I am so glad I did the 4 day Milford Track!! I felt really blessed and protected and helped, especially having Elsie there. When I fasted for the hike beforehand, I prayed the weather would be good for Day 3, Mckinnon Pass day (over the mountain). My prayer was answered! It rained over half of Day 2, the night of Day 3 and almost all of Day 4, but Day 3 shone bright and clear. Even the sight of the fog rolling off the mountains and being inside the clouds was a marvellous and awe inspiring thing to see. For me, every day was different. Day 1 was pure excitement and anticipation. I was excited to get on the bus and the boat and get to Glade Wharf and get started on this adventure. Everything was interesting and hopeful. Ranger Petes guided nature walk was cool and informative, it didn’t feel like an hour and a half lecture, the time just flew by. Some of what he talked about I already knew, but other things were a revelation, like manuka and ti tree being the same tree. It felt like the walk stretched forever in front of me into the future – like it would never end.
Day 2 was a bit different. It felt so LOOOOONG. I’m not sure if it was because Michelle at Kiwi Discovery had said it was long, but it just seemed to go on forever, and not in a good way. I felt slow and ploddish as everyone seemed to pass me. The rain drained my spirits and my energy. I wore my coat but then felt hot and sweaty and lethargic. I just wanted water all the time but I wasn’t very hungry. I liked Hirere Falls but it was too far to get a decent picture, and there wasn’t all that much to see as the fog closed in. Even the sign that said “First view of Mckinnon Pass” disappointed me, as all we could see were murky outlines in the distance. Then the last hour or two when it started to climb completely wore me out – with the rain and everything else. When we got to the hut I was tired, weary and desperate to wash my face. When we found out the pump to the toilets was broken (3rd one in a few days), the bathroom was closed, and we would all (40 of us) have to share the small gross dark long drop toilet I was so gutted and disappointed. I had a really early dinner that night to warm and cheer me up. Plus somebody had started a fire which was quite heartening. Also we had really lovely room mates, some from Hamilton, who I got chatting to about other things they’d done and that made me feel better. My spirits recovered overnight. I got up in the middle of the darkness to get changed into clean clothes and put cream on some insect bites and felt way better.
Day 3 for me was hard, but it was also the best day ever! It was so incredible. Despite my panting, gasping weariness as I ascended towards McKinnon Pass, I would feel rejuvenated every time I lifted my eyes from my feet and gazed around me at the ethereal grandeur of the mountains and glacier carved valleys I could glimpse around me. It all served to cheer me no end. Even counting the 11 switchbacks plus a few that didn’t count after number 2 (odd numbers turned right, even to the left) it all made me feel like I was making progress towards my goal (albeit slowly) When I got to #11 and followed it up and glimpsed the Mckinnon Memorial which I’d seen pictures and videos of, I was so blown away and happy. I put my pack down and literally floated over to the cliff where Heather kindly warned me back coz I think I was running (I felt so free after having hauled all that weight up the side of the mountain). The fog kept coming and going so I decided to wait for it to clear, I didn’t want to leave that spot without capturing it on film. 20 minutes later it cleared for exactly 5 minutes while I snapped away the distant looking mountains, the mist enshrouded valleys, the waterfalls, the snow covered peaks off to the right and the lake behind. The path then climbed 100 more metres to Mackinnon Pass, where I took a few more photos of Clinton Valley, looking back where we’d come from. It was staggering this view I had seen in photos and dreamed of but never really believed it could be more beautiful and amazing in real life – but it was! So much greenery, trees, ribbons of water shimmering, 2 sets of mountains on either side vanishing into the distance. Wow.
We stopped for a hot drink at the shelter then I began my descent, where I rolled my ankle by misjudging a rock which flipped out from under me. Put a brace on which helped, then slipped and fell backwards onto my pack. Later rolled the other ankle – luckily didn’t break it, which I was greatly relieved about. I was very careful where I stepped after that. Coming down the Arthur River at one point I saw waterfall after waterfall after waterfall, all lovely, all shaped differently, some with lookouts, others which I tried to get better looks at through the trees, some with marvellous teal blue pools underneath, just going down and down and down the mountain. So much loveliness in one place – superb! Got to the Sutherland falls turnoff, but I knew the track was closed, so headed to Dumpling Hut. 1 hour bone weary, feeling gross, sweaty, smelly, but elated! The first night I’d dived into the Clinton Rivers iciness, remembering a comment on Great Walker Joel’s blog, “You will never regret diving into a cold mountain stream. But you might regret not diving in.” So when I saw there was also a swimming hole at this hut, I just had to get changed and get in. The water was icy cold but I put my head under 3x and then the sandflies left me alone. I froze but I felt so so clean and good.
