February 18, 2020 – Gannett Getaways

The view from Mackinnon Pass looking back down the Clinton Valley

Trekking, walk-about, bush walk, hiking…well Kiwis prefer to call it tramping and the 33.5 mile Milford Track is the premier tramp in New Zealand. Heading up a lush glacial valley, steep cliff faces festooned with waterfalls, ferns and moss touch the valley floor where waters meet in the Clinton River valley and tall beach and white pine trees dwarf the lucky hikers who partake of this track.

We aren’t much ones for guided trips, but in this case we couldn’t pass up the chance to stay in the rather opulent (for backcountry standards!) Ultimate Hikes lodges and partake in the many fine dinner meals and comfortable accommodations each night after slogging on the trail for 9-13 miles each day. The arranged transport on ferries and buses inclusive of a last day ferry ride on Milford Sound (see separate blog post) made this five day trek a bargain and one of our best memories of New Zealand.

When we first got to New Zealand I was shocked by how very dry and treeless much of the terrain was, more like Colorado or California in places, where was the iconic “Lord of the Rings” forests and fjords that I had long envisioned as New Zealand’s ecosystem? Well, it is tucked away in the Southlands and the Milford Track is a great example of this verdant terrain.

Day 1

The first day takes us on bus from Queenstown to Lake Te Anau and then on a ferry across the north end of the lake to our drop off point for a short 1 mile hike into Glade House, our first lodge. We surmised the first day hike is short because the bus and ferry ride takes up most of the day and frankly I suspect the guides are testing the mettle of the hikers on the trip.

The ferry ride across Lake Te Anau had plenty of photo opportunities. Our landing spot where we started the hike is straight ahead.

All fresh and clean for day 1, this is the start of the Milford Track. Our boots were sanitized with a bath as we stepped onto this hallowed ground to avoid non-indigenous seeds from being introduced.

We each carried our own 20-30 pound day pack that included our clothes for the duration of the hike, water, rain gear and lunch. Much to our surprise, most of the people on the hike were our age or even older! We had a 72 year old Japanese woman and a 75 Colorado transplant man who was now an Aussie among the various 50/60/70 year old group of 34 Americans, Taiwanese, Japanese, Canadians and four guides.

And off we go! One is immediately stuck with the lush forest covered with mosses and ferns.

Didn’t I tell you day 1 was a short hike? And here we are at Glade House. Our views from our room were astounding at most of the lodges. A fully stocked bar and great meals added to the pleasure of the trip.

We went for a short nature walk later that day to learn the flora. Doesn’t this look like a movie set? We were lucky to have sunny days while we hiked and if it rained, it usually didn’t until after we were at the lodge thankfully.

Day 2

The second day is a ten mile hike to Pompolona Lodge where we start the ascent of Mackinnon Pass which will be our day three endeavor. As we met up with the first of many suspension bridges to cross the river, our guide stopped and warned us about these bridges being limited to the number of people who could be on them at one time, this one was five people. He suggested we wait on the person in front of us, count to five, and then proceed, limiting the number of people on the bridge all at once. Our Japanese friends had a translator along who dutifully translated these orders to her group who were at the front. We laughed as then they all proceeded to go on the bridge at once instead! Lost in translation!

The first of many suspension bridges. The bridges were bounciest about 1/3 and 2/3 in, the center wasn’t bad at all.

Both the flora and fauna in this area are remarkable. The birds here are unique, flightless ground birds like the Wekas, mountain parrots like the Kea, the blue ducks (Whio), mutant pigeons three times of a normal pigeon, and many little birds that dart about (Rifleman) and show their tails (Fantails). The flowers are also quite different, Easter orchids and Fuschias among them. Sprinkled throughout this blog are some of my favorite shots of the flora and fauna.

There was a nature walk off of the main track that took us into a low cut marsh with great views of the valley. Here’s a sampling of the local flora.

The catwalk on the nature tail inviting you to explore.

My hair and beard got pretty long during this trip!

