Tramping the Milford track

---

Day 151: Thursday 27th November - Starting the Milford Track

First tramping; no I haven't decided to become a scruffy homeless person, although some may argue that I'm getting close! No tramping to the Kiwi's is what trekking or hiking is to you or me or what bushwalking is to the Aussie's. That cleared up lets get on to the tramp. The Milford Track is considered one of the world's great hikes and is the third multi-day trek I'll be doing in as many months. ( the 'W' in Torres Del Paine, Chile and the Inca Trail in Peru being the other two). I'm lucky to even be attempting the Milford track as until I met an Australian guy in Peru I was just going to turn up the day I wanted to do it. As one of New Zealand's great walk's (and the world's for that matter) it has a strict booking system which allows only 40 independent walkers to walk each section on any given day in the summer. When I came to book it there were only two spaces remaining for my entire time in New Zealand, so I had to re-jig my plans and get a return flight down to the South island at the cost of an additional 100 pounds so it better be worth it. A lady at the hostel I'm staying at in Te Anau confirms how lucky I am to have got a space only 6 weeks before the trek, normally you have to book months and months in advance. The Milford track is a 4 day, 54km hike the track going from Lake Te Anau to Milford Sound in a north westerly direction.

Having got my food for the Milford track yesterday evening, all that remains to do this morning ahead of the four day hike is to register at the Department of Conservation (DOC) office and hire some a pan/billy/mug set at a local camp store. Its a beautiful sunny morning as I walk alongside Lake Te Anau - the second largest lake in New Zealand at 65km long - down to the DOC office. Registering and picking all my tickets up for the following few days is a straightforward affair and the weather forecast for the next four days is pretty good..... with no rain forecast either today and tomorrow. A day without rain is quite unusual in the South West of New Zealand, a newspaper I read on the way across from Dunedin claimed there was 276 days of rain a year, and my Milford track guide from DOC says a typical November has 14 days of rain per year, so if we get dry weather even for the next two days I'll be happy. After visiting DOC I walk to the other end of this small lakeside town to hire the aforementioned camping equipment and head back to the hostel to pack my rucksack. This proves to be the most difficult task of the day (and maybe even of the entire trek) as I seem to have bought half of the supermarket. I'll have to have a mammoth appetite to eat all this food in the next 4 days!! Nevertheless, I manage to squeeze everything in to the pack and I'm ready to go.

The pick-up point to start the trek is from in front of the DOC office at 1.15pm to take us half way down Lake Te Anau to Te Anau Downs. Here, we transfer to a boat to take us to the head of lake Te Anau to Glade Point and the start of the Milford track. The boat trip up the final 30km of the lake takes just over an hour and is a pretty sweet way to start the trek, with spectacular views of both the lake and the surrounding snow capped mountains. We disembark the boat at a little after 3pm and after having our boots disinfected for rock snot (I kid you not!) we start walking along the first section of the Milford track. The first section up to Clinton hut, where the independent walkers spend the first night follows the course of the Clinton river up the valley, with the track cutting through a beech forest. It takes an hour to cover the 5km, the weather is glorious and the Clinton river is so clear....a nice easy start to the 54km trek.

The accomodation for night one (and the next two nights) is in bunk houses. You are supplied a mattress, but you have to provide the sleeping bag. After claiming a bunk....always a top one as a group of 14 retired Kiwi's walking together send scouts ahead each day to claim the bottom bunks - I sit on the deck outside the bunk houses enjoying the late afternoon sunshine. I don't last long out on the deck, as the local sandfly population takes a fancy to me. The pests annoy the hell out of me the next few days, biting me so my times I lose count. I take a few casualties of my own in the Sandfly war on the way, but I still think I'll declare victory to the damn pesky flies!! After just recovering from numerous mosquito bites on the Cook Islands, my body is again covered in red blotchy bite marks. The evenings on the trek are spent relaxing weary muscles, reading, talking with fellow hikers (Miles from Christchurch, Jim & Angie, from Minnesota, Carl & Linda from Whangarei being the notables) and cooking a basic meal. Bed time is a fairly standard 10pm, when in the absence of light and with a tired body it seems the logical thing to do.

