After a very noisy night listening to the rain hitting the roof of our van, we were up (fairly) bright and early and ready to hit the road. Leaving Monkey Island we drove to Clifden caves and parked. The entrance into the caves was hardly marked, but we had a walking guide giving us full details. Armed with two torches each we entered the caves. Inside all was completely black except for the occasional glow worm hanging from the roof. We had to scramble, climb and slide through a set of caverns, sometimes going through extremely small holes and cracks in the rocks, for a total distance of about 300 metres. There were a sequence of white reflectors attached to the rocks to tell us which way to go. We knew that near the end we had to descend a ladder for about 7 m, but when we got there the final section was flooded, and we had to return the way we had come. All went well, except for one small section where we missed the direction sign and ended up in a dead end! After a total time of about 50 minutes we re-emerged into daylight, which a slight sigh of relief. We have some photos but they are only on our phones, and may take us some time to download.
Back in the car we drove on to Manapouri where we packed a small overnight bag and proceeded to board a boat bound for Doubtful Sound.
First we had to cross Lake Manapouri which took about an hour. At the far side, at the end of the West Arm we saw the first signs of the Manapouri power station.
Just before we docked the boat took us to one side of the lakeside to show us the colour of the rocks, and how water cascaded down into the lake . It was also a very effective demonstration of how steep the cliffs are, and how deep the water is even so close to the edge.
We boarded buses for the next stage of the trip, another 45 minutes across Wilmot Pass on the most expensive road in NZ. It cost $5 for every inch of road when it was built in the 1960s.
From the top of the pass we got our first view of Doubtful Sound, spread out below us. The area has a very high annual rainfall, 6 to 7 metres, and this was the first time you could see the Sound from the pass for about 3 days.
The cruise boat itself is actually very well equipped, and we were assigned a comfortable double berth on the top level. Despite the strong tendency to rain in the Sound, and despite a dismal weather forecast, we actually had good weather for most of the afternoon.
The views of the sound were magnificent and I took far too many photographs as usual.
At one point we came across a pod of bottle nose dolphins, but they never got close enough for good photos.
As it started to rain later on we were treated to a rainbow!
The boat took us up Crooked Arm where we were given the choice of a ride in one of the boat tenders, or a kayaking trip. Mick and I both chose to go kayaking and had a lovely gentle trip along the shore line. Contemplating the trip back against the wind we were relived to see the main boat had moved so it now lay ahead of us!
After a shower, and a meal of hot soup, the boat continued to the end of the main sound to a couple of islands where there is a colony of fur seals. We also saw terns resting on the rocks. The sun was still shining, but both the wind and the swell had now increased.
We also saw a couple of albatrosses flying ahead of the boat. Not the same type as we saw before, but a smaller variety. (Mollymall?)
Back in the main dining area we were treated to a magnificent meal which we enjoyed with a couple we had got talking to, Dave and Pam. It turns out they live in Aston in Trent, about 5 miles away from us in the UK!
After dinner there was a short presentation about Fjordland from our wildlife expert, then it was time for bed. The engines will start at 6.15 in the morning, and breakfast is at 7, so an early night was justified!
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