Day 21: Places to see in Milford Sound: The Chasm Walk, Homer Tunnel, Gertrude Valley, Monkey Creek, Pop's View, Gunn Lake and Cascade Creek, Mirror Lakes and Te Anau
Make a route through the places to see in Milford Sound, along the road we traveled yesterday before doing the Milford Sound cruise, it is with the idea that we woke up this new morning on the trip to New Zealand in 36 days.
After an incredible night, surrounded by stars and a spectacular landscape, it is 7 in the morning when we start, have breakfast and after leaving our motorhome Jucy pick up, we say goodbye to the Milford Sound Lodge, where we have stayed tonight.
Remember that if you are interested in making a route through New Zealand by motorhome, we recommend you look at the Motorhome Republic page where you can see all the available motorhome options, prices and make the reservation directly.
The list of places to see in Milford Sound that we have in mind, in addition to the Milford Sound road, which we will travel after we return to Te Anau, again includes a walk along the walkways between the Visitor Center and the port, which we already traveled yesterday, but that today we do not want get lost with the light of dawn, to enjoy one of the most incredible views we have been lucky to see in New Zealand.
Only 2 kilometers from our accommodation, we leave the motorhome again in the parking lot to enjoy really spectacular views for almost an hour. As we said yesterday, this walk does not have any difficulty and it will not take you more than 15-20 minutes more time to stop to take photos or enjoy the views.
Milford sound
And so, after this farewell, we are sure, we will not forget it is 9:15 in the morning when we begin our route through the Milford road to Te Anau, which will be the end point of today's day and the place where we will stay.
Keep in mind that as we explained yesterday, the route through the places to see in Milford Sound, which is included in the Milford Highway, is usually done the other way around, starting at Te Anau and ending at Milford Sound, with the views we just enjoyed and the cruise.
In our case, wanting to do both in good weather and see that the forecast was not very favorable, we decided to reverse the order and make the cruise first and today, the stops at the places to visit in Milford Sound.
If in your case this is your case, time fits you, we recommend doing it in the logical order, making the stops on the way to Milford Sound. If it happens to you like us, you only have to reverse the order of the visits.
Landscapes of Milford Sound
Milford Highway
They say there is nothing better to know Fiorland than to travel the Milford Highway. 120 kilometers between Te Anau and the fjord, which take you through unique landscapes and all places to see in Milford Sound They serve as a gateway to one of the must-see places in New Zealand.
Remember that as we commented several times in the previous post, this tour will take you about 5 hours or so if you leave from Queenstown, plus 2-3 hours with stops, even though in Google Maps or in any other GPS, you can see That is 2-3 hours.
In case you have spent the night in Te Anau, the trip is reduced to about 2-3 hours, although you must add the time of the stops, so it calculates that it will be about 5 hours of journey.
With this in mind, it is best to leave as soon as possible to make the most of the time and also avoid organized groups that usually arrive in this area of the road at about 9-10 in the morning.
Milford Highway
Along the Milford Highway, there are many trails that you can do, of greater or lesser difficulty, in addition to many viewpoints and interesting points that serve as a perfect introduction to this area of the country.
Remember that we have done it in the opposite direction, from Milford Sound to Te Anau, so if you make the stops on the outward journey, you will see that the visits must be reversed in the order that we tell them.
Milford Highway
Places to see in Milford Sound traveling the road from Te Anau
We leave you the ones that are for us the places to visit in Milford Sound more recommended
The Chasm Walk
Just 10 kilometers from Milford Sound is this 20-minute round-trip trail, which runs through a forest, where you can see how the Cleddau River has made its way through the rocks and if the day is clear See even the Tutoko, one of the most famous mountains in the area, with 2746 meters high.
This trail is fully adapted and does not present any difficulty. Calculate about 30-45 minutes to explore it calmly and make stops and photos.
The Chasm Walk
Homer's tunnel
Known for being the tunnel with the highest traffic lights in the world, the Homer Tunnel is just over a kilometer and is one way, so once you get there, you must wait your turn to pass.
We advise you to make two stops at this point. The first before entering, regardless of the direction of travel, in the area enabled for it. If you are making the stops in the direction Milford Sound to Te Anau (like us) at this point you can see the impressive Cleddau Valley, with breathtaking landscapes.
Homer's tunnel
After crossing the tunnel, for the other end, since in addition to being able to see another perspective of this engineering work, you can see how it is excavated between rocks eroded by the waters and ice of the glaciers.
In addition to this, it is in this area where you can see the famous keas, the only alpine parrots in the world, which you should never feed them under any circumstances and with which you have to be very careful, since it is very common for them to get on and even get into cars.
Cleddau Valley
Gertrude Valley
The next stop on the route through the places to see in Milford Sound is the Gertrude Valley car park, where you can only take a technical stop to take some photos, since the surrounding landscapes are really a spectacle for the senses.
Gertrude Valley
Monkey creek
This point on the Milford Sound road is a classic, especially for organized groups that stop here to see the glacier in the distance as well as the mountains and landscapes that surround it.
We advise you to park in a remote area where buses do and enjoy one of the most incredible views of the area, which we are sure, will not leave you indifferent.
Monkey creek
Pop's View
Pop's View is one of the many viewpoints that you will find along the Milford Highway. Whenever you have time, we advise you to stop at several of them, so that you can see different perspectives of the area, especially as you go up, since even from the window of your vehicle, you can see how the landscape is changing to every kilometer
Keep in mind that in many of the sections of the road, despite being narrow and curvy, many vehicles pass at high speed, so it is very important to park in safe places and if you have to cross the road do it with total security.