Day 152: Friday 28th November - Day 2 of the Milford Track, The Mackinnon Pass

There is activity in the bunk houses as early as 6am each morning but my standard tactic is to read for a while, let the rabble get on their merry way and then get my breakfast and pack my rucksack for the day ahead in relative peace and quiet. I leave Clinton hut at 8.20am, the last to leave, a prize I take for the next two days as well. The weather is again beautiful, a hot sunny morning and no cloud in sight. It is a gradual climb along the Clinton river from the Clinton Hut (at 200m altitude) to Lake Mintaro its source (at 600m), at the base of the Mackinnon Pass. The Mintaro hut, where we are spending night two is next to Lake Mintaro. The track passes through beech forest on its way up to Mintaro, in sections the forest opens up and you can see that we're walking in quite a wide valley, lined with a number of waterfalls cascading down the steep cliff faces. Where the forest opens up you are given your first view of Mackinnon pass in the distance, and the view up the valley on this beautiful day is quite spectacular. I reach Mintaro hut at around 2pm, it taking slightly less than the 6 hours to walk the 16.5km it suggests in my guide. Although the walk has not been too strenuous so far I decide to rest for an hour before tackling the Mackinnon pass.

The hut ranger at the previous hut, a certain Peter Jackson though not the one of Lord of the Rings fame, has recommended that if we're feeling up to it when we reach Mintaro to leave our packs behind and climb up the Mackinnon pass today if the weather is fine. Apparently, the days that the weather is this good up on the pass number no more than 20 per year so it seems the obvious thing to do especially as the forecast for tomorrow is for rain and high cloud. The walk up to Mackinnon pass is a 3 hour return walk. This is the hardest section on the Milford Track, climbing over 500 metres quite steeply from Mintaro hut, to the top of the pass at 1154 metres. I don't walk all the way to the top of the pass as the views from the monument near the top of the pass are spectacular enough and on a clear, sunny afternoon you can see down into the two valleys below and also back down into the Clinton Valley. In addition, the pass is surrounded by a 'bowl' of snow-capped mountain peaks. It was definitely worth the effort of the steep walk, which was tricky even without packs. I'm not looking forward to doing it tomorrow with a heavy pack on - I think I best try and devour as much food as possible tonight to lighten the load!! The walk down to Mintaro is almost as tough as the ascent, but at 6pm its time to put my feet up for the evening.

Day 153: Saturday 29th November - Day 3 of the Milford Track, Sutherland Falls

When I wake up its raining, which after two days of brilliant sunshine is hardly a surprise. However, by the time I'm ready to start walking this morning at ten to nine, the rain has cleared. Nevertheless, it still looks gloomy so I decide to keep my full waterproofs on. The first hour and a half is a slog up to the Mackinnon pass (named after the first European to walk the track), and after 30 minutes or so it starts raining, albeit not too heavily. On top of the Mackinnon pass visibility is poor, so I'm thankful I decided to walk up here yesterday afternoon to get the views, because today I can see virtually nothing. On the top of the pass its cold, wet and windy and after stopping for a short break in the hut on top of the pass for refreshments I'm keen to press on to get warm at a lower altitude. From Mackinnon pass its a 970 metre drop, over rocky and uneven terrain. Visibility remains poor, although its a lot warmer lower down in the forest. On the way to my lunch stop at the Quinton hut I pass some cascades which seem to run right down the valley through the beech forest I'm now walking through.

