Milford Sound

The final day of our walk in NZ fiordland took us on a 21km hike from MacKinnon Pass to the sea at Milford Sound. Although this was a half marathon in distance it was a lot easier walking than the previous day as it was basically flat, with perhaps a little descent over the day. Still 20km is a fair distance and the majority of our group were carrying aches and pains from the day before. Once over the MacKinnon Pass the climate becomes a lot wetter with metres more rainfall during the year! We were fortunate enough to have a rainy day for our walk on this final hike. I say fortunate because we were walking through rain forest and the sights and smells came to life for us. Things started well as crossing a river which leaves our lodge behind we spotted a pair of rare blue ducks. This sight even got the guides excited! The rain cooled the air which made walking easier than on the first day, and it also added to the eeriness of the rain forest. Thick hangings of moss, tree ferns and mist on the mountains around us gave the whole area a fantasy feeling.

 Fantasy feel at Mackay Falls

Rare blue ducks having an early morning swim

The great thing about the rain that day was the effect on the waterfalls. Mackay Falls, and Giants Gate Falls were both spectacular (I was particularly wowed by Mackay which were gushing and booming magnificently). But saying that is was just a magical way for the tour to end, and breathtakingly beautiful and atmospheric. At the end of the walk, there is a short boat ride to the town of Milford Sound where we stayed for the night. The lodge was more like a decent hotel full of luxury, and Ultimate Hikes transported prepacked bags for us which were waiting in our rooms with fresh clothes and whatever else we wanted. We had a great final evening before turning in including a presentation of certificates to everyone for making it along the hike.

The following day was to start with a boat ride around Milford Sound followed by a bus ride back to Queenstown. The trip around the Sound was again spectacular. Every day on this trip saw different scenery and each day only added to the whole. On the boat trip we saw seals, and amazing mountainous scenery. To be honest, by the end of the cruise I was about ready to admit defeat when it came down to sightseeing. I just wanted to close my eyes and savour that which I'd already witnessed. Even the bus journey back to Queenstown went through the alpine road which was pretty spectacular. I'll finish with some photo's taken around the Sound and a full recommendation to anyone to go to this beautiful part of the World. Thanks very much to Ultimate Hikes who were excellent guides and got us through it with minimum harm!

 View from Milford Sound towards the sea

 Atmospheric views with cloud shrouded mountains.

 Plenty of waterfalls lined the Sound...it was photographers dreamscape

 View from the sea looking back down the Sound

Steady rain for 2 days ensured the waterfalls flowed magnificently 

Mitre Peak, which we could see from our room in the lodge!

Milford Track: The Big Climb

The view back from MacKinnon Pass

There is no doubt that the true 'Wow Factor' on the Milford Track comes about half way through day 2, as you cross the MacKinnon Pass. The day starts out quite leisurely, but there is always the pass looming ahead, and getting bigger the nearer you get to it. The path starts working it's way up, but it is the final climb up to the pass, on switchbacks or zigzags which is the real leg burner. It is a gradient of 1 in 8 over stony ground which can be awkward to cover at times. However, the views back along the Clinton Valley and around at the surrounding mountains are truly spectacular. So the climb can be readily halted for breathtaking views, while you're trying to catch your breath. I think Caroline suffered a bit more up the hill than I did that day, but once at the top she got a second wind, and was scooting around the pass snapping photo's in every direction.

With camera in hand, Caroline looks fresh on the MacKinnon Pass

For me, and I think for many in our group, the way down was worse than the way up. Lunch on the MacKinnon Pass was followed by a steep descent to the rainy side of the mountains. This was difficult as it was very rocky and often jarring on knees and ankles. About a kilometre down (it was a 4.5km hike to our next stop) my legs were aching, and we stopped many times on the way down. Luckily there was much to see, including the reverse side of MacKinnon Pass, glacial waterfalls on the surrounding mountains, and the beautiful Margaret Falls, where we were fortunate to be shown a beautiful wild orchid by one of our guides (thankyou Mio). But the way down became a drag, and both Caroline and myself were ready at times to just stop and give in. Our rallying call, and something that quite a few in the group also used was, "it should only be another 10 minutes". I think I said this to Caroline about 5 times and possibly believed in it 3 times....ok, so I'm a born optimist!

