Fiordland – the fairytale park in New Zealand

One the New Zealand’s most beautiful natural reserve is Fiordland National Park. It consists of a fiord, lake, mountain and rainforest environments. The different environments support a variety of flora and fauna species.

100,000 years ago the glaciers carved a valley which was flooded by the sea. In the south of the South Island, there are fourteen stunning fiords, showing the incredible power and beauty nature.

The Park looks like some long forgotten world of fairytales, maybe like all the world once was.

This region is rich with rainfalls, they’re on all the sides of the fiords and are spectacular, sliding through the hills and finding their way to the sea.

Milford Sound is the most famous and most visited of all fiords in New Zealand. The Maori named it Piopiotahi, after the now extinct piopio bird. Milford Sound is surrounded by sheer rock mountains that reach a height up to 4977 ft. The tallest peaks are The Elephant and The Lion.

The deepest of all New Zealand fiords is called Doubtful Sound. It got the name from Captain Cook in 1770. This fiord has three different parts First Arm, Crooked Arm and Hall Arm which end in Deep Cove. Doubtful Sound is a natural habitat for seals, penguins and bottlenose dolphins which make it a breathtaking natural reserve.

Deep Cove forms one of the two most remote parts of the Doubtful Sound fiord and is about three miles long, it receives water from Helena Falls and Lady Alice Falls.

There are 500 miles of walking track that offer an opportunity to visitors who want to explore the Park. The variety of mountain peaks, glacier lakes, and moss covered valleys is a mindblowing experience.

Lake Mananpuri is the biggest and the most mystical in the whole area. According to the Maori legend, this lake was formed from the tears of the two sisters, Moturua and Koronae. Koronae got lost into the forest one day and her sister Moturua went looking for her. When she found her, she realized that her sister has severe injuries and could not be rescued. So, they cried so much that they filled the lake with water.

The name of Lake Manapouri means sorrowful. It’s the second biggest lake in New Zealand. It contains 33 islands and has a depth of 1457 feet.

There are animals and plants unique to this area because they evolved differently. A good example of this are Kakapo, the world’s only flightless parrot, and Takahe big and flightless bird.

Fiordland is the most significant natural park of New Zealand. Visiting this remarkable place will make you will feel like part of an old legend or a magical story.

Human activity is very limited, so it’s a great knowing that there is still unspoiled wilderness on our planet.

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