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By Alistair Child
I will never forget the first time I dived in a southern fiord. It was way back in the
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Black Coral at 12m on a vertical wall in Milford Sound
Fiordland. Photo by Kevin Bone
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seventies and until then my diving was restricted to the confines of the east coast of New Zealand,
around the Dunedin area. Typical east coast diving environment; shallow, low visibility water, and
lots of kelp etc.
Not that this wasn’t good, I did my time there and learnt to dive in these waters. It was in
these waters that I fell in love with diving.
However, nothing prepared me for my first dive in Milford Sound Fiordland. It was like kneeling
on a cliff edge, peering over and wondering if you should be there or not.
I was diving by myself and was feeling a little tentative. I need to side step here a little to
explain. The surface water is fresh water, dark and tannin loaded and is usually about two to four
meters deep, but I didn't know that, it just looked very dark to me and possibly full of 'things'.
Not brave enough to do the jump in thing or do the old back roll I kind of slid in. With head down
looking where my feet were I bravely let the boat go as there was nothing lurching toward me from
below and moved to the rock wall. Slowly I dropped down into these dark still waters having no idea
what was down there, and what was there astounded me. Passing on down through the first three
meters or so and dropping into clear water I settled on a ledge and looked down. Wow what am I
looking here. Huge white trees, lots of fish I had never seen before and red…….. “Red
what?”. Coral! It looked like coral, “Coral can’t be here”, and no idea
what all these white trees were.
Well it’s all history now. Fiordland has some of the highest densities of black coral in the world
and is considered by many as some of the best diving has to offer. Black coral, if
you didn’t know, is the skeleton. The living animals are thousands of tiny polyps
which are white.
I have dived in a few places like the Ningaloo Reef in North West Western Australia, and of
course the Barrier Reef and a few places in Fiji. Although some may say I’m limited in my range I
have done enough to get an idea what a coral reef looks like. Having said that, I
find I get bored with too much coral on top of coral, (don’t get me wrong it is beautiful) but I
have to say after many hundreds of Fiordland dives I have never ever been bored.
So if you think you’re something of a diver, go do it here in Fiordland, you will love it.
Take it from me…………….I’m a local.
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