Tourism
Like most other fiords around the world, there is no shortage of people wanting to come see the massive landscape. In most cases, the best way to accomplish this is by boat. Visitors can choose from a few different companies in Milford to take their cruises. One of the more popular companies is Red Boat Cruise (Fig 4).
Fig. showing Red Boat Cruise ship with Mitre Peak in the background
This trip will take you all the way out to the entrance of the sound and back. During the trip the boat will stop and allow visitors to see different and beautiful parts of Milford. Another unique experience that one can try while in Milford is an overnight cruise. A few different boats do this sort of thing in the sound. For the most part, they take you on a cruise showing you the full extent of the sound. They then anchor down in a quiet part of the sound for the night, allow their patrons to sea kayak, and then feed them dinner. In the morning, patrons will receive breakfast and then the boat brings them back to shore. The cruise experience is probably the most popular attraction that Milford offers. Another very popular attraction is the Milford track experience.
Fiordland is known worldwide for its different hiking tracks and trails that a visitor to take. The most popular of these hikes is Milford Track. In his article from Forbes magazine, James Kingston describes the Milford Track experience. He describes is as a “Mecca for New Zealanders.”(Kingston, 1996) In this way, he suggests that most native people of New Zealand feel that the Milford Track is something that should be done at least once in their lives. It is a 33-mile long hike that goes through some of the most beautiful terrain that Fiordland has to offer. The track goes from the town of Te Anau to Milford Sound. The trip typically takes 4 days to complete. Along the way, there are overnight huts that the hikers can use to spend the night in. The amount of hikers that are allowed on the track every day is limited to 35. This insures the hikers get the experience they are looking for. With so few people, it is easy to hike all day long without seeing another soul. Milford Sound and Track have a lot to offer that many people want to see and do every year. For years, the only way to get in and out of the park was by plane from either Te Anau or Queenstown. That was until the Milford road was built. This road allowed visitors to finally drive all the way to the sound. What finally made this road possible was the completion of the Homer Tunnel in 1953. It is a two-lane tunnel that has no internal lighting in it. The tunnel is a 1.2 kilometers in length and sits at an elevation of 945 meters above sea level. Due to its proximity to the Southern Alps, this region is very prone to avalanches especially in the summer months. This hazards “are most likely to occur in spring or winter and can create and explosive air blast and winds of up to 200 kilometers per hour (Milford Sound).” Since the completion of the tunnel, there has been an avalanche control program. This program will close certain parts of the road and post warning signs to all drivers that are driving on the road. Another interesting hazard that tends to occur in this region is tree avalanches. In many places, there is a very thin layer of topsoil that sits on top of the bedrock. After a heavy rainfall, the little top soil becomes very saturated with water and gives away under the weight of the trees