I stop for about 45 minutes to get lunch and a hot drink at the Quinton hut before leaving my bag for an hour and a half side trip to the Sutherland falls. Although not strictly part of the Milford track, for me the Sutherland falls is a must. At 580 metres tall, falling in 3 stages from Lake Quill, the Sutherland falls are one of the tallest falls in the world. Its a 45 minute walk to the falls climbing slightly through a forest. Standing in front of them I have to crane my neck to even see the top of them, and they are certainly impressive. As I arrive in front of them, Jim an American from Minnesota is deciding whether to walk behind them. He decides to go for it and manages to persuade me to do likewise - I guess its not every day you get to stand behind a waterfall that's over half a kilometre high. So off we go, finding a shallow point to the left of the falls to cross the river and then we make our way to behind the falls. By the time we're stood behind the falls we're absolutely soaking even though we have full waterproofs on. Its awesome stood behind them, and even better slightly to the side where you're able to look up and see the power and size of the waterfall without getting drenched by the wind blowing the water into your face. We try to cross back over the river on the right of the waterfall but the water is deeper and there is no safe place to cross so we walk back under the waterfall retracing our steps and getting even wetter in the process.

From the Sutherland falls its a 45 minute walk to get back to the rucksacks, and then a further hour down to Dumpling hut which I arrive at 5pm. Today has been the hardest day undoubtedly, but the first two days were a walk in the park to be fair. However, I say that every trek has a day that once you complete it you know you're going to make the whole trek, and day 3 on the Milford trek is it, even though at 14km its not the longest day in terms of distance. Climbing 600 metres and descending 1000 is definitely tough on the legs, particularly the knees. Its been raining non-stop all day, and after my excursion behind the Sutherland falls I'm absolutely soaking, so its great to get some dry clothes on at the end of the day.

Day 154: Sunday 30th November - Day 4 of the Milford Track, Reaching Sandfly Point

For a third time in a row I'm the last to leave the huts in the morning. This time though by the time I leave I have all the guided walkers nosying around whilst I'm trying to get ready. I wish they'd all get lost, we can't use their facilities so why should they be able to use ours?? Anyway, I finally get going at ten to nine, later than I'd intended and with a five and a half to 6 hour walk ahead of me I best get motoring as I have to catch a boat at Sandfly Point at 3.15pm. The walk today descends slightly as it follows the Arthur river. The walk is through a forest once again, with a couple of waterfalls to stop at along the way. Walking quickly I soon pass all the guided walkers before stopping for a break 2 hours in at the halfway point of the days 18km walk. An hour later I stop for lunch just after the 30 mile mark. I figure that if I walk quickly I might just make it for the 2pm boat, as I have 3-4 miles to cover in an hour and 20 minutes. So after a quick lunch I press on along the Arthur river. I get to the 33 mile mark an hour later at 1.45pm. I don't know how much further I have to go, it could be anything up to a mile, in which case I'll probably have to wait at Sandfly point for an hour getting eaten alive by sandflies. Fortunately its only about another half a mile, and with less than 5 minutes to spare I've made it to Sandfly Point, 33.5 miles or 53.5km from Glade Wharf. The final day hasn't been as spectacular as the last two, but at least it has stayed dry even though the sun hasn't quite managed to make an appearance. Its also pretty cool to finish with a brief journey across Milford Sound, where ahead you can see Mitre Point, at over 1700m it is the highest sea-cliff in the world.

How does the Milford Track compare with the other great hikes I've done? For me, its not in the league of either Torres Del Paine or the Inca Trail. It doesn't have either the breadth of different scenery to walk through (you spend most of your time walking in beech forests) or quite the number of star attractions along the way. That said its still a damn fine trek, seeing the Sutherland falls, numerous other waterfalls on the way, the view from Mackinnon Pass and Milford Sound at the end have all been spectacular. Walking in the forest alongside the Clinton and Arthur rivers has also been good, and I've been very lucky with the weather again.