Day 4 was a bit of a contradiction. I felt a bit panicked because of my slowness and urgency to get to the end by 2pm, but I also felt a strong desire to absorb every moment, because all too soon it would be over. I just wanted to soak it all in, because when would I ever have the chance to come here again?
I felt rushed, but I also felt more aware of what was going on around me. The rain made everything smell more fresh and vivid, and having some clean dry clothes was a small thing, but it made me feel on top of the world. Also, Elsie had that morning bestowed upon me her spare pink bandana, which made all the perspiration from my forehead stop falling into my eyes. I counted landmarks in my head and kept an eye on my watch, but I glanced around me on a regular basis. I saw Paradise ducks, trout, weak and small robins, I heard lots of different trilling, squawking and harmonising birdsong, even though I couldn’t often see the birds who were making such lovely music. Mackay falls looked a lot bigger than I had thought from the pictures of it. Bell Rock was an experience by itself. Giant Gate Falls was incredible, and if I’d had time I’d have stayed there for a swim. Lake Ada looked lovely from above, but I didn’t stop as time was growing short.
My eyelid got stung by an insect that made it all swell up, so I couldn’t see so well out of it. When we got to the end shelter at 1:25pm and I heard Elsie cheer ahead of me I was so relieved and elated, and sad at the same time. I was glad at what I’d experienced, but sad it was coming to a close. I put on my last warm dry clothes and came out, everyone had vanished. I hurried to the boat wharf, snapping a few pictures of the rock cairn 33.5miles marker on the way.
I was the last to board before we headed off early to Milford Sound. Some nice people offered me their seat, but I just wanted to see outside. Mitre Peak was murky, obscured by mist unfortunately. I thought of my friend who had climbed it, and wondered what on earth he was thinking. Because it was raining, glorious waterfalls were streaming down the faces of the hard granite rock, straight down into the water. Not just a few – hundreds. As we boarded the bus to ascend to Homer Tunnel I couldn’t help craning my neck every which way to try and see them all – cascades of them everywhere. I had heard Milford Sound was beautiful in the rain but this was spectacular. Out of this world. Magic. I wished I had my own car so I could stop and take photos of it, but more especially when we came out of the Homer Tunnel and we were treated to a glorious awe inspiring view. Mountains on either side of us, some with snow, some without. I didn’t try to photograph it, I just tried to engrave it into my memory. On the way back to Te Anau, Elsie and I discussed the impossibility of finding words to express to our family and friends exactly what we had experienced – the sights, the sounds, the greenery, the rivers, mountains and trees. Feeling and experiencing something in person, is not the same as reading and dreaming about it in your mind.
Day 2 was a bit different. It felt so LOOOOONG. I’m not sure if it was because Michelle at Kiwi Discovery had said it was long, but it just seemed to go on forever, and not in a good way. I felt slow and ploddish as everyone seemed to pass me. The rain drained my spirits and my energy. I wore my coat but then felt hot and sweaty and lethargic. I just wanted water all the time but I wasn’t very hungry. I liked Hirere Falls but it was too far to get a decent picture, and there wasn’t all that much to see as the fog closed in. Even the sign that said “First view of Mckinnon Pass” disappointed me, as all we could see were murky outlines in the distance. Then the last hour or two when it started to climb completely wore me out – with the rain and everything else. When we got to the hut I was tired, weary and desperate to wash my face. When we found out the pump to the toilets was broken (3rd one in a few days), the bathroom was closed, and we would all (40 of us) have to share the small gross dark long drop toilet I was so gutted and disappointed. I had a really early dinner that night to warm and cheer me up. Plus somebody had started a fire which was quite heartening. Also we had really lovely room mates, some from Hamilton, who I got chatting to about other things they’d done and that made me feel better. My spirits recovered overnight. I got up in the middle of the darkness to get changed into clean clothes and put cream on some insect bites and felt way better.
