Superlatives fail to describe the majesty of Doubtful Sound as it appears over your ship’s bow. Let’s introduce you to some of the scenery. On the left are the Shelter Islands. The point is Jamieson Head, part of Bauza Island. Its namesake was Felipe Bauzá y Cañas, the cartographer (map drawer) aboard a five-year Spanish expedition in the late 19th century. As you travel slowly for less than a mile along the Patea Passage, you are awed by the swirling clouds above the 4,432 foot Behind Peaks. Marvel how the blue sky shares its color with the sea. The Māori call this fjord Patea meaning “place of silence.” This is why Doubtful is commonly referred to as the Sound of Silence.
