The Milford Track in the South Island of New Zealand is considered one of the great walks in the world. Having been bitten by the hiking bug, we decided it was time to find out about this walk for ourselves, as so many friends had recommended it. So we pre-booked our trip for December 2010, in the school holidays. We booked beds in the independent walkers huts but we did look longingly at the morning teas and dinner menus of the catered walking tours. Our packaged rehydrated food not a scratch on trout and matching wines.
The weather was pleasant, early 20sC with some misty rain occasionally. We found the track to be easy/medium and throughly enjoyed the variety of lush rainforests, wetlands and alpine vegetation.
The elevation and placement of huts
Day 1 : Glade Wharf to Neale Burn Hut : 1 hour
We caught a bus from Queenstown to Te Anau, from there we were transported by a small ferry on Te Anau Lake to Glade Wharf, the starting point for the Milford Track.
We begin..
Crossing the swing bridge over the Clinton River
Old growth forest with gigantic trees
Mosses
Neale Burn Hut
2 bunk rooms with 20 beds in each, common dining room and verandah.
There was a resident guide/ranger who gave us a talk about the area and dangers such as, omnipresent sandflies and thieving keas.
Day 2 : Neale Burn Hut - Mintaro Hut : 5 hours
We continued to follow the Clinton River
Our first sighting of a kea, a NZ native ground parrot
We have heard reports of keas stealing boots and unpicking the stitching and even biting through the rubber insulation on solar panels
Ferns
Granite walls with our first view of Mackinnon Pass
Waterfalls
Mintaro Hut
Day 3 : Mintaro Hut - Dumpling Hut : 6 hours
Beginning our climb
Alpine plants
A memorial to those who discovered this summit in 1888
Mackinnon Pass 1073 m
From the summit of Mackinnon’s Pass the track dropped 870m over 7 km
Dumpling Hut
The common dining room
Day 4 : Dumpling Hut - Sandfly Point : 6 hours
Arthur River swing bridge
Arthur River
Mackay Falls
Arriving at Sandfly Point ready to catch the ferry to the port at Milford Sound
An exceptional walk in perfect conditions!
M&M
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