Milford Track: Fiordland National Park, New Zealand

After a rushed visit to New Zealand’s south island several years ago, we were determined to return to New Zealand and hike the Milford Track. We finally did and it was gorgeous and well worth the trek. It was 3 1/2 days of hiking and around 37 miles total.

We did the unguided hike, for which there are 40 permits available every day. The unguided hike is quite a bit cheaper than the guided one and does require that you carry a backpack with all your gear, but it was quite manageable. A sleeping pad is not required since there are huts to stay in at the end of each day of hiking with bunk beds and rudimentary mattresses. Note that is quite a popular hike and needs to be booked quite a bit in advance. We booked the Milford in mid-July and were able to reserve the hike for late November. December or January (summer in New Zealand) are considered more ideal but were already booked up for the most part.

Day 1: Glade wharf to Clinton Hut

Day 1 was the shortest day of the track — just over 1 hour of hiking to Clinton Hut, were we spent the first night. A ferry took us from Te Anau Downs to the beginning of the hike. We walked across the first of many suspension bridges on this day. It was raining so we were happy to be finished hiking early in the day. Those that took the later ferry arrived quite soaked since the rain picked up later.

Day 2: Clinton Hut to Mintaro Hut

Day 2 was just over 10 miles of hiking (mostly a gradual climb), which amounted to around 6 1/2 hours. It began with rain but luckily cleared up a bit later. As non-morning people, we were the last to leave the hut and got to experience more of the better weather later on :). We were rewarded with our first views of Mackinnon Pass from afar later in the hike. Thankfully the ranger at Mintaro Hut warned us about the pesky Keas, birds who like to chew on unsuspecting hikers’ gear, so we were able to keep our coats and boots free of Kea damage. One set of our hiking poles did get chewed on a bit. Boots and jackets had to be hung up outside out of Kea reach, and our poles should have been hung also (oops!).

Day 3: Mintaro Hut to Dumpling Hut

Day 3 was around 10 miles of hiking and provided the best views of the hike. It was a ~2 hour gradual climb to Mackinnon Pass and the Mackinnon Memorial, which included a long stop for photos. Thankfully the sun came out for the entire afternoon. We trudged on another 1/2 hour to the Mackinnon Pass shelter and had lunch there with still several hours of hiking ahead. The infamous “emergency trail” come after that, with a steep descent, required due to avalanche damage on the main trail. It was a steady slog downhill with large boulders and tree limbs in our path. The ranger had told everyone the night before to take their time on the hike, since there have been many injuries on day 3 — mostly ankle and knee sprains on the long trek downhill. After a brief tea break at Quintin Shelter (free tea bags and hot water weren’t to be left unused!), we decided to make the 1 1/2 hour round-trip side trip to Sutherland Falls although it was quite late in the day. Sutherland Falls is the tallest waterfall in New Zealand. After returning to Quintin Shelter we rushed on to Dumpling Hut, arriving tired and starving just before dark. It was a long but rewarding day, the highlight of the trip.

Day 4: Dumpling Hut to Sandfly Point

Day 4 was the last day of the hike, a 11-mile mostly flat journey to Sandfly Point which took around 6 1/2 hours with a generous lunch break. We were warned by the ranger at Dumpling Hut to make sure to leave before 9am to allow plenty of time for the hike, making sure we’d be able to catch our boat ride to Milford Sound at 3pm. Although we were again almost the last people to leave, we arrived with plenty of time to spare. This day was not as scenic as the prior couple days of hiking but it was still pretty. After briefly taking photos at Sandfly Point and dipping our feet in the cold water there, we raced back in to the shelter, away from the annoying sandflies.

Key Gear

For this hike, make sure to bring:

• Waterproof shell pants and rain layer jacket
• Good hiking boots, either gortex or waterproofed
• Lighter for the propane burners in the hut kitchens
• Enough food and snacks for 4 days. We could have brought more!
• Lots of warm layers. Merino wool works great.
• Long underwear
• Flip-flops or other lightweight shoes (boots can’t be worn in the huts!)
• Winter hat and gloves
• Sleeping bag rated at 20 degrees or less
• Camera and extra memory cards
• Earplugs and an eyemask for sleeping in the huts
• Bug spray for the sandflies
• Sunblock