Journalist IAN HORSWILL hikes New Zealand's famed Milford Track with his daughter, 35 years after he completed it with his Mum
It was in 1891 when the English-Indian author Rudyard Kipling described Milford Sound
as the eighth wonder of the world. Today the fiord in the southwest of New Zealand's South Island is widely regarded as the location of the finest hike anywhere in the world.
I can vouch for its top rating. It leaves you in awe, your mind doing overtime at the sights and sounds. It is a moving picture that delights the senses, and that feeling continues long after the walk’s completion.
You walk in valleys carved by glaciers, through ancient rainforests; you marvel at the bountiful birdlife; there are cascading waterfalls almost everywhere you look. And, even in summer, snow can be seen on the highest mountains.
With no mobile reception, you seem to be taking a step back in time - it reinvigorates the mind. Honestly, if there is one thing you should do while your body is able, it is the Milford Track walk.
But, don't expect days of sunshine and blue skies on this extraordinary hike ... those waterfalls cascading down the cliff faces are because Milford Sound in the Fiordland National Park is one of the wettest places in the world. The mean annual rainfall in Milford Sound is 6813mm, and it rains there on average 182 days a year. Over the course of 24 hours, 250mm of rain can fall in a day.
The Milford Track is a four-day hike of 53.5km, which can only be walked in one direction -from the head of Lake Te Anau to Sandfly Point in Milford Sound. The track is open all year but the best time to go is from November to April, known as the Great Walks Season.
Anyone wanting to hike must book in advance and there are fees for each lodge, with a capacity for about 40 hikers. Naturally, it is extremely popular.
Ultimate Hikes ( https://www.ultimatehikes.co.nz ) is the exclusive operator of multi-day guided walks on the Milford and nearby Routeburn Tracks and owns and operates a series of hiking lodges .
My daughter and I walked the 53km Milford Track, only accessible by boat, as part of Ultimate Hikes’ five-day/four-night guided walk through the national park to Milford Sound. We walked it in honour of my late mum and Holly’s granny. I first walked the Milford Track with her as my companion in 1989.
The Ultimate Track team warned the walk would be challenging and Day 3 would be the hardest as you climb to the highest point, McKinnon Pass – 1154 metres above sea level – and then walk back down the mountain, a physical and mental test in any weather.
Our group consisted of 44 people, with the eldest being 73, and there were six people aged in their late teens and early 20s, including my daughter. We were from all over the world: Australia, Denmark, England, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, and the United States.
In the pre-hike briefing on the afternoon before our walk, we were warned it was going to be wet and it would be just us, nature and the elements.
Day 1 started with a coach ride from Queenstown, with the company allowing a backpack of clothes to go to the end point, so important if you are from overseas.
Our first destination was Te Anau Downs to meet the boat to take us to the start of the Track and the first lodge for the night.
The drive is approximately three hours and the boat, a catamaran with outdoor and indoor seating, arrives within minutes. It gives the first glimpse of water cascading down the tree-covered mountains - the trees growing majestically reaching upwards to the sky.
We then walked 1.5km on a flat track to Glade House, where we were shown our room before embarking in small groups on a nature walk up the Glade Burn. It was informative yet light-hearted and helped everyone relax in the foreign surroundings.
After the nature walk, the bar opened and there was the welcome opportunity for a pre- dinner drink and snacks, before sitting down to a three-course meal after which our guides formally introduced themselves and then gave their guests the opportunity to give a short talk about why they were undertaking the walk. I spoke about my mother and my daughter’s granny and had nearly everyone in tears.
Each night of the hike we were given a briefing of the day ahead and the weather forecast. The generators shut down at 10pm, prompting everyone to rush to charge their phones so they could take pictures of spectacular scenery the following day.
The lodge facilities are faultless. Each of the four lodges has a laundry and drying rooms.
But, hiking boots, once saturated, remain damp even after a night in the drying room. The good news is, you get used to it, and splash through the rain without a care after 24 hours.
Each morning everyone gets up when the generators are fired and then washes and dresses for the day ahead. The guides prepare a variety of fillings to make sandwiches, wraps or salads. In addition, there is a selection of snacks, home baking and fruit to choose from.
We were told to pack enough food to sustain the forthcoming walk. A continental breakfast, tea and coffee was been prepared in the dining room with a cooked breakfast also offered.
Day 2 began earlier than expected when a large clap of thunder woke us around 4am. Needless to say, it was pouring, so much so that the start of our day's walk was delayed. We eventually set off after 9am and it turned into a beautiful day, with sunshine and blue skies, although our boots did get sodden quickly. There was water everywhere. What a sight to behold!
