.

To flounder, you use a dredge net. This one is a large one at 40 meters long (by about 1.5 meters tall). I think typically the nets are about 25 meters. "Big blokes need big nets," was my favorite quote of the day. 

A couple of guys man one side of the net, and a couple of (ahem) people man the other. And basically you just walk parallel to the beach at low tide to see what you can scoop up.

We had a pretty good haul.

Some were a bit small, so they went back. It was remarkable to see how camouflaged these guys are.

This was the day's haul. (Our incredibly generous hosts sent most of these home with us)

This guy was NOT very pleased to have been disrupted from his evening meal.

Evening was drawing on, so we called it a day.

I'd say it was a pretty successful one.

Into the Longwoods...With Brightly Colored Jackets

We hadn't been INTO the Longwoods yet, which is silly, because they are so close. The thing about the Longwoods is that you have to be really careful, use your head, and not end up in a part you shouldn't be in. It's more of a hunting/logging place than a hiking place, but there is great hiking if you know where to look. We had heard tell of a beautiful marked trail that begins at a picnic area and runs along the Pourakino River. Researching the location online, the directions literally said, "Find a local to take you." Challenge on.

We headed out on the one lane logging road that carves into the heart of the Longwoods. It's a slow drive, but the potholes weren't too bad that a standard SUV couldn't navigate them. Road cars need not apply. There are several side roads like this one. This rut was a solid 4 feet deep.

With a good topo, and a serendipitous run in with an old hunter who by the looks of him probably knows every tree there on sight, we actually found it. I have to say, we were feeling pretty proud of ourselves.

After trailing through Sunday-quiet logging roads for almost 30 minutes, we came upon a beautifully mown clearing with picnic tables. It all looked remarkably out of place. There had been a mill here at one time, though no traces of that were left other than the hole in the woods.

My fascination of the day was the abundant variety of mushrooms. 

They were Alice-in-Wonderland like. 



And very clearly, poisonous. Though we've since learned that it's totally safe to eat the white ones that grow in your yard. 

The trail goes along an old rail path, and in places, you can even still see the rails and cobbles.

After a short, easy walk, the path opens up to the water. It's a trout fisherman's dream.

The trees are mostly Birch, especially in the clearing. The ones by the water are very Ent-like and full of personality. 

This section runs along the Granity Stream.

Not sure WHO lives in here, the white rabbit maybe? I wasn't going to stick my hand in to find out, but it sure looked cozy.

The Granity Stream (on the left) joins into the Pourakino River. If you look closely through the trees, you can see an old rail-bridge that has been reclaimed by the forest.

Closer look. I think it's safe to say that this forest is full of hidden treasures.