Despite a light overnight frost, our second day on the Milford Track dawned clear and bright. After a good night’s sleep, we were able to get an early start on the track and continued our gentle climb up the Clinton Valley.
The popularity of this walk, and the fact that it is shared with private guided walking groups, meant that the track is very well maintained. The smooth gravel surface meant that we were able to make good time as we climbed up through the valley.
The track wove between the beech forest and the banks of the river, as we came out into a clearing, we were surprised to see some Whio (Blue Ducks), paddling about on the opposite side of the river. Whio are another of the endemic birds in New Zealand that are under threat of extinction with under 3,000 birds left. We have hoped to see these ducks that live in the fast-flowing mountain rivers on several of our previous trips that have passed through their habitats, but have never managed to, so it felt like a special treat to finally see them.
As we stood watching the ducks, we realised that one of the logs that we could see in the river was moving and was in fact an eel! Not being a huge fan of eels, I convinced Eric that it was time to leave the wildlife and continue our journey up the river valley.
Not long after leaving the river bank, we came to a break in the trees from where we got our first glimpse of MacKinnon Pass; the route that would take us over into the Arthur Valley and eventually to Milford Sound. Looking carefully at the ridge, we were even able to make out the emergency shelter that we knew was perched on the top of the pass.
As we continued up the valley, everywhere we looked there were reminders of just how lush and damp this valley can be. In places clouds were trapped in the side valleys, whilst in other places they hung about the mountain tops. Even after several days with limited rain, there were still sections of the track where water seemed to just pour down the side of the valley.
We stopped for morning tea at Hidden Lake, and enjoyed watching the changing reflections on the glass-smooth surface. After getting terrorised by a Weka that was trying to bully us into dropping some of our snack, we decided to loop back to the main track and continue on towards the hut.
The relatively easy track was deceiving and as we got closer to the head of the valley we were able to look back down the Clinton Valley to see how far we had come already. We had made great time and arrived at the hut in time for lunch in the sunshine admiring the views.
We knew that our luck with the weather was set to change, with a big front coming through the area overnight. With plenty of time to spare, and a lovely sunny afternoon I decided that I would head up MacKinnon Pass to look at the views just in case the weather really closed in. Without a pack, and with the late autumn sunshine making for a lovely afternoon, it was a pleasant climb up to the top and I was able spend some time taking in the views before getting back to the hut well before dinner.