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The entrance to Milford Sound |
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The Milford Deep Observatory |
We were on a boat trip around Milford Sound, a huge fjord in southwest New Zealand. It's one of those places where the scenery is so daunting that it's hard to take in, and after a while you get neck-ache from all the open-mouthed gawping. It had already been our lucky day since the sun was shining on us, pretty fortunate given the fjord gets seven metres, yes seven metres, of rain every year.
We'd also decided to visit one of its more unusual attractions, Milford Deep, a floating underwater observatory built for scientists but which also allows visitors the chance to observe undersea life through huge perspex windows.
But then our ship's captain called us to the bridge and informed us that we'd be the only two people dropped off at the centre - and although normally it's a 45-minute stop, a new schedule meant that we'd have at least two hours there before the next boat came along to take us back to port.
So we stepped off onto the pontoon, packed lunches in hand, and were treated to our own exclusive and extended tour of the centre and observatory.
It'll try not to bore you with the science, but basically there's so much freshwater rain running off the mountains that it forms a tanin-stained layer on top of the sea, sometimes several metres deep. This layer blocks a lot of light and darkens the sea so much that many creatures are tricked into living in shallower waters believing it to be much deeper than it actually is. Hence the scientists, and lucky visitors from around the world, get to observe coral, plant life and all manner of marine creatures. There was no piped music, no crowds and no barking tour guides - just us bathed in blue light and silence, alone with the fishies in an octopus' garden. A more peaceful place would be hard to find.
Henry
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