 Great Mountain Views

 Native fauna - Yellow Marguerite

Spectacular Waterfalls - Margaret Falls

The Lodge at the bottom of the valley was a most welcome site. Caroline and I had been slow all day, partly due to stops, but partly due to not coping well going up and down the mountain. Lots of the group received first aid from the guides that evening, mainly for sore muscles and joints. The camaraderie was great that evening though, as everyone knew they had achieved something fantastic. And the following day was to be easier, even though it was longer in kilometres, a full half marathon of walking to look forward to!

Milford Track Part 1

The whole reason for going to New Zealand on holiday was to walk the Milford Track. Now I hadn't done much research before going out there, but expected extreme natural beauty. However, I was in no way prepared for quite how amazing the scenery was going to be. I also thought my recent running program would make me easily fit enough to do the walk without too many problems. I anticipated a tough downhill, which I've never been too good at, and a tiring last day at the end when we'd have to walk 20+km, but I generally wasn't worried about the hike from a physical point of view. I have to admit now that a bit of preparation would have put me in much better stead to have made the walk easier.

Day 1:

First stop on the Milford Track

There are 2 ways that this hike can be done: guided and unguided. As inexperienced walkers, Caroline and I took the guided option and paid out to Ultimate Hikes for a tour experience. In hindsight, this was an excellent decision, as we were definitely not prepared to have a go at this walk unassisted. We went to the Ultimate Hikes office for 9am and were soon on a coach heading to Lake Te Anau, New Zealand's biggest lake. The scenery on the way was pretty, with hills reminding us of Gippsland, and mountains always in the distance. We crossed rivers on narrow road bridges, followed lakeside roads, and passed deer and alpaca farms. At Te Anau, we stopped for lunch and then picked up a boat which took us to the start of the Milford Track.

A short walk, maybe 10 minutes took us to our first stop, Glade House. The lodges on the tour were excellent with bunk facilities and full time staff through the season. The rooms are clean, and food is provided on the guided tours, and the food was generally excellent. Constant hot water for showers is another big plus! There are bars where you can buy beer and wine, and teas and coffees are provided. I have to admit to going rugged man and drinking beer in the lodges.

We were offered the choice of chilling, going for a swim in the nearby Clinton River, or going for a short nature walk where a guide would show us some flora and fauna. Caroline and I went on the nature walk to Dore's Pass (yep, up a mountain, but only about 45 minutes round trip) where we were taken to a river that was completely clear. Caroline filled her water bottle from the stream which was the first time of many on the trip. It was fantastic that the water in rivers was clean enough to drink from!

Back at the lodge, we had dinner and an introduction session where we all got up (about 50 people in the group) and said something about ourselves and why we were doing the hike. It was a good laugh, and everyone joined in but it was a bit worrisome that there weren't many others beside us who hadn't hiked before. The guides gave us a briefing of the next day's hike, which is something they did every evening. This would include some housekeeping things about the lodges we were staying at and some things to look out for on the next day, including plants and animals. A few drinks later and we were all in bed aware that it was a 7.30am get up for an 8.30am start.

Sun tipped peaks in the morning

Day 2

When I looked out my room in the morning, there was sun on the tips of the mountains and there was a chill in the air, but the air was clean and fresh. This was our first full day of walking where we were going about 10 miles (16km) mainly on the flat and following the Clinton River. Straight off, we had to cross a swing bridge, which Caroline didn't like, but after that the day warmed up and it was like a summer stroll along the riverbank.

Unbelievably, that is a river behind Caroline and not just stones! The water is clean enough to drink from!

It took us about 5-6 hours but there were plenty of stops along the way including a few side paths leading to points of natural interest of great views. There were walks to wetlands where sun orchids grew, and to lakes that were fed by glacial waterfalls. It was a relatively easy introduction to the track although by the end of the day, there were a few with aches especially seeing it was so warm that day. At our stop, we had dinner made for us by the lodge staff and the guides offered first aid assistance for sore joints or muscles. And then again, it was a couple of beers and again it was a couple of beers and off to bed as it was an even earlier start the next day and a big climb to come.

Our first view of Mackinnon Pass, where we'd be walking over the next day!