Overnight Cruise, Doubtful Sound

The photos don't capture the wild, isolation of this place. There are no roads beyond Deep Cove. Seven meters of rain a year is hard to imagine until you enter the cove. Every inch of the mountains is covered with vegetation or waterfalls, but there is no sediment. Soil just washes away. Huge trees cling with interlocking roots to the moss-covered, rocky cliffs. There are tree avalanches. If one tree loses its hold, a whole mountainside of intertwined trees can come crashing down into the water. We were fascinated. It was incomparable to any place.

I am not a fan of cruises and usually think that traveling with a big group of people on a small boat sounds claustrophobic, but this cruise was the perfect length and three generations of Kirkpatricks were entertained the whole time. The incredible scenery captivated us throughout the cruise. We started the afternoon with tea and big, homemade muffins. Doug, Liam and I went out for a kayak. Marcia, Don and Colin took a tender craft ride. After time in the water there was a late afternoon soup to help us warm up. The rest of the afternoon and evening the boys ran around on the decks, usually right out on the bow. When they were finally cold and windblown, they joined Grams for board games in the main cabin. Don chatted with the captain, swapping stories and discussing navigation instruments and technology. Marcia (a.k.a. Grams) made a new friend with a fellow passenger. The boat anchored in Crooked Arm for the night. There was a great dinner and slideshow. After tucking the boys and grandparents into their cabins, Doug and I snuck out for a little star gazing between the clouds. It was completely dark except for a single light from one other boat in the distance and even that light disappeared from time to time as the fog drifted across the arm. The darkness and the cold, wet night seem to send everyone else inside and we had the bow to ourselves for quite a while. It was romantic if you like light drizzle and wispy, spooky clouds like I do. The cabins were small but clean, cozy and quiet at night. We woke when the boat's engines kicked on. As we dressed and headed down to breakfast, we started our cruise homeward. The highlight of the morning was watching a pod of bottlenose dolphins splashing about in the early morning light. By lunchtime we were back in Manapouri, and I hadn't had time to feel trapped on a crowded boat.