As we walked, the guides told us about the local birds, which were abundant. They inlcuded he parrot species – kea, kaka and the very cheeky scavenging weka. We were told to scratch the ground if we saw a South Island robin as it would come and see if we had unearthed food. It worked as one flew straight to our feet.
The day was great fun as we crossed our first swing bridge over the Clinton River. We walked in a beech forest and passed the first of 33 mile markers (kilometres are on the back). Everyone took on the extra wetlands walk before lunch at Hirere Hut.
After lunch, the track saw us leave the beech forest with tall grass and manuka bush before we walked back into the beech forest. We all arrived laughing and smiling as we entered our second lodge, Pompolona Lodge.
Everyone threw off their boots and vigorously washed their clothes with a bar of soap and a wringer before heading for drinks and then the evening meal. We were told the next day would be wet and to be ready to start the walk to the highest point McKinnon Pass by 7.15am.
Day 3: It was pouring down as we set out and I, like others, had decided to wear shorts and just a T-shirt under my Helly Hansen anorak. We crossed another river bed before
winding back into the beech forest.
The first stop was Mintaro Hut then it was on to the zig zag path to McKinnon Pass. At the 15 mile marker and halfway up the zig zags to the memorial a fierce wind arrived to accompany the heavy rain.
This is the steepest section of the journey uphill with the track very rocky with some big step ups. As you climb you see the McKinnon memorial. The wind was over 130km/h and there were hailstones hitting my bare legs, feeling like pin pricks. With my backpack as a virtual sail I nearly took off twice! The view would have been marvellous but the clouds were very low.
When we reached Pass Hut, many screamed with delight as they had reached the summit. But, I knew downhill was going to be far harder.
As I descended the steepest, rockiest terrain on the entire track to Arthur Valley, I summoned up the Kings of Leon song Mustang and kept repeating the lyric “I get big and strong just thinking about it”.
We were told ahead the path had been inundated with a torrent of water but a guide helped us across. I saw it as a challenge and listened to the guide’s advice not to rush. I mean, when have I ever been in the middle of nowhere with nature throwing everything at me?
A landslide on one part of the track made our descent that much harder. But, eventually we reached the Anderson Cascades, an amazing waterfall with a series of steep steps alongside. It was so beautiful.
We reached Anderson Shelter for a break before the track continued down in a zig zag pattern. You hit the 20 mile marker (32km) and it is another three quarters of a mile to
the turn off to Quintin Lodge.
We crossed another swing bridge over the roaring Burn River and Quintin Lodge appeared before us. A welcome sight.
My daughter and I arrived back in the middle of the afternoon, with the last walkers finishing at 6.30pm.
By now the evening meals were an event, with everyone talking to each other, and
people talking across the tables to say hello to someone or other and marvelling at what we had just achieved and what we had seen. Laughter filled the air.
Day 4: 21km is the longest walk of all but after walking downhill from Quintin Lodge, we then followed the Arthur River through Lake Ada to the end of the track where the water
meets Milford Sound.
The track here is through a beech forest and it is generally flat. After the rocks of the previous day it felt like walking on lush carpet. The foliage is also denser due to the higher rainfall on this section of the track.
We stopped for morning tea, crossed a bridge over the river, and then had lunch at Giants Gate, with Mackay Falls behind us. There is a platform which gives a great view of the spectacular waterfall. It does not come much better.
Soon after leaving Giants Gate, you walk through an area severely affected by floods in 2020 and you can see where a massive slip came through the track creating temporary waterfalls.
The track follows the water until you reach Sandfly Point and the end of the Milford Track.
The boat ride taking us to Milford Sound was beautiful as we looked back and saw the mountains being washed by the water, which was running down everywhere.
When we reached Mitre Peak Lodge at Milford Sound, in essence, it was mission accomplished. The final meal with the group was a time to wonder at what we had just seen and accomplished and a celebration.
Day 5: After breakfast, we were taken by bus to the wharf to board a cruise on the Milford Sound. The boat’s captain kept us entertained with its history and was happy to answer any questions.
We saw a seal and a glimpse of the Tasman Sea before being dropped off to take the coach back to Queenstown, stopping briefly at Te Anau.
The Milford Sounds trip was something I will never forget and I still marvel at what I saw. My hope is that my daughter takes the hike with her child in the future.
The Ultimate Hikes’ trip cost $2750 per person. The writer paid his own way.
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