Milford Sound, New Zealand

study abroad		queenstown		mt cook & tasman glacier		milford sound		doubtful sound		auckland

Milford Sound is actually not a sound, it is a fiord. A sound is a flooded river valley, whereas a fiord was carved out by a glacier. This is why Milford Sound has such steep sides, and is 1000ft deep in the middle.	Mirror Lakes, on the way there, with uncooperative clouds (it was clear on the way back, but it was windy then)	Start of Milford Sound, with the famous Mitre Peak standing 5551ft (1692m) above the water

With all the tourists that visit here everyday, it's amazing that the only civilization in the area is a small motel, a parking lot, and the boat terminal building.		Mitre Peak from the side. There is actually no soil on the mountains in fiordland, just bare rock. The trees and plants intertwine their roots together to stay put, and catch the nutrients that run down the hills during rainfall. Fiordland is one of the wettest places in NZ, getting about 300 inches of rain a year. Sometimes the trees and plants just can't hold on any longer, and there is a "treeslide", that's why there are lines of bare rock down the sides in places.

	Boat near one of the steeper sides	Waterfall from a U-shaped glacial valley

	Near the exit into the Tasman Sea, looking back into Milford Sound	Due to the high amounts of rainfall, there are usually dozens of waterfalls in the Milford area, however it had not rained for 3 days, so there were only a few

		Milford Sound later in the day

Valley near Milford Sound	One of the glacial-fed streams in the area, very clear and blue	This road just wound back and forth up the valley to the tunnel

The other side of the tunnel, it was just bare cut rock inside, at least a 10 percent grade up, and water was dripping heavily from the ceiling inside	Nearby mountains, and the bridge over Monkey Creek

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