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Published: March 7th 2007
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Milford Sound trek
waterfalls and mountains- the theme of the trek I met up with Amy, a cool ass chick from Colorado, who is a landscape design arcitect, who sings in a Grateful Dead cover band, and is a snowboarder- we got along extremely well to say the least! I met up with her for the Milford Trek- a 4 day hike across one of the most beautiful parts of the world! Bought the extra ticket from her after talking to her for 5 minutes in my layover in Fiji. In a way this has been my trip of committments with people before i even know them...but has worked out fantastically so far!
The Milford Trek...
UNBELIEVABLE! (my new favorite word to describe NZ- cause everything is UNBELIEVABLE!)
Typical start however...you have to catch a ferry to the start of the trek- so Amy and I camped near the ferry take off the night before- got there early- like an hour and a half to organize all of our stuff and cook breakfast and the such...so we were just taking our time getting organized...busses started coming and dropping people off for the trek....so i went to the bathroom and as i was walking back the ferry was pulling away from
Milford Sound trek
Me and Amy on the track the dock! How the hell did that happen we were there an hour and half before hand...so i ran down the dock and was trying to wave them back....and one of the workers saw me and they actually turned the boat around for us! hahaha- so typical, so that was the start of the trip and the impression that everyone we walked for the next 4 days had of us- haha.
The trek might be the main highlight of my trip so far. It felt so good to be out hiking for 6-7 hours a day- for 4 days and just felt like you are so far removed from civilization and around such beaufitul scenery. The enormity of the nature in New Zealand is part of what provokes such an awe-inspiring reaction. Everything is just exaggerated- the mountains (cliffs) the rocks, the water! so unbelievably clear- it's amazing- drinking from the streams- some of the best water i've ever had! And the waterfalls- there were hundreds of them on this walk! maybe even thousands- just cascading down the mountains.
The first day of the walk was only an hour to the first hut- so it was a pretty
Milford Sound trek
looked like big fish swimming in the rivers- the colors of the rocks were amazing and the water so clear! relaxed day- hung out with the f-in sand flies- got to know Amy and practiced my hacky sac skills- which are slowly improving. The second day we walked through an amazing valley which was formed by a glacier- monstorous cliffs on either side- waterfalls every few minutes- humbling in a way being around such strong, powerful natural surroundings.
We found a water fall with a lake the first day and spent 3-4 hours hanging out there- soaking up the sun, painting- Amy had some watercolors which has been a lot of fun to paint with, swimming, a little rock climbing and just enjoying the peace and tranquility that comes from being in nature.
Along the walk we met a Kiwi/Aussie who walked with us, Lee- so it was the three of us trudging through the track. So we got a good system down- being the last ones to leave the huts in thr morning- to let all of the other walkers get ahead of us so we weren't running into them the whole time. And then somewhere along the way we would find a good swimming spot and post there for a few hours- while everyone else seemed
Milford Sound trek
the valley we walked through to just rush to the huts to just sit and hang out there for the rest of the day. I think we figured out the best system...although I wonder if everyone else thought we were just being lazy. The only annoyance- besides the sandflies- was that there was a guided tour of people doing the walk that always came up behind us...so especially when we would stop and hang out- we would run into all of them all day- and their trek cost like $1000 they got their food made for them and really nice accomodation compared to us- so we were a little bittered at first- and just annoying to have so many people pass you by when you want to feel more removed from everything!
But Amy and I didn't bring enough food for the trip- definetly worked up more of an appetite than I expected- i guess that can happen when you're hiking about 10 miles a day- so the people in the guided tour started to give us some of their food- they would pack extra sandwhichs for us and candy and fruit and unload when they saw us on the trek- cause they got
Milford Sound trek
The first waterfall, lake lunch hang out unlimited supply and didn't have to carry it- haha- no shame in being a charity cause once in awhile. So we ended up liking those guided trackers!
And i was so proud- i had the smallest pack by far! I borrowed a north face day backpack from Jo- had my sleeping bag- which is small- one change of clothes, my towel and food- ive turned into a good light packer 😊 finally...
The next section of the trek was climbing up to the summit- with beautiful views of the valley and snow-capped mountains. descending into a alpine rainforest with so much vibrant fresh water flowing from so many ways. Definetly felt the soreness from all the walking...i was amazed though at some of the older people who did the trek. there was one woman there who was 75 years old!!! and a bunch of them in their 60s! i had some aches and pains- i cant imagine how they felt- which i think was pretty good cause i didnt see any of them hobbling around- i was reall impressed!
The last day was a nice easy walk- and although I LOVED the walk- truly amazing, the best
Milford Sound trek
The another stunning mountain hike i've ever done in my life- by far! i was ready to be done with the trek. Became very close to Amy- another friend for life that i've picked up!
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stef
non-member comment
told you
SO! Ahh looks so beautiful, I'm glad you got to do one of these!!! Do them all! Glad to see your having fun, New Zealand is soooooo awesome.