3/2/18
We drove to Te Anau and then into beautiful Fjordland NP. We hiked up to magical Marion lake, which sits at the foot of a glaciated peak with waterfalls coming down the side. I had a super vivid memory of a lake I hiked to in the rain and mud with my dad on our trip to NZ as a little kid. I remember reaching a lake and then all of a sudden, and just for a second, it cleared a bit. Rays of sunshine streamed through illuminating a big peak and a bunch of waterfalls. I am now convinced that lake Marion was that place. So it was really great to go back! It's a beautiful area with misty mountains and and enchanting rainforest. It was so inviting I even went for a swim in the chilly glacial waters. That night we camped in the Egleston valley in Fjordland NP, surrounded by mtn views.
3/3/18
A very rainy morning in Te Anau, so we hung out at the visitors center for Fjordland NP. After lunch, we started the Kepler Track, another of NZ's great walks. At first the trail skirted along Te Anau lake, then went sharply up through the rainforest. It was misty and kind of raining, but also hot and humid. We were not getting wet from the rain, but drenched from our sweat. Eventually we got above tree line where it was much cooler. We walked in a thick cloud above tree line for several miles before arriving at Luxmore hut. A nice hut that on clear days would have an amazing view. Occasionally the clouds lifted a bit to reveal Lake Te Anau below as well as some misty mountains. During the night if poured hard at times.
3/4/18
It was raining hard in the morning, so we hung out at the hut and read. We started the hike after lunch and ended up having pretty good weather w/ nice lake, ridge, and mountain views. We climbed to the top of Mt. Luxmore, which had some nice views of the lake as well as a big rainbow. Most of the rest of the hike was above tree line as a cool ridge walk. There were mountains all around. People at the hut the night before had been really worried about the ridge walk. I mean it was a ridge, but the drop offs weren't that crazy and the ridge was pretty wide on a nice trail. Nothing Elisha and I would every think twice about. Instead, we liked how nice the views around were. B/c we started so late, we ended up having the trail mostly to ourselves and having the better weather. Several months later when hiking along a truly crazy ridge in French Polynesia, we would laugh at what all the worriers on this trail would have thought about that hike. B/c all we kept hearing about was "the ridge". Eventually we descended steeply to the Iris Burn hut where we would stay the night. At the great walk huts, around dinner every night, the warden gives a hut talk. This is one of my favorite things about staying in a hut. You get to hear their wisdom, their humor, and often their take and philosophy on life. Always entertaining.
3/5/18
A very beautiful weather day. We hiked through the Iris Burn Valley full of rainforest with the occasional view up to the mountains and cascading waterfalls above. We had lunch at Moturua hut which sits on the shores of Lake Manapuri. I went for a swim, and then we had the last bit of hiking through the rainforest to the end of the trail. We hitched a ride back to our van. We had icecream in town, and I don't mean the $4 tourist icecream cones, I mean we bought a whole liter of icecream at the grocery store and mowed it down in the parking lot. We also got some fish and chips and a shower. That night we drove into fjordlands NP to camp.
3/6/18
Today we drove the Milford road over the divide pass, through the homer tunnel, and into Milford Sound stopping at various viewpoints along the way. Near the pass we were 'attacked' but Keas (new zealand's parrot) looking for food. The drive included some glaciers, very impressive steep and granite peaks, as well as some waterfalls. When we reached the other side, we walked around the milford nature trail, enjoying the views of the fjord and the very famous Mitre peak. Around noon the sun came out just in time for our fjord cruise! The cruise was amazing and well worth it! Beautiful scenery with towering walls and mountains around us in the narrow fjord. There were lots of waterfalls all around, including one that they took the ship right under where those of us who stayed on the bow got drenched. The boat took us out to the open ocean before returning back to the fjord. Also some cool animal life along the way. We saw several groups of fur seals sunning themselves on rocks and a pod of bottlenose dolphins. Truly a spectacular boat ride. On the drive back, we hiked up to the top of Key Summit for some cloudy, but nice views. This trail to Key Summit was along part of the trail we would have ended on had we done the whole Routeburn circuit instead of doing the out and back. We camped at our 3rd different campsite in Fjordland NP
We drove to Te Anau and then into beautiful Fjordland NP. We hiked up to magical Marion lake, which sits at the foot of a glaciated peak with waterfalls coming down the side. I had a super vivid memory of a lake I hiked to in the rain and mud with my dad on our trip to NZ as a little kid. I remember reaching a lake and then all of a sudden, and just for a second, it cleared a bit. Rays of sunshine streamed through illuminating a big peak and a bunch of waterfalls. I am now convinced that lake Marion was that place. So it was really great to go back! It's a beautiful area with misty mountains and and enchanting rainforest. It was so inviting I even went for a swim in the chilly glacial waters. That night we camped in the Egleston valley in Fjordland NP, surrounded by mtn views.
