28 March 2006:

The Diamond Princess arrived at Milford Sound a little before the morning sun…..but the sun did shine…..a rare occurrence in a place that receives over 9 meters (more than 30 feet of rain each year), so we are very lucky. The wind, however is a bit stiff. As we entered the sound we went to the open front of the ship on deck 15 and the wind must have been hurricane force……many people couldn’t stand at the railing without holding on. Lucky for me, I had anticipated this problem and had added a few extra pounds during the previous week so I was pretty stable at the bow. It was like being in a wind-tunnel…..but the view was magnificent…..green mountains, blue water, hanging valleys disgorging waterfalls into the sound……slideshow to follow as soon as we are back home.

After sailing up Milford Sound as far as is safe for a vessel this size, we turned and began cruising along the coast of New Zealand passed George Sound, Doubtful Sound, Dusky Sound, Charity Inlet and many, many other little bays, sounds and inlets that dot the coast.  Here my only regret is that we chose a cabin on the starboard side, instead of port side……so the view from our cabin is of open sea instead of the coastal mountains of New Zealand. But it’s only a short walk to one of the open decks where we can watch the scenery.

Science Note: the rainfall in this area is so heavy that it creates a permanent freshwater layer above the saltwater in the sounds. This leads to some fairly unique biology in Fiordland Park.

But, instead of me nattering on incessantly about the pretty scenery, I’ll try to post a few pictures on the website if the Internet Gods will cooperate later today. The website address is:

http://mysite.verizon.net/rick.longbrake/ricks_site/

….more later.