Milford pt 2: The Milford Track

We raced 120kph on the highway towards Te Anau downs where we were to (hopefully) catch our ferry to the starting point of the Milford Track.  We were running late and we arrived with little time to spare.  We hurriedly strapped our packs and grabbed our walking sticks before running to dock.  Whew! With that behind us it was time to relax and enjoy the scenery on the hour long cruise over Lake Te Anau that began our Milford Track experience.  Touted as "the finest walk in the world", the Milford Track runs along the Clinton River Valley before crossing McKinnon Pass and following the Arthur Valley out to Sandfly Point.  From there you are transferred via boat to Milford Sound.  Prior to the completion of the Milford Road in 1954, the Milford Track was the only way besides boat to reach the sound.  The entire trail runs 53.5 km and takes 4 days to complete.

The scenery on Lake Te Anau was a fantastic way to start the first day.  The waters were calm and clear and as was the sky.  The only drawback to such fine weather was the sandflies when we landed at the trailhead - we'd been warned about the severity of the plague along the trail, but we weren't expecting it to be quite so bad right off the bat.  We hadn't yet eaten lunch and we were forced to brave the horde for as long as it took to pull the stuffs from our bags and make some sandwiches.  Once we got moving all was well again and the first day's walk ended quickly.  Only 1.5 hours from the trailhead is the first hut, with the sometimes-blue-sometimes-translucent Clinton River accompanying you the whole way.  It was a warm day and once we reached the hut I tried to go for a swim in the picture perfect river.  It didn't last long as the water was cold and the sandflies relentless.

Te Anau Lake 

The Clinton River

The second day was just as nice as the first.  The Clinton Valley became more scenic the deeper you went and we stopped at the riverside for a while to watch some of the other walkers try their luck at fishing for trout.  The river was so perfectly clear that you could see the trout in the water and the shadows they cast from dozens of feet away!  Takes a lot of the guesswork out of it I'd say.  The group didn't have any luck with the trout, but did manage to snag a 3 foot black river eel on the line.  Luckily for the eel, they didn't find the thought of him to appetizing.  Like the Milford Road before, the valley narrowed as we approached the mouth of the river and the 3000+ foot cliffs rising on either side of us proved irresistibly photogenic.  It was as if we were walking through the Yosemite Valley were it roadless and covered with primordial rainforest in place of pine.  No exaggeration! New Zealand has apparently been concealing several valleys that can rival the scenery and grandeur of Yosemite!  The second day ended at the base of the McKinnon Pass at the foot of the oddly crowned Mt Balloon.  Seeing the sunset bleed red onto this sheer cliff from the porch of the hut was amazing.

3 foot river eel - one of many

Looking up the Clinton Valley

Mt Balloon from the deck of our hut

The third day was the most difficult of the hike, being the day we needed to pass the only alpine section of the walk at McKinnon Pass.  It was a relatively short climb to the pass, but the trail conditions made it more difficult.  Apparently the winter passed had been particularly harsh and had caused several landslides and avalanches that destroyed many parts of the trail.  The pass itself felt like winter, as the morning clouds hadn't yet dissipated and the winds whipping over the top gave us chilling reminders of alpine section of the Kepler.  It's a shame, as the view from the shelter on the pass (which has had to be rebuilt some 4 or so times thanks to the ruthless weather) down into the valleys on either side are said to be fantastic.  No worries, as the trail had no shortage of awe inspiring scenery so far.

We pushed over the saddle and began to descend the opposite side to escape the cold.  Just as we came down the clouds began to break up over the mountains, providing mystical views down the unspoiled valley backed by the eerie sound of Keas squawking somewhere in the mist.  It was an unforgettable experience and one of the true highlights of the hike, or even all our time in NZ!  Further down towards the valley floor fantastically blue rivers cascade down smoothed granite boulders in some magical unnamed waterfalls and views of the opposite side of Mt Balloon dominate the end of the valley.  It was a trip to see the pass that we'd just come over rising precipitously for thousands of feet, knowing we'd been up there only a few hours ago.  Just when I thought that the day couldn't get any better we reached the fork with the trail to Sutherland Falls.  Having just walked 5 or 6 hours over a mountain the thought of adding an additional hour to my day's walk wasn't very appealing, but I talked myself into it using my usual method of "when will you ever be here again?".  Kayleigh's inner voice wasn't as persuasive so she looked after our bags in the shelter while I went ahead.

Looking down the Arthur Valley 

Mt Balloon from the other side  

Sutherland Falls is named after its cheerleader, Donald Sutherland (not the one you're thinking of!).  Once believed by Sutherland to be the highest waterfall in the world at over 5,000ft, official measurements come in at 1,904 feet tall.  Despite his gross overestimation of their height, the falls bearing his name are still one of the most impressive waterfalls I've ever laid eyes upon (I admittedly haven't seen Yosemite Falls).  Cascading down in three long drops from a hidden lake above, it was totally worth the extra time and effort it took to get there.  Back to Kayleigh and with backpack strapped on again we did the last hour to the final hut of the walk. 

Sutherland Falls from the foot

Further along the main trail gives you this view

On the first night of our hike the hut warden had told us that hardly a group gets through the entire walk without a bit of rain and we proved no exception. The next day our streak of perfect weather broke.   If you ask me we're incredibly lucky that the rain hadn't come until that day, since it was the flattest and easiest of the days.  Had it come the day before it would have been a dangerous, slippery and miserably cold push over the pass.  When it came though, it came hard.  Despite all our fancy rainproof clothing, the moisture found its way in and we were soaked to the bone.  It also came with some surprises, as the precipitous mountains around us transformed into flowing walls of water that were so numerous they were impossible to quantify!   It was in this vein that we traveled the remaining 16km to Sandfly Point, passing two marked waterfalls (Mackay and Giant's Gate) and an infinite number that had spontaneously sprung into existence, one of which was so wide and raged so hard that it beat out Sutherland Falls as the most impressive waterfall I've ever seen.

Mackay Falls

Tada! A waterfall appeared!

The view from Sandfly Point

Milford Sound in the rain

Overall I would have to concede that the Milford Track is probably the best hike I've ever done and certainly the most beautiful.  Does that make it the finest walk in the world? I don't know, but I plan to do my best to find out :)

A few more things to note:

-Sandfly Point completely lives up to its name.  This was the worst area for sandflies in any place in all of NZ before or after this hike by an order of magnitude.  All one could really do was laugh to avoid a mental breakdown.

-The Milford Sound was much better the second time through, as the mist and waterfalls added a lot to the sense of ambience.  Maybe the fact that we were on the water also had something to do with it.

-Milford Highway had been completely transformed.  As we were shuttled back to our car we were overtaken with the falling water coming from every surface.  Someone should have named it "Valley of A Thousand Waterfalls".     

-There is tons of interesting history about this region for those of you who may be interested.  From the beginnings of the Milford Track to the opening of the Milford Road, here are few kew words to aid your search: Donald Sutherland, Milford Track, Milford Road, Homer Tunnel, Sutherland Falls, John Mackay, Quintin McKinnon.