Doubtful Sound and the Southern Secret

We booked an overnight fjord trip on the Southern Secret to cruise through Doubtful Sound. The boat is smaller than your typical luxury liners, Ed and Mary would be appalled by the accommodations, but it was just perfect for me and the Misses.

The boat had cabins for 14 people but our trip only had 12. We had booked the master suite which had a separate shower and toilet, actually quite nice. Plenty of room to relax but who had time for that. We got on the boat around 12pm after a 1hr drive over the pass to the sound. That was also after a 1hr ferry ride to reach the other side of Lake Manapouri, where the bus was waiting.

The Master Suite

The beginning of Doubtful Sound

This was where we were introduced to one of New Zealand’s most prominent and voracious critters, the Sandfly!  These little shits are 10 times worse than any mosquito you have ever encountered. We quickly learned that if you kill one, the whole family comes to the funeral! Where the hell did all these things come from???? Thank goodness one of the passengers could reach their Off spray so we all could lather up.

One interesting story about these never-ending blood suckers, seems that back in the early 1800’s the Spanish were searching for a waterway into the South Island mainland. They landed on one of Doubtful Sound’s many islands and planted the flag for the King claiming this their land. Within seconds they were covered with sandflies, biting everywhere and successfully repulsing the Spanish invasion.

As quick as they landed, they got back in their boats and headed off to Australia, never to be seen again. Today a plaque denotes the historic landing site where the Spanish were bested by a fly. No, the Kiwi’s didn’t nickname these critters “Spanish Fly” but it would make a good story…..

First thing on our boat was lunch. Simple fare for our small crew, 3 salads, 3 types of homemade bread, sushi, and of course, crawfish. What these guys call “crawfish” is what we call “lobster”! There is a difference, these crawfish don’t have the claws of a lobster but other than that, they are the same. Not bad for lunch!

Motoring our way through the fjords was truly awesome. Quiet, peaceful, and just beautiful scenery. Mountains rising straight up from the water 2-3,000 feet, a light fog resting on the peaks, and waterfalls everywhere you look. Best part, our boat was moving slow and had time to pull right up to the waterfalls, almost touching the water spray. Really amazing.

Our captain, Jason, was a young man that looked to be about 30 years old but very well acquainted with the boat.  He and his cook/assistant Rachel helped us enjoy the sites and as a bonus, prepared a few fishing poles for us to catch dinner. So while Collette was looking for her shoes, I got a pole and started fishing. (Not sure how her shoes got under the bed)

Oh Great and Wise Fisherman! (With the ugly fish!)

Capt’n Jason

So, Dan-boy caught the first fish, and it was bigger than Collette’s! Winner! Well, for a few minutes. Rachel pointed out that I had caught a Jock Stewart, very ugly fish and not what we want to eat. May count as a caught fish but back in the water. Damn, and now Collette has a pole……….

Sure enough, she catches this slimy, grey colored, nasty looking creature that was about 3 times the size of ole Jock. And Rachel says this is exactly what we want to eat, a blue cod big enough for us to stop fishing and move on. Just isn’t fair!

We motored on through more amazing channels. The weather had cleared, not a cloud in the sky, couldn’t be better! Time to stop the boat and let the kayaker’s have some time in the water. Collette and I decided to keep taking pics of the area and just enjoy the sites.

Recovered our fellow boaters and motored a little more. This time we were checking the crawfish pots to see if they had caught enough for tomorrow’s trip while setting some new pots. Meanwhile, a good size pod of dolphins joined us while we cruising. About 10-15 dolphin swam near our boat on their way to points unknown and seemed not to care that there were 12 cameras constantly snapping pictures of partial fins, tails and “grey” things. Kinda neat.

Raising pots management style!

Gotcha!

One of the 10,000 waterfalls

Evening came and it was time to eat again. This time Rachel had prepared salads, bread, lamb, potatoes, and the stinky fish Collette caught. (Not really, it was actually pretty good). This cruise lets you bring your own wine or beverage onboard so we had wine with our dinner. (That explains why we had 2 cabins, one for us and one for the wine). The rest of the evening was spent stargazing, chatting with the group and relaxing….I think.

The next morning, we were up early, checked more crawfish pots and started motoring back to the pier. Took about 3hrs to get back to the bus so we got to enjoy more of the fjords.

Great trip, one that we would do again and would recommend if you want to see the fjords up close and personal. The Southern Secret was just perfect for an intimate, enjoyable trip and the crew was great. This one goes down as money well spent. Heading out to Oamaru this afternoon and the land of the Braided Rivers! Got to be good fishing there!

Our luxury cruiser! Just had to help get it in the water….

Cheers Mate.