After a year in the making, Shannon's 'Fellowship of the Sound' gathered from around the Globe to hike the Milford Track together over five days. Shannon and Mirielle wanted to do something memorable for their 50th birthdays so planned a big trip to New Zealand and invited us all along. In the end Eleven of us said yes and made out was to Queenstown to begin the adventure.
The pictures really tell the story. We met up the night before the hike for a celebratory dinner at the top of the skyline. It had the most amazing view over Queenstown and was the first of the incredible views to come. The next day we took a bus and then a boat to the beginning point of the bike and did a short km or so to the first of the accommodation points - Glade House. Set amoug beautiful mountains and right next to a river it was so picturesque. We took a swim in the freezing river but it was just so magic to be there in this beautiful place. We spent our first night getting to know the group and learning more about the hike we were about to embark on. All the staff was incredible and the food was lovely. It was a pretty sweet way to do it, we were definitely not roughing it, but it gave us space to really appreciate where we were and the beauty of New Zealand.
The next day we set our early for the first day of hiking, 16 km's on the flat through really beautiful and diverse terrain. We started by crossing the Clinton River swingbridge and spent the first part as a group until we all stretched out. Levi and I stayed with Courtney most of that first day and chatted along the way. There were sections of gorgeous a beechtree rainforest. The trees and ferns were magical and it all looked like a fairy kingdom. Then it opens out into a wetlands area. We ate lunch at Hirere Hut with the Kea Birds and then walked through the most beautiful open section with waterfalls either side. That night we stayed at Pompolona Lodge, the newest of all of the cabins. It was like a tree house, set up on a hill and nestled deep in the trees.
The next day was the big one, 15 km's but with an incline up a mountain and a decline on the other side. This part of the hike was really spectacular. The hike up the mountain was dotted with wildflowers and the views on every side were incredible. We rose through the fog to come out on top of the world on Mackinnon Pass. Then ate lunch and enjoyed a rest at Pass Hut. The decline on the other hand was not so enjoyable. With unstable rocks it was pretty tough going and I'd rather forget that part of the trip. But I'll always remember Levi staying with me and us silently getting through what felt like a never ending decent into nowhere. All is well that ends well and we did eventually make it back to Quinton Lodge where we had our own room and crashed out.
I absolutely loved the last day, it was the longest at 21km but was a perfect day. It was my type of hiking, various terrain, beautiful spots along the way, lots to see. We stopped in a Mackay Falls and climbed into the giant stone bell. We stopped at Giants Gate briefly for lunch but kept up a great pace. There was another beautiful waterfall towards the end where we dipped in our toes and had a snack. And then we were there at Sandfly Point, the end of the Milford Track! A boat took us across the Milford Sound to Mitre Peak Lodge where we had a really fun night with all the rest of the hikers and then a big rest.
On the last day we had a boat tour of the Milford Sound which was a little low on waterfalls, a trade off for the amazing weather we'd had for the entire hike, but still very beautiful. Then it was back on the bus to Queenstown where we said all our goodbyes and went our seperate ways.
Levi and I spent the next two days at a fantastic hotel with a great restaurant attached. They had a hot tub as well so we didn't need much else. It was the perfect end to the hike.
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