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New Zealand: Southern Scenic Route (West)

The signpost at Bluff
The signpost at Bluff

Heading back to Te Anau on the Milford Road, I stopped off at a place called the Chasm to see some seriously weird water-sculpted rock formations – water, in case you haven't guessed, plays an important part in Fiordland's ecology – and eventually arrived in Te Anau, reported my return to DOC and decided to change my plans. With an extra day in hand I thought it might be fun to do the western half of the Southern Scenic Route from Te Anau to Invercargill, seeing as I'd already enjoyed the eastern half from Dunedin. Leaflet in hand, I filled up the car and set off... only to find that the weather, which had been incredibly good since I'd started the Kepler, decided to do its stuff. The Southern Scenic Route turned into the Southern Drizzle Drive, but about halfway through I found a place that didn't depend on a wonderful view: the Clifden Suspension Bridge.

Clifden Suspension Bridge
Clifden Suspension Bridge