Fiordland Historic Cruises

04/06/2026

And just like that, the season has come to a close. What a last week of sailing we have had! So amazing to welcome just a handful of you on board with us for our last week of the 25-26 season. Our season typically runs from September through to the end of May. This year we did include Kings birthday weekend holiday as part of our last week and enjoyed having 5 passengers to share in this final day.

This week the fog arrived and we had moody days onboard where the mountains gradually revealed themselves through the mist. We also had crazy mist up on the hidden lakes where they could easily have been mistaken for the mirror lakes on the way to Milford Sound!

We need to send a shout out to Dave Crouchley the proud owner of the vessel “Amelia” who also calls Lake Te Anau home. Dave was out with his camera on Wednesday, who captured some really amazing images of “Faith” with her sails up as we came through the islands on the way home. Thanks so much guys!

Now we will take some time to complete some larger restoration projects on board and prepare for the coming 26-27 season. In November we will celebrate 10 years of trading and offering our experiences on Lake Te Anau. This is a huge achievement for Fiordland Historic Cruises, Adam who's been there from the beginning, Mark, George and Harry but we must acknowledge all of those who have skippered, crewed and supported this venture along the way.

For now, we might rest the rest of this week and get stuck in next week. Stay tuned for updates and videos on how the restoration is progressing.

Cheers

Megan & Adam.

And just like that, the season has come to a close. What a last wee...

26/05/2026

What a special week we have had in the week gone by. We’ve been reminiscing about Faith’s 90th birthday while celebrating her 91st. Last year to mark 90 years of Faith we held a classic boat festival here in Te Anau, and could not have predicted the event that unfolded. The weather was amazing and it brought 38 classic boats to town. We held a show and shine and town parade on the Friday for all the trailer boats and a lake parade on the Saturday to bring all boats together. The event was scattered with other boating festivities including a cardboard boat race and a Faith’s 90 years movie projected onto her sails!

If you missed it or are keen to spot yourself in the video check out the videos on our channel. We have had many people ask if this event will become a calendar event, and we’re thinking that in 2030 there may just be another Fiordland Classic Boat Festival. (Unless we need one sooner???)

This week was our second to last week of sailing before we close for the season. Thank you to each and everyone of you who joined us! Especially our special Friday passengers for her birthday!

If you watch the video till the end, there is one of Adam’s famous “Selfie video’s” thanking you all for the support.

Megan & Adam.

What a special week we have had in the week gone by. We’ve been reminiscing about Faith’s 90th birthday while celebrating her 91st. Last year to mark 90 year...

21/05/2026

It’s a birthday day!! Happy 91st birthday Faith!! We’re so proud of our special boat, and thrilled to be her custodian.

We’re onboard right now, cruising out to the Hidden Lakes, watching the sun trying to poke through the clouds.

If you’d like to celebrate with us, post photos of your time with Faith - we’d love to see them!!

Have a lovely day,

Adam, and Megan :-)

20/05/2026

Week in review - Episode 16

A shorter video this week, in a way it almost symbolises the fact that we are coming to the end of the season. Again we have be blessed with all versions of weather, from glorious sunny days, to that inversion layer of flog that seems to love us at this time of year, to the wind that has battered us all season!

Thank you to each and every one of you who have joined us this week just past, what a joy it is to share our corner of paradise with you all. Our passengers with a photography passion have really enjoyed the abundance of fungi life in the bush, the delicate shadows that surround the mountains at this time of year and glorious golden light as the sun brings each day to a close.

On Saturday the skies above the lake were filled with an array of Float planes the Wings on Water float plane company brought together to celebrate a floatplane pilots reunion. Pilots from over the years were welcomed back home to Te Anau. We were lucky enough to attend this event, with Adam having flown the float plane when he first arrived in Te Anau. It was great for everyone to come together to celebrate all things float plane in Fiordland. Well done to Kylie and Ivan for bringing everyone together.

Let’s hope this shoulder season hangs on for just a bit longer and we can keep sailing right into June! For the first time we are open Kings birthday weekend and for anyone coming for the Fiordland College school reunion please keep us in mind as an option while catching up with friends.

Till next week,

Thanks again Megan & Adam.

A shorter video this week, in a way it almost symbolises the fact that we are coming to the end of the season. Again we have be blessed with all versions of ...

