We just returned from a three-day tramp through the Fiordland National Park in the southwest. It was called the Kepler Track and is one of the nine great walks in New Zealand. The hike began early on Monday morning with a flat walk around Lake Te Anau, a crisp, clear glacial lake surrounded by mountains. The trail then brought us into the forest (aka “the bush”) and we began to climb Mount Luxmore. After alternating between huffing and puffing over the elevation and being in awe at the countless shades of green mosses, ferns, and trees surrounding us, we reached the treeline several hours later and were treated to a panoramic view of the area. To one side, we could see patterned yellow-brown farmland and the lake, and on all other sides were jagged, beautiful mountains and fiords. We lingered at the viewpoint for a good hour, watching the clouds and the landscape, quite content with the world, before continuing on to the first hut of the hike. Most walks in New Zealand have huts maintained by the Department of Conservation that come with basic cooking, sleeping and toilet facilities. The huts were a great place to meet other hikers, and we met other trampers from Germany, Austria, Israel, New Zealand, and Australia. Most impressive was three generations of a family that hiked up the mountain together: kids, parents, and grandparents.
The next morning we were awoken by the hut ranger and told that we needed to get moving as the weather forecast called for gale force winds of 90 km an hour later in the afternoon. Apparently we would be blown off the mountain if we waited around (eek!), so off we went. Whereas the view was sunny and clear the day before, for our second day of hiking we were walking through the clouds. We could see about 20 to 30 feet around as as we walked through light rain and wind over the ridge line of the mountain. While the view would have been great, the effect of staring over sheer mountain drop-offs into nothingness was pretty spectacular in itself. We could see silhouettes of mountain peeks in front of us as we went, as the clouds swirled around rock formations all around and water ran down the path. We climbed the summit of the main mountain of the hike, Mount Luxmore, and continued onward over several more misty mountain ridges. After about four hours of hiking, the path began its steep descent into a mountain valley through a rainforest that seemed to have awoken with the fresh moisture from the rain.
After another hut stay and more adventures meeting fellow hikers, our last day of trekking was quite mild and pleasant (only a bit of rain and then sun), as we walked on a mostly flat track through fern covered forests, past another glacial lake, Lake Manapouri, and on to the Waiau River and Rainbow Reach. For the Lord of the Rings fans out there, this is where they filmed some of the scenes of fellowship sailing down the River Anduin to Gondor. (: Looking back as we crossed the final bridge, we could see the mountain ridges that we had just crossed in the distance.
All too soon, we were whisked back to reality as a shuttle bus driver picked us up at the trail lot and returned us to the small town of Te Anau. Tomorrow we head to Milford Sound and then we’ll begin to make our way north past glaciers and more fiords. If you’re a fan of hiking, definitely add New Zealand to your trip list.
Kia Ora,
Julie
Posted by julieanneluthien 
