Waiting - part three

 

On top of the world: Cathie on the Mackinnon Pass, 

at 1154m it's the highest point on the Milford Track.

Here in New Zealand, it's Wednesday April 6. In just over three weeks we'll leave the country, heading for Canada and three weeks after that we'll walk out of St Jean Pied de Port on our Camino.

We've just walked the Milford Track in Fiordland, in the very south of the country. We're definitely stronger for having done it, but there were times on that four-day walk when we feared that some lapse in attention might lead to an injury, which would have been catastrophic for our Camino plans.

Like many well-known and popular walks, there's always the feeling that if so many people are doing it, then it can't be hard. Just a few minutes ago I phoned an old friend who was surprised that we found it so testing. He had been on the luxury walk with bags carried and I think the lack of a few kilograms on the back made all the difference.

We walked with a group of friends, staying in huts and so carrying all our food, as well as sleeping bags and changes of clothes.

Day one is hardly a test. The nearest large airport is Queenstown - a two-hour drive from Te Anau, where we spent the night before the walk. From Te Anau it's a 30-minute bus ride and a 75-minute boat trip before being dropped off at the start of the track. To give time for people to conveniently arrive from all over the country, our bus from Te Anau picked us up some time after 1pm, dropping us off at the ferry for a 2pm start. 

After that, it's just a 5km walk on an immaculate track to get to the first hut. All the huts on the Milford Track sleep 40 people. At each hut, the resident ranger will give an evening talk covering aspects of history and ecology as well as a preview of the following day. Our day-one ranger described the track as a conveyor belt. All the traffic is one-way and since you see the same people every day, you become familiar enough to chat and commiserate as you walk through.

Here's a link to day one: https://www.relive.cc/view/vWqBggxgoQv

Day one lulled us into a false sense of security. Day two was more difficult. It started out easily enough, but that groomed surface soon gave way to something more demanding. What made it worse was that although the track brochure described it as 17km, our gps got beyond 20km, so we were constantly expecting to arrive.

We finally arrived at Minaro Hut, the newest and most luxurious on the track. Such a modern hut that it has usb charging ports for all those dependent on devices (and I include myself in their number). Murray, the resident ranger was passionate about his job and the values attached to it. He was also a most sociable host, going beyond the call of duty to make sure his guests were fully relaxed. 

Here's a link to day two: https://www.relive.cc/view/vZqNxxpxX3O

Day three was the real test. From the start, the climb to the Mackinnon Pass was hard enough. The track is situated in an area of high rainfall - seven metres of rain annually, falling on average of 200 days each year. What that means is that creeks and river beds can swell hugely in a very short time, washing out tracks and bridges and sending rocks and boulders down the steep hillsides. Any attempts to provide smooth gravel paths are futile.

Sunrise as we approach the Mackinnon Pass.

And so, we found ourselves hopping over boulders and levering bodies and packs upwards - but only for four or five kilometres and then we were at the high point of the track - poised on the lip of precipitous drops on the Mackinnon Pass. We'd started early and walked through the half-light to greet the sun as we neared the pass.

We had our third sunny day - against the odds for this region - so we had jaw-dropping views. We'd scaled the heights and although not easy, it wasn't that hard either. Downhill would be a breeze - wouldn't it?

Wrong, wrong, wrong. Going down required negotiating a lot of large boulders and big downward steps. For old legs that means holding back with one leg, while the other leg tries to find a secure purchase and after a few hours of this we both found our quadriceps turning to jelly. Our great fear was that a misstep could result in injury and at this stage in our Camino journey at would be catastrophic. The 13km version on the brochure inevitably turned into 17.5km and our total time was more than eight hours, much of spent on the downhill where we struggled to maintain 2kph. 

While not wanting to plead geriatric status, we couldn't help but note how the young people skipped down, whereas our 65 and 73-year-old bodies made some protest known.

Here's a link to day three: https://www.relive.cc/view/vrqDAArA4Lv

And so, to day four. Although we'd had beautiful sunny weather throughout, we'd missed one of the characteristic features on the Milford Track - the waterfalls. That was about to be remedied.

The rain started to fall before midnight. It was very soporific as it fell on the tin roof of the hut, but all too soon 5.45am came round, with the beep of the alarm. We had to make a six-hour walk to the ferry by 2pm. Not too arduous, but we didn't want to leave anything to chance. 

We got dressed up in wet weather gear, as it was still raining and showing no sign of abating. We had high hopes that we could hop across any small stream that had erupted. Those hopes were soon shattered, as we faced wide, shin-deep washouts with no alternative but to wade through.

With soggy shoes, we trudged on, but soon came to appreciate the full majestic power of the water and hillsides erupted in torrents of waterfalls, hundreds of metres high.

