18
Hike
1
Hike
On a Monday morning in May, we arrived at the Kepler Track control gates, on the edge of Fiordland. Friends had shared their experiences of the track involving stunning ridgelines, lakeside sunsets, never-ending switchbacks, and sandflies (always sandflies). With packs full of provisions, our party of five was ready to walk. We posed with the sign and entered the undergrowth towards Brod Bay.
The track takes a short walk beside Lake Te Anau before it starts to climb. We shared the path with joggers, friends catching up, and other groups out on multiple days like ourselves. A few hours later, feeling higher and with outer layers of clothing removed, we were almost at the treeline.
Out of the trees and into the snow - it was time for lunch. We finished off our first day in the early afternoon sun at Luxmore Hut. The busiest hut of our trip, Luxmore had panoramic views with a summer camp feel. After sunset we counted stars from the hut's deck.
2
Hike
We rose and started our day crunching through the snow. The weather reports had different stories in mind for the day, so we kept moving, stepping through the footprints of those before us. We arrived at the turning for Mt Luxmore summit, though we couldn't see the mountain top. A trip for next time, we decided.
Late morning and the sun won its way through the clouds. The light danced across the peaks surrounding us. In every direction there was something spectacular to take in.
As we walked along our final ridge of the day, the wind started to pick up. Time to say goodbye to the peaks that had raised the game of mountain scenery.
We descended with the track, counting the switch backs as we went. Our group reached the Iris Burn hut at the same time as the rain. Chatting to other walkers at the hut, it turned out no one had made it up Mt Luxmore that day.
Rain covers lost to the wind = 1
3
Hike
Today was going to be a wet one. We stepped out into the rain with the help of music and a speaker. Under green covers, we walked on wooded paths and past (and sometimes through) plump rivers.
We kept going until we reached Moturau Hut. Lots of the others on the track had decided to carry on past the hut because of the weather (read: rain). Our five shared the hut with a friendly couple and took turns to keep the fire going to dry our things. We feasted on noodles and mulled wine (chai tea bags can work wonders).
Opportunistic keas = too many to count
4
Hike
We woke to views of Lake Manapouri that we were too damp and tired to appreciate the day before. The clear skies also objectively made the views more beautiful - we even had a return visit from our friends, the mountains.
On our final morning, we saw how the rain from yesterday played its part in the greenery of the bush, the fungi, and wetland we were in. There was also a Lord of the Rings filming location to see us through to the finish line (because did you really go on a hike in this country if they didn't film LOTR there?).
Then we were back at the control gates, where we'd started just over three days before. The sky in both pictures looks similar - though I'm not sure we do.
The track was an incredible intro to multi-day walks and has set the bar as high as those mountains.