The remnants of a “call box” hidden in a tree along the trail. Before the use of hand held radios, there was a wire strung along the entire length of the Milford Track to use for phoning ahead or behind to keep track of trekking parties. Many of the cable stays can still be seen on the track as well.

I love how the moss just overtakes this entire area, climbing up the trees in a thick carpet of green.

A good example of the sheer cliff walls of the glacial valley.

A good example of the size of the Beech trees in the forest. This one’s width is almost as tall as Suzie.

Prairie Lake and Falls. A couple brave souls went swimming in the lake.

I believe this is a “Rifleman”, named so because they shoot around like a bullet and are very small.

This is a Weka, a flightless bird, they often come shooting out of the bushes looking for something yummy to eat. A bit of a forest chicken if you ask me.

Straight out of Grimm’s Fairy Tales is this tree covered with mushrooms.

Day 3

Day three starts the climb up and over Mackinnon Pass, out of the Clinton Valley and into the Arthur River Valley. While the top of the pass isn’t even 4000 feet above sea level (hell we live at 6000 feet in Colorado!), it is the relative climb of 2500 feet that day that weighs on your knees and then back down 2500+ feet to Quintin lodge that is excruciating…challenging to say the least.

This is a blue duck (Whio). They are unique in that they prefer running water and have black lips to help scrape the algae off of underwater rocks.

The blue duck, about to take off, and his mate to the right of him

The end of the glacial valley, we begin up the eleven switchbacks to the top of Mackinnon Pass.

Quintin Mackinnon first discovered this pass and opened it up for guided tramping in 1888. There is a monument near the top of the pass honoring him. Oddly, he drowned in 1892 in Lake Te Anau just four years later.

The view down the Arthur Valley, our route out.

On the way down where lengthy staircases constructed around many cascades and falls

Well if you aren’t tired enough from this arduous day, there is an extra special treat after one reached Quintin Lodge. At 580 meters, Sutherland falls is the highest waterfall in New Zealand and less than a 2 mile hike from the lodge. The sound is deafening as you approach the falls and the closer you get, the wetter you are!

Day 4

The last day hiking is a welcome relief from day three as it is all downhill and relatively flat, however it is the longest hike of the track at 13.5 miles. At one point you reach the boat shed which used to be the place where you had to catch a ferry across the river before the suspension bridge was built.

This is a fantail, unfortunately I didn’t get a good shot of his tail fanned out which makes them iconic

I was generally near the front of the pack hiking, but many times would fall back to help Suzie navigate steep steps or to take pictures with her. When I was near the front, I usually was accompanied by two other folks, Toshi, a Taiwanese that spoke no English, and Lauren, a young Canadian adventurer who had unlimited energy. Our front guide decided to hike ahead 2 miles before the boat shed to prepare some hot water there for us, so that left us three at the front. I felt plenty of energy that day so I thought I would hike this two miles at my top speed leaving Lauren and Toshi struggling to keep up. When I arrived at the boat shed, Toshi showed up a minute later, turned to me and said in his most broken English while pointing to me, “Fast!” That made my day.

This is the boathouse. There used to be a fellow that manned this boathouse long after the ferry was gone. He was famous for gin drinking and since it was illegal to have alcohol on the premises, he called and stored it as “aviation fuel”.

Suzie on the way to our last lunch spot, Giants Gate Falls.

Looking back at Lake Ada. You can see the trail blasted out of the rock cliff face on the right.

Our journey ended at Sand Fly Point, aptly named for the voluminous sand flies that would unapologetically bite away at all exposed skin leaving nasty long-lasting welts. Thank goodness we had a hut to wait in while we drank warm cocoa and waiting for the ferry to arrive to take us to our last lodge, Mitre Peak Lodge, where we would view Milford Sound the next day.

But oh, those horrible sand flies! A Haiku:
What beauty surrounds
Such a gorgeous place beckons
Beware, sand flies bite

So if you want to experience all that New Zealand has to offer, I strongly suggest the Milford Track. Even if you don’t hike the track, just visiting Milford Sound and Lake Te Anau will give you a flavor of the beauty of this area.

As usual, leave your comments and feedback below. Kia ora!

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