Humbled

Another night when I woke to find pitch black surrounding me. A quick look out of the window and I could see many, many stars twinkling over the lake. I toyed with the idea of getting up and getting the camera set up for a long exposure shot but the toying lasted just long enough for me to fall back to sleep . . . . . until I woke again a couple of hours later with the idea still gnawing at me. This time I decided to act on it. To cut the story to the bare necessities, I had everything set up and ready to roll then discovered that the (cheap off the web) remote wasn't working hence I couldn't do it :( I was deeply disappointed but learned a valuable lesson! After that very interrupted sleep I wasn't at all surprised to find I woke later than usual.

Usual cruisey breakfast - the lake looked magnificent - then off down the road to Milford.

To think it's just a hop and a skip to Milford from Queenstown is apparently a mistake many people make. Think of a square with sides 100-plus kms long. The direct route from Queenstown to Milford would be one side of this square. Unfortunately (although I really do believe, fortunately) there is no road that does this and there's a massive range of mountains that make a road a near impossibility. The only way in to Milford then is by driving the other 3 sides of the square. It's a pleasant enough drive through Southland but, after the West Coast and Central Otago landscapes, it does tend towards a little - um - dreary. Until, that is, you arrive at Te Anau.

Now I've always thought that Te Anau must be a sleepy wee hollow with not a lot going on there. I take back all those unkind thoughts. I was very impressed with the town - small, interesting, beautiful lakeside walks, friendly . . . . the kind of place I'd like to spend a bit more time at. This time however, Milford was calling.

Before leaving town I put some more fuel in the van (don't want to get caught out with no fuel all the way out there!) then headed to the dump station to empty the loo and refill the water. I'm not going to go into details but I want you to know that what happened was utterly gross though I really surprised myself at how I dealt with it . . . . all good in the end - happily.

It's 25 years since I've been to Milford and my memory has faded. There were one or two parts of the drive I remembered but on the whole, it was like I was seeing it all for the first time. The final 30 or 40 kms before you actually arrive in Milford has to be some of the most breathtaking scenery I have witnessed. The sense of awe grows as you gradually move nearer to Milford - gigantic vertical walls of rock with water pouring down the faces, clouds and mist weaving in and out of the spaces between the faces, feeling like a totally insignificant. pitifully small dot against this magnificent backdrop, but feeling at the same time that I could almost stretch out my arms and touch the monstrous walls that were towering over me.

Tomorrow I'm taking a boat ride down the Sound to the sea and back - lots of photographic opportunities :) And the bonus is that the weather might be a lot clearer than it's been today.

Off to bed feeling more than a little humbled.

By the way, this is a shot from a very last-minute series I shot after looking up from my dinner to see the sky glowing a little pink. I quickly put everything on hold and rushed down to the waterfront. Well worth ht rush and the interrupted eating!

Oh - and yes - that is the moon!!