3/3/18
A very rainy morning in Te Anau, so we hung out at the visitors center for Fjordland NP. After lunch, we started the Kepler Track, another of NZ's great walks. At first the trail skirted along Te Anau lake, then went sharply up through the rainforest. It was misty and kind of raining, but also hot and humid. We were not getting wet from the rain, but drenched from our sweat. Eventually we got above tree line where it was much cooler. We walked in a thick cloud above tree line for several miles before arriving at Luxmore hut. A nice hut that on clear days would have an amazing view. Occasionally the clouds lifted a bit to reveal Lake Te Anau below as well as some misty mountains. During the night if poured hard at times.
3/4/18
It was raining hard in the morning, so we hung out at the hut and read. We started the hike after lunch and ended up having pretty good weather w/ nice lake, ridge, and mountain views. We climbed to the top of Mt. Luxmore, which had some nice views of the lake as well as a big rainbow. Most of the rest of the hike was above tree line as a cool ridge walk. There were mountains all around. People at the hut the night before had been really worried about the ridge walk. I mean it was a ridge, but the drop offs weren't that crazy and the ridge was pretty wide on a nice trail. Nothing Elisha and I would every think twice about. Instead, we liked how nice the views around were. B/c we started so late, we ended up having the trail mostly to ourselves and having the better weather. Several months later when hiking along a truly crazy ridge in French Polynesia, we would laugh at what all the worriers on this trail would have thought about that hike. B/c all we kept hearing about was "the ridge". Eventually we descended steeply to the Iris Burn hut where we would stay the night. At the great walk huts, around dinner every night, the warden gives a hut talk. This is one of my favorite things about staying in a hut. You get to hear their wisdom, their humor, and often their take and philosophy on life. Always entertaining.
3/5/18
A very beautiful weather day. We hiked through the Iris Burn Valley full of rainforest with the occasional view up to the mountains and cascading waterfalls above. We had lunch at Moturua hut which sits on the shores of Lake Manapuri. I went for a swim, and then we had the last bit of hiking through the rainforest to the end of the trail. We hitched a ride back to our van. We had icecream in town, and I don't mean the $4 tourist icecream cones, I mean we bought a whole liter of icecream at the grocery store and mowed it down in the parking lot. We also got some fish and chips and a shower. That night we drove into fjordlands NP to camp.
3/6/18
Today we drove the Milford road over the divide pass, through the homer tunnel, and into Milford Sound stopping at various viewpoints along the way. Near the pass we were 'attacked' but Keas (new zealand's parrot) looking for food. The drive included some glaciers, very impressive steep and granite peaks, as well as some waterfalls. When we reached the other side, we walked around the milford nature trail, enjoying the views of the fjord and the very famous Mitre peak. Around noon the sun came out just in time for our fjord cruise! The cruise was amazing and well worth it! Beautiful scenery with towering walls and mountains around us in the narrow fjord. There were lots of waterfalls all around, including one that they took the ship right under where those of us who stayed on the bow got drenched. The boat took us out to the open ocean before returning back to the fjord. Also some cool animal life along the way. We saw several groups of fur seals sunning themselves on rocks and a pod of bottlenose dolphins. Truly a spectacular boat ride. On the drive back, we hiked up to the top of Key Summit for some cloudy, but nice views. This trail to Key Summit was along part of the trail we would have ended on had we done the whole Routeburn circuit instead of doing the out and back. We camped at our 3rd different campsite in Fjordland NP
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