Day 3 for me was hard, but it was also the best day ever! It was so incredible. Despite my panting, gasping weariness as I ascended towards McKinnon Pass, I would feel rejuvenated every time I lifted my eyes from my feet and gazed around me at the ethereal grandeur of the mountains and glacier carved valleys I could glimpse around me. It all served to cheer me no end. Even counting the 11 switchbacks plus a few that didn’t count after number 2 (odd numbers turned right, even to the left) it all made me feel like I was making progress towards my goal (albeit slowly) When I got to #11 and followed it up and glimpsed the Mckinnon Memorial which I’d seen pictures and videos of, I was so blown away and happy. I put my pack down and literally floated over to the cliff where Heather kindly warned me back coz I think I was running (I felt so free after having hauled all that weight up the side of the mountain). The fog kept coming and going so I decided to wait for it to clear, I didn’t want to leave that spot without capturing it on film. 20 minutes later it cleared for exactly 5 minutes while I snapped away the distant looking mountains, the mist enshrouded valleys, the waterfalls, the snow covered peaks off to the right and the lake behind. The path then climbed 100 more metres to Mackinnon Pass, where I took a few more photos of Clinton Valley, looking back where we’d come from. It was staggering this view I had seen in photos and dreamed of but never really believed it could be more beautiful and amazing in real life – but it was! So much greenery, trees, ribbons of water shimmering, 2 sets of mountains on either side vanishing into the distance. Wow.
We stopped for a hot drink at the shelter then I began my descent, where I rolled my ankle by misjudging a rock which flipped out from under me. Put a brace on which helped, then slipped and fell backwards onto my pack. Later rolled the other ankle – luckily didn’t break it, which I was greatly relieved about. I was very careful where I stepped after that. Coming down the Arthur River at one point I saw waterfall after waterfall after waterfall, all lovely, all shaped differently, some with lookouts, others which I tried to get better looks at through the trees, some with marvellous teal blue pools underneath, just going down and down and down the mountain. So much loveliness in one place – superb! Got to the Sutherland falls turnoff, but I knew the track was closed, so headed to Dumpling Hut. 1 hour bone weary, feeling gross, sweaty, smelly, but elated! The first night I’d dived into the Clinton Rivers iciness, remembering a comment on Great Walker Joel’s blog, “You will never regret diving into a cold mountain stream. But you might regret not diving in.” So when I saw there was also a swimming hole at this hut, I just had to get changed and get in. The water was icy cold but I put my head under 3x and then the sandflies left me alone. I froze but I felt so so clean and good.
Day 4 was a bit of a contradiction. I felt a bit panicked because of my slowness and urgency to get to the end by 2pm, but I also felt a strong desire to absorb every moment, because all too soon it would be over. I just wanted to soak it all in, because when would I ever have the chance to come here again?
I felt rushed, but I also felt more aware of what was going on around me. The rain made everything smell more fresh and vivid, and having some clean dry clothes was a small thing, but it made me feel on top of the world. Also, Elsie had that morning bestowed upon me her spare pink bandana, which made all the perspiration from my forehead stop falling into my eyes. I counted landmarks in my head and kept an eye on my watch, but I glanced around me on a regular basis. I saw Paradise ducks, trout, weak and small robins, I heard lots of different trilling, squawking and harmonising birdsong, even though I couldn’t often see the birds who were making such lovely music. Mackay falls looked a lot bigger than I had thought from the pictures of it. Bell Rock was an experience by itself. Giant Gate Falls was incredible, and if I’d had time I’d have stayed there for a swim. Lake Ada looked lovely from above, but I didn’t stop as time was growing short.
My eyelid got stung by an insect that made it all swell up, so I couldn’t see so well out of it. When we got to the end shelter at 1:25pm and I heard Elsie cheer ahead of me I was so relieved and elated, and sad at the same time. I was glad at what I’d experienced, but sad it was coming to a close. I put on my last warm dry clothes and came out, everyone had vanished. I hurried to the boat wharf, snapping a few pictures of the rock cairn 33.5miles marker on the way.
I was the last to board before we headed off early to Milford Sound. Some nice people offered me their seat, but I just wanted to see outside. Mitre Peak was murky, obscured by mist unfortunately. I thought of my friend who had climbed it, and wondered what on earth he was thinking. Because it was raining, glorious waterfalls were streaming down the faces of the hard granite rock, straight down into the water. Not just a few – hundreds. As we boarded the bus to ascend to Homer Tunnel I couldn’t help craning my neck every which way to try and see them all – cascades of them everywhere. I had heard Milford Sound was beautiful in the rain but this was spectacular. Out of this world. Magic. I wished I had my own car so I could stop and take photos of it, but more especially when we came out of the Homer Tunnel and we were treated to a glorious awe inspiring view. Mountains on either side of us, some with snow, some without. I didn’t try to photograph it, I just tried to engrave it into my memory. On the way back to Te Anau, Elsie and I discussed the impossibility of finding words to express to our family and friends exactly what we had experienced – the sights, the sounds, the greenery, the rivers, mountains and trees. Feeling and experiencing something in person, is not the same as reading and dreaming about it in your mind.
