Make your way to the designated meeting point in Te Anau then transfer to Doubtful Sound, via the picturesque Wilmot Pass, the road constructed as part of the Manapouri hydro scheme, to join Heritage Explorer (times and meeting points are confirmed with your voyage documents). The Captain and Expedition Leader are waiting to welcome you aboard and the explorations of Deep Cove, home to several waterfalls including Helena and Lady Alice Falls, begin.

You have dedicated two days to experience some of the most spectacular scenery in all of Fiordland – Doubtful Sound, or the ‘sound of silence’ as it’s also known. Spanning some staggering 40 kilometers and holding the title as New Zealand’s deepest fiord, Doubtful Sound with its cloud-scraping wilderness-cloaked mountains, sheer stone cliffs, waterfalls, inlets, quiet coves, and wildlife presents nature on a scale so grand its off the chart. Photographic opportunities abound and your time spent here could include ship cruising Blanket Bay, the Shelter Islands, Pandora River, Deas Cove, and Open Bay.

The extensive sheltered waters of scenic Breaksea Sound, initially scouted for sheep farming suitability by early settlers in the 1850s is also the location of Breaksea Island, an iconic site in New Zealand conservation history as one of the first large islands declared rat-free in 1988. Navigation through Acheron Passage this afternoon, which separates Resolution Island from the mainland, is sure to be one of the highlights of the time in Fiordland. This iconic scenic waterway is an area where Bottlenose Dolphins are often spotted. The explorations here may include venturing into Wet Jacket Arm where the crew of Cook’s Resolution ended up with wet jackets during their survey work. It is also the site where moose were released, and last seen, in New Zealand.

The two-day exploration of Dusky Sound visits some of the most significant historical and conservation sites in New Zealand while you marvel at the majestic scenery sailing deep into the heart of Fiordland. Predator-free Anchor Island is home to half of the world’s population of Kakapo and Little Spotted Kiwi and is also the location of historic Luncheon Cove and a number of New Zealand firsts including New Zealand’s first sealing gang, the building of New Zealand’s first European homestead and first European designed ship, the 16-meter Providence built here and launched in 1795. On nearby Pigeon Island learn the history of Richard Henry and his pioneering live transfer of birds to island refuges – an international first in wildlife conservation. While his attempts were unsuccessful due to stoats swimming over to the island, it is heartening to learn the island is now pest free and a sanctuary for native birdlife, with Henry’s vision fulfilled.

The entrance to Chalky Inlet is guarded by the impressive limestone cliffs of Chalky Island, the inspiration behind Captain Cook’s naming of the fiord. One of several important predator-free islands in the inlet including Great Island and Passage Islands, Chalky Island is home to some of New Zealand’s most critically endangered bird species including the Little Spotted Kiwi and Kakapo, and endemic Te Kakahu Skink, discovered in 2002. The protected harbors at North and South Port offer much to explore as the centers of human history in the inlet with North Port the final resting place of the rusting hulk of purposely grounded GSS Stella while South Port reveals an industrial past with the remnants of once prolific sawmilling activity. Sailing to the head of the fiord the surrounding mountains envelop you with their majesty.

Today is dedicated to exploring Preservation Inlet, rich in history you delve into the gold mining and forestry attempts that once made this now quiet waterway a bustling hub of activity. The area’s natural bounty saw more than 2,500 gold miners and saw millers flock to the region in the late 1890s, this early settler history at mining towns Cromarty and Te Oneroa, now reclaimed by nature, can still be observed, none more spectacularly than at the failed Tarawera Mine and Smelter, where the ruins of the smelter’s historic three-story chimney were restored in 2015. Among the activity, Preservation Inlet can also lay claim to having New Zealand’s first whaling station at Cuttle Cove and the location of one of the country’s most remote lighthouses at Puysegur Point, which began operation in 1879 perched some 40 feet above the South Island’s south-westernmost point. Here a great coastal walk, formerly a telegraph track built to connect the lighthouse, leads to the old landing shed at Otago Retreat. Tonight you celebrate your unforgettable adventure with a farewell dinner.

After a final breakfast in the grandeur of Fiordland’s Preservation Inlet, say your farewells and take in the grand views and awe-inspiring scenery on a spectacular helicopter transfer to Te Anau. In case of unexpected delays, you are asked not to book any onward travel from Te Anau until after 3 pm this afternoon.