15/05/2026

This week we’ve donned our woolly hats, well I have, and headed out on a couple of chillier cruises with our fabulous passengers. A quieter week this past week has meant more restoration. These weekly reviews have given us a fabulous opportunity to showcase the work that goes on behind the scenes to keep Faith going. During our winter shutdown we will aim to produce some videos with commentary discussing how we achieve all the restoration that we do.

Hot chocolates have definitely been consumed on a more regular basis this week with the colder temperatures our mulled wine is also becoming a bit of a crowd favourite.

The cooler air temperatures provide that majestic Fiordland view with low lying clouds and must rolling in. Sometimes the mist has cleared when we return from our bush walk revelling the beautiful mountain ranges that surround us.

We had a rear Saturday closed during the racing for the Gore Jet Boat marathon event that takes place every year on the lake. Boy was the lake state a bit rough for these guys!! Enjoy the clips of the racing a the end, and see you next week!

Thanks
Megan & Adam

This week we’ve donned our woolly hats, well I have, and headed out on a couple of chillier cruises with our fabulous passengers. A quieter week this past we...

12/05/2026

We have seats available at 2pm it’s a perfect day for a lake day

08/05/2026

Happy Saturday everyone!! The Gore Boat Club jet sprints are on here in Te Anau today, and even our sped up footage doesn’t travel as fast as them, so we’re not operational today to give the racing space on the lake. While we’d love to be out there, it’s a cool event to go and watch so head down to the lake and check it out! See ya Tuesday!

07/05/2026

Week in review - Episode 14, here we are, a week of sun, wind, fog and glorious passengers enjoy the last weeks of the season. This week has been great to continue with Faith’s restoration, with two coats of paint on her port side, a top up of paint around the saloon roof and top ups of oiling before winter sets in. Once winter arrives we will work on some area’s on the internal cabin and aft cabin to continue to bring her back to original condition. All of this work takes time, and the sped up videos here are just an indication of the hard work that Adam put’s in bringing her back to life.

This week takes on a bit of a history theme as we continue to learn more about Faith’s history. You may remember us talking about our passenger Colin, who hails from the UK and is super excited to do some further research for us. However in his words he seems to have found more questions than answers in regards to her war service but has found what some things mean.. “I've been able to do a little digging around and can confirm that the four letter group MBKZ in your wheelhouse was the ships' signal letters when she was in the UK. I've found this on the Crew List Index, in the Mercantile Navy List entry for 1940, which also shows the number 161582 which as you know is carved into her main beam.” Thank you Colin for continuing your investment into Faith’s history, we can’t wait to learn what else you uncover.

This week we have tallied up our charity contributions for the season which is equivalent to over $4500 worth of vouchers for local clubs, charities and fundraisers, and we are so pleased to be able to support things that are close to us. If you are the lucky recipient of one of these vouchers please do get in touch as many of these are close to expiry date.

If you’re still looking for something for mum for this weekend, mother’s day perhaps a voucher with us is the way to go? And to all the mum’s out there, have a super wonderful mother’s day on Sunday!

Megan, Adam and the FHC team!

https://youtu.be/3KGKX_i-ZFc

03/05/2026

Looking for something for Mum for Mother's Day...

Gift her the gift on an experience with us!

https://fiordlandhistoriccruises.co.nz/voucher/

01/05/2026

And just like that another week has flown! The bush really is starting to come alive, as the cicada’s finish their season the fungi continues to come alive. We continue to be spoilt by the presence of birds in the bush a true delight for visitors. Recent rain has brought a welcome rise in lake levels and as the nights approach quickly we are treated to the most amazing sunsets on the return from our 2pm cruises.

As we start to slow, we are able to reflect on our season, and pinch ourselves as we get to call this a job. Working on Faith is all consuming, but having the honour of sharing her with the world is just magic! The season has thrown some challenges our way, and coming into winter we have a few projects that we hope to get ticked off the list. We also hope to accomodate a few charter enquires that have come our way.

We had a super special charter in the weekend with some of the crew from Te Anau Mitre 10. A later departure meant returning in the dark, under sail, which was super magical! It’s so amazing to have the support of our fabulous community! Thank you to those of you who continue to support us by purchasing one of our books or merchandise, every little bit helps in the restoration program to keep Faith going.

See you next week,

Megan & Adam

Week in review Ep13