Feverish in Fiordland

We reached our destination mid-afternoon on Tuesday to a spectacularly clear-blue day. The very pretty little town of Te Anau begged to be explored, but it was clear that Lloyd was quite ill and could do little more than rest up. His throat was swollen and a very nasty deep red colour and a little internet research suggested strep throat or tonsillitis. Lloyd rested while I administered doses of medicine recommended by the local pharmacist. For the first time during the trip, we broke into the arsenal of medicines we’ve been carrying with us since California, with Lloyd taking amoxicillin to see if it would help.

Even the Doc reacted visibly to Lloyd's ugly throat.

After another fitful night of sleep, we headed to the Doctors to make sure we were doing all we could to get Lloyd back on his feet. Sure enough, Lloyd had correctly self-diagnosed and self-administered the right drugs! There was nothing more the Doc could do for us, although for our $75 she did type up a letter that we could use as a referral elsewhere if he didn’t get better.

Officially sick.

And with that, we were back on the road, for the relatively short two hour drive to Milford Sound. The drive to Milford was a highlight by itself, and we stopped at several places along the way just to take in the view.

Lloyd at Mirror Lake, still feeling (and looking!) lousy. And one of New Zealand's notoriously curious Keas that came to check us out as we waited to enter Homer Tunnel, just outside of Milford.

Arriving in Milford Sound, and with boat tickets booked for the next morning, we resisted an urge we both had to get on the next available boat to enjoy the Sound in picture-perfect conditions. Lloyd was feeling rough after the drive and we decided to rest up and give his body a chance to fight the infection. His appetite continued to be suppressed, but the antibiotics seemed to be helping somewhat and we were hopeful for the next morning.