WOW. Where to begin? This post will mostly be pictures since these last 48 hours was one of those ‘bucket list’ type things people do for the photo opps. Before you scroll, go on google maps and check out where Doubtful Sound is…it is in one of the MOST remote places on earth. Untouched, very hard to get to, and insanely gorgeous.
I’ll admit I was very worried booking this overnight simply because it’s the kind of thing you do WITHOUT kids…because it’s for naturalists and it’s only enjoyed by those who love to be out in nature and enjoy views…which let’s face it…is NOT kids.
First we took a 50 minute boat ride on Lake Manapouri:
Followed by a 50 minute coach ride through a rainforest…this is what our kids did:
Stella did get out for one stop simply because the waterfalls behind her are named ‘Stella Falls’.
Side note: it rains 210 days out of the year here..which apparently you want because these waterfalls only show up when it’s been raining so our trip was well-timed.
Then, it was on the Fiordland Navigator boat with 35 other people
…and this was our cabin:
This is where we ate our meals:
And by some stroke of luck…we got a pretty amazingly clear afternoon.
We were given 2 options: Go in a tender with a naturalist for 45 minutes…or go for a solo kayak ride. Adam and Leo went for the tender, I put on my headphones and went for a kayak ride.
And…Stella stayed on the boat BY HERSELF doing this:
The Fjords are magical and actually best in the rain since everywhere you look there are HUNDREDS of waterfalls.
And some seals and penguins (I just got a pic of the seals):
And during the 24 hours, both Leo and I took a bunch of pictures…Leo then edited them..and asked that I post them, so here goes…hopefully it gives you a good sense of what we saw:
After the water activities…some crazy people decided to jump into the FREEZING cold water…
The next morning was the clearest day they had seen in weeks:
And then it was back the way we came but now in full sunshine.
I have to say…the best part of this trip was how blown away I was by the behaviour of our kids. I kept marvelling at how this was exactly the type of trip Adam and I would have taken without kids..I would have said (and often have said) that we can NEVER do this type of things with kids (even teenagers) because we wouldn’t get the time or the space we would want to enjoy it.
So on my many, MANY, moments of pure solitude on this boat, I felt enormous gratitude to my kids who simply stayed inside playing cards, or reading while Adam and I went to a naturalist talk, or went out on the decks to enjoy the views. Even the fact that I got to kayak by myself for 45 minutes listening to cheesy music on my headphones while my 7 year old sat in her bunk on a boat 1000 ft away blew my mind.
So as someone who is often found complaining about things I can’t do because of kids…this was a special treat for me. It was breathtaking, and awe inspiring and I am so happy we were able to do it.
Berlin Travel Blog 