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This is a collection of my blog entries related to short or long trips I went on.
I have some master pages for some specific locations/trips:

paris over many years | UK over many years | Belgium over many years | Holland over many years | Vegas over many years | Australia over many years | Canada over many years | Japan over multiple trips | Italy in 2011 | France in 2013 | Indonesia in 2013 | Japan in 2013 | Japan in 2014 | Taiwan in 2014 | Indonesia in 2014 | New Zealand in 2015 | Japan in 2015 | Costa Rica in 2015 | Singapore in 2016 | South Korea in 2016 | Japan in 2016 | Germany in 2016 | Tasmania 2017 | Japan in winter 2017 | Great Britain in 2017 | Australia Flying Safari 2017 | Philippines 2018 | Spain in 2018 | Alaska in 2019 | England in 2021 | UAE in 2021 | Poland in 2023 | Portugal in 2023 | Thailand in 2023 | Japan Snow 2024 |

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2015/02/04 New Zealand Days 26-30: Hiking the Milford Track
π 2015-02-04 01:01 in Hiking, Ntrips, Nz2015, Trips
After arriving in Queenstown the previous late afternoon, we went directly to Kiwi Discovery to pick up our rental backpacking gear. We took the evening to pack, and had a short night due to having to take an unnecessarily early bus (06:45) to get to Te Aura, from where most things in the Fiords start.

The weather was already bad by then, rain and wind, and we had to get better rain jackets from a local rental shop and then wait for the second bus leaving at noon that would take us to the boat that would drop us off at the trailhead:


rainbow
rainbow

our upcoming track
our upcoming track

weather on the boat was already nice :)
weather on the boat was already nice :)


thankfully it was mostly clear when we started
thankfully it was mostly clear when we started

This wasn't a real backpacking trip because we were not going to sleep in tents, but in huts that had matresses, water, and cooking gas. That said, people for whom this is still too rough can pay way too much money to do a guided walk and end up in plushy cabins with showers, beds, and cooked meals. Bah, that's totally cheating!

Day 1: Glade Wharf to Clinton Hut: 5.8km, 1h34, from 200m to 230m

Day 1 was too short, just a short walk to the first hut.

the first stop for people who can't rough it even a little bit, was almost right off the boat
the first stop for people who can't rough it even a little bit, was almost right off the boat

supplies get delivered by heli
supplies get delivered by heli




this bird is shifty, hard to get good pictures of it
this bird is shifty, hard to get good pictures of it

the robins are super curious and fearless
the robins are super curious and fearless

after checking me out, it came on my foot to look for worms in the holes :)
after checking me out, it came on my foot to look for worms in the holes :)

a ranger gave us a quick talk in the giant kitchen/common room of our huts
a ranger gave us a quick talk in the giant kitchen/common room of our huts

keeping warm
keeping warm

The evening, I went out to see glow worms:

see the strings
see the strings

it doesn't look like much, but that's how they glow up at night. This cons insects into their traps
it doesn't look like much, but that's how they glow up at night. This cons insects into their traps

Day 2: Clinton Hut to Mintaro Hut: 20.1km, 6h09, from 230m to 600m

The next morning, the weather turned from bad to worse, we had non stop rain between moderate and very heavy. This put our gortex rental rain jackets to the test for sure. Views that day were quite poor and each picture meant getting your camera pretty wet:



very wet birds
very wet birds

moss everywhere
moss everywhere


on the plus side waterfalls were flowing everywhere
on the plus side waterfalls were flowing everywhere


snow and boulder avalanche path
snow and boulder avalanche path


Eventually all of us (about 40) ended up in the next hut, soaken wet:



each hut has a helipad for deliveries and getting staff in and out. That's so cheating :)
each hut has a helipad for deliveries and getting staff in and out. That's so cheating :)

New Zealand Weka flightless bird, roams around a bit like a chicken
New Zealand Weka flightless bird, roams around a bit like a chicken


Thankfully the rain subsided a bit in the evening, so we had at least a bit of view

rain plus cold = snow
rain plus cold = snow


remember that this is like snow in July
remember that this is like snow in July

New Zealand duck, quite pretty
New Zealand duck, quite pretty

finally, we got to see what our crossing the next day would look like
finally, we got to see what our crossing the next day would look like


Kea, smart New Zealand parrot
Kea, smart New Zealand parrot


Day 3: Mintaro Hut to Dumpling Hut via McKinnon Pass (1140m): 20.2km, 8h23, from 600m to 110m

The third day, finally weather was non rainy:






we're lucky we got views at the top
we're lucky we got views at the top


I happened to have some bird seeds :)
I happened to have some bird seeds :)

another kea
another kea

top hut/shelter for breaks or in caese of bad weather
top hut/shelter for breaks or in caese of bad weather

the peak across had a few snow slides
the peak across had a few snow slides







A little fork off the trail was to see Sutherland Falls, the tallest waterfall in New Zealand. It's 580m high and a very powerful fall at the bottom. The spray at the bottom was enough to get wet from a distance and get your camera instantly wet as soon as you try to take a picture:


After a bit more of a walk, we got to our 3rd and final hut, this time without being wet, a welcome change:




Day 4: Dumpling Hut to Sandfly Point: 21.0km, 6h12, from 110m to 0m

The 4th and last day was smooth sailing. We had to get on the trail a bit earlier since we had to arrive at the boat by 14:00 to get back to civilization via a boat and bus.



this turned over rock could fit multiple people inside
this turned over rock could fit multiple people inside






fluffy
fluffy




and after 3.5 days, we got to the end :)
and after 3.5 days, we got to the end :)

boat back home
boat back home

A few pictures from the boat and bus back home:






We finally got back to our room and enjoyed a nice dinner :)


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