Boating with Dolphins in Milford Sound

Our drive North from the Southern-most point of our New Zealand adventure was, per usual, full of extraordinary vistas like this hill dotted with grazing sheep.

We were booked in a holiday park in Milford on Saturday night - there's unfortunately no freedom camping in the area - and we'd heard we should plan to make plenty of stops along the scenic drive.

The whole valley we were driving along was carved out by a glacier.

There were loads of rain-induced waterfalls coming down the black rocks.

Before checking in to the holiday park, we wanted to get our first glimpse of Milford Sound. It did not disappoint, and we decided to book a boat trip for Easter Sunday.

The boat ride was fantastic. We had perfect weather - blue skies, not too hot or cold - and the nature guide on board our boat was knowledgable and funny. We even got to drink fresh glacier water that they "caught" from one of the many waterfalls.

This was a spot where a "tree avalanche" ripped all the foliage off the face of the rock.

We went out a short ways into the Tasman, and looking back into the Sound, it's not at all evident how deep inland the channel goes.

On our way back to the dock, we stopped at the research and education center where we got to see a nice variety of underwater flora and fauna including this Black Coral.

When we did finally catch a boat back to the dock, we were joined by a pod of 3 dolphins who were having a blast swimming in front of the catamaran's current.