Kayaking on the Remote Doubtful Sound

Fiordland is quite an amazing place. Almost 3 million acres of remote, mostly undiscovered National Park which is the largest remaining wilderness area of NZ. This vast area is home to glaciated mountains, fiords, lakes, glaciers, beech forest and tussock grassland and the Crested Penguin, NZ Fur Seal, Takahe and Kea (the latter two are beautiful birds).

Yesterday we had the great privilege to kayak in this picturesque place. We awoke early in the dark and drove to Manapouri to jump on a boat across the lake. Along the calm 45 minute cruise we saw the most beautiful sunrise I think I have ever seen. We changed into wet suits and got onto a bus that took us another 45 minutes across gravel road to the entrance of Doubtful Sound. After a briefing session by our trusty tour guide Michelle, we got into our double kayaks. It was lightly sprinking and cold, but luckily the gear they provided for us was nice and cozy. The very first thing we saw was a NZ Fur Seal playing in the water just a couple of meters from us! The top layer of the water in the fiord is 15% seawater and gives the water an oily-like appearance which seemed to match the oily fur of the seal. He was tumbling, playing and clapping - what a gift! Fur Seals can dive up to 400 meters below the surface, pretty amazing creatures. Deep sea life flourishes in the top 40 meters of the fiord because of the dark quality of the water. These fiords were created some 12,000 years ago during the ice age by massive glaciers which makes the rocks plunge 90 degrees into the water - it is quite an incredible sight. Make sure to check out the photos that go along with this...

We had lunch on the boat then went back out for another 2 1/2 hours. The forecast called for afternoon rain and wind up to 40 knots! The worst we saw was a sprinkle and 6-7 knots. Needless to say we were pleasantly surprised. We were mesmerized by the towering rock cliffs, moss, fern and the dense rain forest of beech trees growing out of the rock sides. How is this possible? Well, the moss grows first out of cracks in the rock. Fern grows on top of the moss and trees root on this makeshift ground cover across the rock. This top heavy set up on the rock side creates massive "tree avalanches" that tumble down into the fiord every now and then. It takes 100 years to recover the empty space that the avalanche created.

We were beat by the end of the day but it was worth every moment to explore this remote area. In over 4 hours on the fiord, we only saw ONE other boat and no other kayakers. It was as if the beauty in Fiordland was created just for us.

I also wanted to share that while in Queenstown on Monday I went to a local yoga class called "Power Flow." I realize how much I missed practicing in a class environment! The instructor was very knowledgeable and gave me information about other classes and instructors to visit while in Dunedin and Christchurch. The way he was speaking he has been trained by some of the best yoga masters in Thailand and India. I am looking forward to learning and practicing more as our trip continues, as yoga is calling my name.