After getting a boat across Milford Sound to the tiny settlement of Milford, myself, Jim and Angie head for the backpackers hostel 1.5km outside the town. Just as we are contemplating having to drag our weary bodies another mile a mini-van pulls up to transfer us to the hostel. I spend two hours collapsed in a sorry state on my bed before I have a welcome shower for the first time in 4 days. At 7pm I take the shuttle down to the town's only bar to get a drink with Jim and Angie to celebrate having made the 33.5 miles of the Milford Track....the celebratory beer tastes great. We all catch the last shuttle back at 8pm, not wanting to walk any further today thank you. Back in the hostel I get involved in a game of Risk with two Belgians and a French girl.....showing my European friends how the British built their empire! After two games I drag myself to bed, I'm exhausted. Back in the dorm, the French girl I'm rooming with has sprayed the room with deodorant to hide the smell of all my stinking hiking gear.....it makes me laugh as I collapse into bed!

Day 155: Monday 1st December - Cruising on moody Milford Sound

I would have liked a lie in but I'm booked to do a cruise on Milford at 9am so I have to get up at 7.30pm to make it to the cruise wharf in time. There is a shuttle running along at 8.30am which is handy as I don't fancy walking along as I'm feeling stiff this morning. Milford sound is a fiord which runs from Milford right out to the Tasman sea, some 20km away and was created by glacial action. This morning on a wet, windy and you could say quite typical fiordland day, Milford Sound looks moody, is atmospheric and is certainly majestic. Because of the weather the visibility isn't great but the waterfalls surrounding the fiord are visible and quite impressive. After stuffing a few complementary croissants down I head out on to deck for most of the duration of the 2 hour voyage despite the weather as the atmosphere is incredible. The boat sails along the fiord to the mouth of the fiord and the Tasman sea before returning back to the wharf via a stop at some waterfalls and a rock which fur seals are lying on. Milford sound is surrounded by steep cliffs which plunge into the water, with lush rainforest clinging to its sides. The vegetation is lush, no doubt helped by the 7m + of rainfall this place gets each year, making it one of the wettest places on the planet. This area was used as the backdrop for the Misty mountains in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, and this morning I can understand why it was chosen.

After the cruise I walk back along the sound to my hostel to relax for a couple of hours before I catch the bus back to Te Anau at 2pm. Its only a two hour journey to Te Anau, but the Milford to Te Anau highway must rank as one of the best journeys on my travels to date. The first part from Milford up to the Homer tunnel where the road winds its way up a giant high-walled ampitheatre carved out be ice is incredible. This is as spectacular as anything I've seen on the Milford track or on Milford Sound, which is high praise. Perhaps because I had no expectations made the site all the more impressive?? Back in Te Anau I return my rental gear, do some much needed washing, sort my rucksack out and relax over a book looking out lake Te Anau as the sun sets.

Day 156: Tuesday 2nd December - Returning to North Island

Today is nothing but a travel day. I leave the special scenery of fiordland behind taking the bus from Te Anau back to Dunedin, arriving at midday after a 4 hour bus ride. From Dunedin I have a flight back to Auckland via Chrsitchurch. I arrive back in Auckland at 6pm, get a transfer to the city centre and I'm back at Base ACB backpackers hostel for the third time. My host in Dunedin described this place as a meat market and I have to agree. Thankfully, tonight will be the last night I spend here and I'm returning only because its central, easy and I know my way around from here. I spend the evening updating my blog on the internet.

Tomorrow I start the kiwi experience. I don't know what to expect of this. It is kind of like a tour bus, although you can hop on and off when you want. I'm sort of expecting lots of young people who just want to party to be on the bus, but who knows? On paper the locations you visit with the pass I've bought sound great but I don't know how I'm going to cope with a tour of sorts after 5 months of independent travel and also if it turns out to be a party bus. Don't get me wrong having a few beers is great but if thats all it is for the next 3 weeks then I don't think I'm going to enjoy it as much as I should. I guess we'll see what tomorrow brings and how the next 3 weeks unfold.

---