New Zealand: Fiordland

Fiordland is a spectacular area of 135 miles of coastline, consisting of 14 fjords. Even though it attracts many visitors, it is surprisingly secluded and peaceful. Wildlife does not exactly abound in the region (outside of the birds), but we were able to see seals, bottlenose dolphins, and penguins on our voyages. We spent a day exploring Milford Sound, including taking a boat through it and out to the Tasman sea. The naturalists admitted that none of the sounds in the region are truly sounds, because the gorges were all formed by glaciers instead of rivers. The mistake was fixed, though, by naming the area Fiordland...kinda. For some unknown reason, they spelled Fiordland with an "i" instead of a "j."

There was a super nice college student from Ohio on the boat with us. He had just finished a semester in Queensland, Australia, and decided to backpack his way through NZ before he headed home. Ahhhh, the wonderful whim of youth. Anyway, he offered to take this photo of the Pieper posse. What a guy.

The Southern Alps

We took a great hike up to a place called The Chasm. This is a straight shot down on the upper part of the falls, with all sorts of smooth areas that the water has carved out of the rock. Pretty amazing formation really, and massive in size.

The highlight of our trip to NZ was our overnight on a boat in Doubtful Sound. It was a small ship, holding only about 65 passengers, which made for intimate meals where we got to know people from all over the world, including some girlfriends from the UK who brought Wills and Kate masks to perform their own royal wedding since we were missing it on TV.

Fiordland sees rain at least every couple of days, but they were in a bit of a "dry spell" when we were there, not having had it for five days. We were lucky, because low-lying fog usually masks many of the mountains. For us it was glorious haze that burned off by mid-morning, leaving perfectly sunny and calm days. We couldn't have asked for better weather. The sheep on our way to the boat were also quite happy, basking in the rays. Since I told you that you can't swing a dead cat without hitting a sheep in that country, I thought I better at least have one shot of them plotting their takeover of the humans (40 million vs. 4 million...I'm just saying).

On the gravel mountain pass that led to our boat, we were able to get a bird's-eye view of the sound.

Once the ship reached one of the many fingers of the sound, Andy and I were able to take turns kayaking. I cannot overemphasize again the peacefulness. On the way back to the harbor the morning after our voyage, the captain cut the engine and asked everyone to be silent while we just floated on the water in the middle of the vast peaks. Whit was taking a nap in the cabin, so we didn't have to fear him adding his own soundtrack, like he did in the glowworm caves up north. (On the way out, they take you on a rowboat in complete darkness and you are supposed to be silent while you gaze in awe at the blue glow. Our little man was equally impressed with the sight, and couldn't contain himself, politely uttering "ooohs," "wows," and gibberish commentary when he felt so moved.) In contrast, here the silence was deafening, punctuated with the sounds of all kinds of birds, including kiwis.

We all had to get some cozy accessories to keep warm while we were there. Whit loved his new wool and possum fur mittens. Who knew those beady-eyed vermin were so soft? And per usual, he was a chick magnet on board. When we disembarked, you would have thought Justin Bieber was in my arms with all the women that came over to hoot and holler farewell to him. Any single guys who want to hire him out for a stroll in the park, send me an email.

Sunrise on a perfectly still morning

All in all, we had the trip of a lifetime. I only hope Whit is able to return as an adult and experience this unique country for himself. Andy and I had been planning to go to NZ for our honeymoon, but circumstances didn't work out. God clearly had a better plan, because we had a lot of fun making memories with our little guy.