Fiordland Wilderness Experiences Milford & Doubtful Sounds

Fiordland – a sea kayaker’s wilderness! Sea kayaking is the natural way to experience the essential spirit of this stunning, primeval, intense wilderness.

We want to enhance your understanding of adventure and wilderness and to share with you how it can kindle your spirit and whisper to your soul and we want you to have as much fun as we do.

Activity Options

Milford Sound 1 Day Classic Kayaking

• 4-5 hours of kayaking on the fiord – the natural way to experience Milford’s dramatic beauty
• Kayak beneath Mitre Peak, dramatic sheer cliffs, waterfalls, with friendly fur seals, often Fiordland crested penguins and sometimes playful dolphins
• No experience necessary, departs from Te Anau, pickups from your Te Anau accommodation 6.30 am, retuning Te Anau 6 pm

* For transport back to Queenstown, we can connect with buses/aeroplanes that leave Milford.

* Bring your own lunch or order one for $15.

Doubtful Sound 2 Day Real Wilderness Kayaking

• Allow yourself some quality time to experience a personal adventure, a genuine kayaking and camping experience in a remote NZ environment, in a natural, non-intrusive way

• Departing Te Anau early in the morning, your wilderness experience begins as the sun rises with a 30km boat journey across stunning Lake Manapouri and 24 kms by vehicle over Wilmot Pass to Deep Cove

• Approximately 5 hours kayaking from Deep Cove in the midst of massive glacial landscapes, share the water with penguins, fur seals and sometimes dolphins and enjoy lunch on an uninhabited beach

• Camp for the night beside a fresh water stream in the ancient podocarp rain-forest, as dusk descends listen to the nocturnal calls of morepork and weka, often kiwi, an eerie mythical place, the natural world as it once was…untouched pure wilderness

• A new day – the morning stillness of Hall Arm broken by the call of native bellbirds and tomtits; it’s mirror waters rippled by our kayaks. A sense of brooding power kayaking into Malaspina Reach, lunch (swim maybe), back in the kayaks, hopefully around Elizabeth Island then returning under sail if possible to Deep Cove

• The journey home… back across Wilmot Pass and Lake Manapouri to Te Anau – a really full and rewarding two days. And maybe meet up again that evening for a beer, a wine, a meal?

Departs October to April inclusive. Early/late season – Sat Tues Thurs departures. Mid November to mid April – daily departures. 6.15am from Te Anau, 6.45am from Manapouri, returning on the second day approximately 5.30pm to Manapouri, 6.00pm to Te Anau.

* For transport back to Queenstown after the kayaking, we can usually connect with a bus that leaves Te Anau for Queenstown approximately 7.00 pm.

Doubtful Sound 3, 4 or 5 Days Remote Wilderness Kayaking

• Like no other in New Zealand – the more time you give to Doubtful Sound, the greater the rewards!

• By taking time as we do to explore the fiord’s remote waterways and the land carved by glaciers, you become a part of this raw and powerful place, more likely encountering it’s wildlife, extending your skills and celebrating a real sense of achievement

Depart November to April inclusive. 6.15 am from Te Anau, 6.45am from Manapouri, returning approximately 5.30pm to Manapouri, 6.00pm to Te Anau on the scheduled day

No paddling experience is required for the 3 and 4 day tours but is preferred for the 5 day tour. Moderate fitness and good stamina levels are essential.

Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound

• Kayaking 2 distinctively different fiords…2 definitely different experiences
• Combine a day’s classic kayaking in Milford Sound, with two or more days wilderness kayaking in Doubtful Sound
• The two tours can be done in any order with days in between doing other things if you wish
• You do need to organise accommodation between the tours

Other Information

• Upon booking, we give you a detailed personal equipment list to assist you with your preparations. Please make sure that you receive that list with our reply to you confirming your booking

• When you make your booking you will also be asked to provide your weight and height (for gear sizing) and your accommodation in Te Anau or Manapouri. We need to know where to meet you the morning of departure and to give you the time of pick up

* Note: Weather conditions and wildlife encounters determine the actual kayak route.

Location

Sandy Brown Road, Te Anau, New Zealand.