The track surface wasn't bad, although there were still tricky areas. We were right to have had fears about injury on the tricky sections of day two and day three. 

We were striding along, looking likely to make the day's walk in six hours and arrive with an hour to spare to catch the boat. With 3.5km to go, we came across two of the young women who had been walking ahead of us. In a moment of inattention, one had slipped, falling badly and injured her shoulder (it later turned out to be a broken humerus and after arriving in Milford was airlifted to hospital in Invercargill). She was lying partly on her back, with one leg hanging over a small ledge. I helped to get her upright so she could get her damaged arm out of the straps of the pack, but she'd sustained a serious injury.  

The next person to arrive was a young doctor. In a strange twist, he'd proposed to his fiancée on top of the Mackinnon Pass two days earlier, so it was a memorable journey for him.

It was obvious she was in good hands, so I grabbed her pack and strapped it on my front. Cathie set off to the finish at Sandfly Point so she could send some young, strong person back to carry the pack, while we left the young doctor to tend to the injured woman. We were still in an area of tricky surfaces and with the spare pack in front of me I couldn't see where I was going. Whenever things went tricky I had to swing the spare pack around to one shoulder so I could see where I was going. With 10kg in front and another on my back I was feeling every one of my 73 years.

After stumbling along for a kilometre and a half, our young friend Kerry, only recently graduated to pensioner status, joined me and carried the pack (in addition to his own) for another one and a half kilometres. At that stage, his young son Peter turned up, unencumbered and carried the pack to the end. Whew.

Here's a link to day four: https://www.relive.cc/view/vrqokkxkdKq

After arriving at the aptly-named Sandfly Point soon after 1pm, we waited for the boat pickup at 2pm and the ten-minute trip to Milford. Many of our mates were booked in for a two-hour cruise on the sound, but we were very happy to climb into a comfortable bus for the two-hour drive back to Te Anau, where we did a huge load of washing and then went out for a meal with our hiking companions.

On Wednesday we drove north, stopping at the picturesque village of Arrowtown for a coffee and continuing on over the Lindis Pass to Mt Cook Village. For the last 60km or so, the road turns west and follows the azure water of Lake Pukaki. On a sunny day such as we had, the views of New Zealand's highest peak, Aoraki Mt Cook (3724m) were wonderful. 

Our accommodation at Mt Cook village wasn't cheap - it all comes down to location. We had a very ordinary room, but the lodge provided a very nice kitchen/lounge area, where we were able to sort our evening meal and breakfast. The view of the mountain in the morning was wonderful.

We planned to walk along the Hooker Valley to the face of the Hooker Glacier - a 10km walk. 

After little more than a kilometre we came to Lake Mueller, the terminus of the Mueller Glacier.

Then on to the Hooker floating with icebergs, newly calved from the glacier face.

The return trip was rapid. After the tricky terrain of the Milford, with our heavy packs, the smooth surface and lack of weight on our backs made it a breeze, so we completed the 10km walk, including stops, in not much over two hours. 

Here's a link to that walk: https://www.relive.cc/view/vevYoor7MJ6

From Mt Cook it was the relatively short drive on to Lake Tekapo, notable for the most expensive (and simple) accommodation of our trip. Those tourist spots know how to suck money out of you. Nevertheless, our little cabin had a fabulous view and the sunrise was exquisite. The photo below was taken through the glass of the sliding door (the frost was a discouragement to going outside).

 

And so, we pressed on - a long drive through to Hanmer Springs, via a morning tea stop with my brother Neil and his wife Jessie in the metropolis of Ashburton.

We tried a different motel from our usual selection down by the thermal pools. The Forest Peaks motel was of the old style - a little cheaper, less modern, but with a lot more space and facilities. Soon after we arrived at about 2pm we were soaking our weary bones and muscles in the pools. After a couple of hours we were well and truly knocked out - it all augurs well for a good night's sleep. 

Tomorrow we face a four-hour drive back to Nelson - not too arduous. It will be good to be home.

We took hundreds of photos during the 12 days of our trip, from Nelson to the Paparoa Track - on to Franz Josef and then Lake Matheson. Next the drive through the Haast Pass to Wanaka and on to Te Anau where we met up with our swim mates for the walk through the Milford Track. After that odyssey we drove to the foot of New Zealand's highest peak, Mt Cook, and had the splendid walk up the Hooker Valley to the Hooker Glacier, passing the Mueller Glacier along the way. Finally, on to Lake Tekapo and the thermal resort of Hanmer before driving back to Nelson. 

Here's a generous selection of photos from the entire trip: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Eb55rSkeRawGKkBz6