Lake Gunn and Cascade Creek
At this point on the route through the places to see in Milford Sound, is where is the impressive Lake Gunn, where we stopped yesterday and we could enjoy the incredible mirror effect of the mountains reflected in the water.
Here you can make a 45-minute round trip trail, highly recommended especially for the days that it is not windy, since you will be able to see this incredible reflection that we mentioned previously in its waters.
Keep in mind that on the middle of the route, you will see a small deviation of a few meters that takes you to the shore of the lake, if you are lucky and the day is calm, you can see the mountains reflected, as in the viewpoints that are several meters before and several meters after the start of the trail.
Gunn Lake Trail
Gunn Lake
Mirror lakes
At 19 kilometers from the previous point, there are the incredible Mirror Lakes, several lakes that can be bordered by some adapted walkways in which the calm days, you can see the mountains of the area reflected.
Remember that this path is very easy, it will not take you more than 15 minutes to make the visit and if you are lucky and there is no wind, it will give you one of the most spectacular images we have ever seen.
Panoramic Mirror Lakes
Te Anau, another place to see in Milford Sound
Known for being the starting point of the Milford Highway, walking along Te Anau is also one of the things to do the Milford Sound that you can't miss
This small and quiet town of Fiordland is perfect to spend a day or spend the night, either on the way to Milford Sound or back, as we have done. Although initially it may seem that it has little to do, we recommend giving it a try and giving it a minimum of a couple of hours to walk around the lake and discover some of its attractions such as its Glowworm Caves or even choose to take the coach tour, cruise and walk through Milford Sound.
Anau te
More practical information to prepare your trip to New Zealand
- 10 essential tips for traveling to New Zealand
- 10 essential places to see in New Zealand
- The best travel insurance for New Zealand
Tips for making the route to Milford Sound
After our experience, we leave you a series of recommendations and tips to make a route through the places to see in Milford Sound.
- Whenever you have time and time is on your side, we believe it would be best to leave Queenstown or Te Anau first thing in the morning and throughout the day, take the Milford Highway route for the next day in the morning , take the Milford Sound cruise and take the road back. Remember that you must travel the same road again to Te Anau.
- If you have only one day, if you get up early, you can make the road with a stop and make the cruise in the middle of the afternoon or last hour of the trade and then do 3-4 hours back in case you do not want to stay at Sleep in the area. This plan is feasible although very tired by driving hours.
Road to Milford Sound
- Remember that the last point where you can put relatively cheap gasoline, is in Te Anau, as is the last town where you can stock up in a supermarket. In Milford Sound in the Visitor Center you can find some product, but very basic and a gas station but almost double that in Te Anau.
- As we commented at several times in this post and the previous one, Milford Sound is one of the most visited places in the country, so if you want to make the route through the places to see in Milford Sound in a relatively quiet way, we recommend you start Soon in the morning, in order to avoid organized groups that usually arrive in the area around 9 in the morning.
- Another thing to keep in mind is that since leaving Te Anau, there is no telephone or Wi-Fi signal. Keep this in mind if you need to make a call or make an inquiry online.
Mirror lakes
After the incredible experience traveling the Milford Sound road throughout the morning, we arrive at Te Anau when it is 2 noon, time that we take advantage of to put gas, load the fridge of the motorhome in the supermarket and approach Habit Foods, One of the most recommended restaurants in the town, where for 40NZD we eat a couple of delicious tacos, a couple of soft drinks and a couple of coffees, which bring us back to life after today's intense day.
Anau te
And so, with a full stomach, we spend the rest of the afternoon enjoying Lake Te Anau, one of the most beautiful in this area of New Zealand, this small town and the views we have while working at Te Anau Lakeview Holiday , our accommodation in Te Anau tonight, where we rest after two incredible days, which have led us to know one of the most impressive places in New Zealand.
Doubtful Sound Cruise
Before finalizing the journey of this day we want to highlight the possibility of making a Doubtful Sound cruise in addition to Milford Sound or replacing it.
This tour or excursion will take you to spend a day in the wildest nature, entering Doubtful Sound, in the heart of Fiordland and three times longer than Milford Sound. This tour departs from Manapouri, 22 kilometers from Te Anau, from where a small cruise on Lake Manapouri starts and then take a bus ride through the Wilmot Pass, where you will discover an incredible tropical forest of the national park.
Once you have crossed this step you will ride a catamaran where you will make a 3-hour cruise through Doubtful Sound, where you can also see incredible waterfalls landscapes and if you are lucky, a variety of wildlife in the area.
In our case, the idea was to make this cruise tomorrow, but seeing that the weather forecast is still great, with incredible sun, we decided to cancel it this afternoon. The excursion is 8-9 hours and considering that our idea was to see it on this occasion with rain or at least cloudy, we preferred to take the day to go quieter and leave this tour for the next occasion, sure, there will be .
Postcard of Milford Sound after the rain
In case you want to do it, you can book this Doubtful Sound Cruise or this cruise from Queenstown.
We leave you the route we have followed today by the places to visit in Milford Sound, which we have traveled following the road that goes from Milford Sound to Te Anau, among which The Chasm Walk, Homer Tunnel, Gertrude Valley, Monkey Creek, Pop's View, Lake Gunn and Cascade Creek, Mirror Lakes and Te Anau stand out.
Day 22: Places to see in Los Catlins: Waipapa Point, Slope Point and Curio Bay - Whistling Frogg Café
