Wonderful Waterfalls
There were some large waterfalls that are there year round, like Fairy Falls, and some smaller ones that come after a rain or during periods of snow melt.
More at Milford Sound
The captain brought the ship right up to the base of one of the falls to give us a close up view. We also saw some fur seals resting on the rocks.
Back to Queenstown
Our small airplane took one last pass over Milford Sound before heading back over the Remarkables to Queenstown. We saw lots of glacial valleys that had been cut into the mountains. Amazing scenery.
Kiwi Bird Park
Spent an afternoon at the Kiwi Bird Park. Saw some common New Zealand birds, including the tui and the weka.
Tui Song
Wakatipu Basin
Went on a Lord of the Rings tour through the Wakatipu Basin. The guide pointed out where many of the scenes from the movie were filmed. New Zealand has such beautiful scenery, it is easy to see why it has been a popular location for film-makers.
Arrow River and Skippers Canyon
Did a little panning for gold along the Arrow River. The only real "nugget" was seeing the location for the Ford of Bruinen from Lord of the Rings. I was also impressed with all of the color variations of the slate rocks along the riverbed.
The overlook near Skippers Canyon had some wonderful views. The Remarkables were featured prominently in the Lord of the Rings as the Misty Mountains. The very bumpy looking hills were leftovers from a glacial moraine.
Shotover River
This jet boat travels at about 60 mph along a very narrow river with high steep canyon walls on each side. The driver races the boat along the river very close to the canyon walls and frequently spins the boat in a 360 degree turn. It is an exciting way to see Skippers Canyon.
Helicopter to Skyline
Took a helicopter from Skippers Canyon to the skyline at the top of one of the Remarkables. Beautiful views from another interesting perspective. Very cold and windy at the top of the mountain. At the top, we ducked inside for a warm drink and a snack as we soaked in the views.
Skyline Gondola
We enjoyed the gondola trip down the mountain and all of the beautiful views along the way. Couldn't help but notice some misguided soul bungee jumping as we went by. Thanked my lucky stars that Steve didn't sign us up for that!
