14 Oct 2014 Thursday.
We had our breakfast at Vudu Cafe. Pretty crowded.
Our breakfast.
Wow…. very delicious ! They really have their way to prepare the eggs…. it is melting. We decided we should pack some of their cakes, muffins and scones…
After breakfast…. we headed to our car… interesting car in front.
Leisurely, we drove along the coastal road of Lake Wakatipu. Nice cloud layer floating just below summit. Heavenly feeling. (仙境)
We pulled over for more pictures. The cloud remain relatively stationary… it reminded me of a Chinese Song….雲且留住
We took 2.5 hours to reach Te Anau. Had a good break at Sandfly Cafe.
We had very good hot food and hot coffee…. threw ourselves back and relax…
Looking at the picture on the wall… Milford Sound … that is where we were heading.
We set off to Milford Sound. Our objective is to enjoy the ride through Eglington Valley, mirror lake and Hormer Tunnel. No cruise.
Coastal Drive along Eglinton River. It is lovely sight – with the mountain emerging above the cloud.
Driving through forested area.
…. reminded us of the forested scene in Lord of the ring.
Exploring the Eglinton river bank…the place was completely quiet and a scent of mysterious remoteness lingered in the air.
Another section of Eglinton River. I had been pondering and I finally got the right description of how I feel… Loneliness. Probably this is how our prehistoric ancestor felt when standing in front of a remote river valley.
Entering the Eglinton Valley.
It is a kilometer wide flat valley with steep mountains on both side.
It started to rain. We made a stop at Mirror lake…
So sorry, No mirror.
We continued our drive. The rain began to pour heavily. Hormer Tunnel is a one lane tunnel. We had to wait for the prompt to enter the tunnel.
Exit the tunnel….
Looking back at the tunnel….We saw waterfall running down the rocky slope. It was an amazing sight.
More waterfall….probably hundred – very grand, very overwhelming. It was unfortunate that we could not capture the scene well through our camera.
We had a short break at the Jetty of Milford Sound. It was late afternoon. Everywhere seemed very quiet.
On our way back….we saw the aggressive water flow beside the road that we were driving…
another stop ….a stony rapid.
By the time we arrived at Mirror Lake again, the rain had completely stopped. Everywhere was fresh greenery.
The mountainous background was still very misty. But the lake was still.
And we saw our mirror
Continue our drive to Te Anau. Observed mysterious colored fog while driving… probably part of a rainbow… I thought.
It was around 1830 hrs that we arrived at Te Anau. Quiet Te Anau Lake with a seaplane.
After checked into Te Anau Lake View and Holiday park, we had dinner at The Fat Duck.
Crowded with diners.
Wonderful dinner after a hard day of explorations….
End of Day 11 : It was a day with over 400 KM to cover.
We were rewarded by the many scenic view along the way. The route from Te Anau to Milford is spectacular. We love the overwhelming waterfalls near Milford Sound. I am not sure if there is another place on this earth that is similar. I always recommend friends to make the same road trip on a rainy day.
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