Fiordland: New Zealand's Most Dramatic Wilderness

Fiordland National Park covers 1.2 million hectares of the southwestern corner of New Zealand's South Island and is one of the largest national parks in the world. It is also one of the wettest — the mountains intercept the moisture-laden westerly winds and produce rainfall of up to 8,000 millimetres per year in some valleys, which feeds the waterfalls that cascade down the fiord walls and sustains the ancient podocarp rainforest that covers every surface.

Milford Sound is the most famous of Fiordland's 14 fiords — a 15-kilometre inlet flanked by walls of granite that rise 1,200 metres from the water, with the Mitre Peak (1,692 metres) dominating the view from the head of the sound. The fiord is technically a fiord rather than a sound (it was carved by glaciers, not rivers), and the combination of the sheer walls, the waterfalls, and the resident population of dolphins, seals, and penguins makes it one of the finest boat trips in the world.

The Milford Track is one of the world's great multi-day walks — a 53-kilometre, four-day hike from the head of Lake Te Anau to Milford Sound through a landscape of glacial valleys, alpine passes, and ancient rainforest. The track is limited to 90 independent walkers per day (plus guided groups) and must be booked months in advance. The MacKinnon Pass, at 1,154 metres, is the high point of the walk and offers views over the Clinton and Arthur valleys that are among the finest in New Zealand.

Doubtful Sound, accessible only by boat across Lake Manapouri and then by bus over the Wilmot Pass, is the largest and most remote of Fiordland's fiords — three times longer than Milford Sound and far less visited. The overnight cruises that operate on Doubtful Sound offer the finest wildlife watching in Fiordland — bottlenose dolphins, fur seals, Fiordland crested penguins, and the rare Hector's dolphin are all regularly seen.

The sandflies of Fiordland are legendary — small biting insects that are present in enormous numbers near the water and in the forest, and which can make outdoor activities genuinely unpleasant without adequate protection. Insect repellent containing DEET is effective, and the sandflies are less active in windy conditions and in the middle of the day. They are, in the words of every Fiordland guide, 'part of the experience'.

Te Anau, the gateway town to Fiordland, is a small lakeside settlement with a good selection of accommodation and restaurants, and the Te Anau Glowworm Caves — accessible by boat across the lake — are one of the finest cave experiences in New Zealand. The caves contain a colony of glowworms (Arachnocampa luminosa) that illuminate the cave ceiling with a blue-green light of extraordinary beauty.

The best time to visit Fiordland is from November to April, when the days are long and the weather is most stable. The winter months (June to August) are cold and wet, but the waterfalls are at their most powerful and the fiords are at their most atmospheric. The Milford Track is open from late October to late April; the Routeburn Track, which connects Fiordland to Mount Aspiring National Park, is open year-round.