December 14

Milford Track: Over MacKinnon Pass

I was the first one up today, at 6 AM. I had intended to get up at 5:30, since the weather would probably be best in the morning, but I set the alarm wrong and was awakened instead by a kea squawking in the window over my bed. It was still clear, but some clouds were gathering up on the ridges, so I ate breakfast quickly while everyone else slept, and got on the trail at 6:50. Still, only a couple of people were stirring. I made it to the pass at about 8 AM. So it didn't take me much longer with a pack than without.

It was 38 degrees F and windy, with some clouds and occasional sun. I stayed at the pass for about an hour until then next people arrived. The view down Clinton Canyon, along the path we had walked, was better today, but the view across the ridge to the north-west was cloudier. The wind was opposite yesterdays, coming from across the ridge. Just after 9:00, a big rain cloud blew onto the pass and stayed. It got cold and rainy, with no visibility, and stayed that way as I followed the ridge to the pass shelter.

There were two rooms at the shelter: one for independent trampers and one for guided walkers. For a long time, I was the only one here. I fixed a cup of coffee on the gas stove inside, and put on warmer waterproof clothes. I stayed a while, as people slowly assembled here, waiting for the weather to improve. Gradually, the small hut became quite crowded. After waiting until almost noon, the view down Clinton Canyon cleared up nicely, but it was still cloudy and rainy across the ridge, where we were headed. I was glad I got up early, because most who came later didn't get much of a view.

I started down the other side of the pass in a heavy wind and driving rain. One of the smaller girls looked like she would blow away, and friends held onto her. The main track crosses an avalanche zone, so we had been told to take a detour down an "emergency trail", which was very steep, muddy and treacherous, nothing like the easy, well-graded trails found along the rest of the Milford Track. In some places there were ropes along the trail, so people would have something to hold onto in case they slipped on the steep muddy banks high above the creek. Usually, they were not positioned well enough to be very useful.

It was a beautiful route though, following a creek much of the way past an almost continuous succession of waterfalls. Some of the guided walkers caught up with me. They start an hour behind, but I had sat at the pass hut a long time, and was stopping to take many pictures of waterfalls. These people were easily recognized by their yellow raincoats and tiny packs.

Taking photos was difficult in the rain. I could not keep my lens clear of fog, with all the humidity, and keeping rain off the lens was difficult as well because I had misplaced my lens hood yesterday. But the waterfalls were impressive, and I made many attempts, steadying the camera wherever possible. All the ferns, including high fern trees that looked like palms, were impressive as well.

Eventually, the emergency route rejoined the main track, and reached Quinlan Hut, where the guided walkers would stop. There is a day-use hut here for independent trampers to leave their packs while making the side trip to Sutherland Falls, a highlight of the track. The walk to the falls is about 45 minutes each way. It is an impressive falls, 850 meters high, and on approach, it sounds like an airplane taking off. A sign showed the point where you were 850 meters from the falls, so you could get a feeling for the size of it.You can walk right into the spray at the base of the falls, where a strong wind drives the spray outward from the base with great force.

Photographing the immense falls was a challenge. From up close, it was impossible due to the spray. Further back, there was still the usual problem with the rain and humidity. I used many lens tissues trying to keep my lens dry. It is probably no accident that photos of the Milford track rarely appear in books. And no picture could capture the feeling of power coming from the wind and roar of the falls. Actually, though, the most impressive views of it would be from the air, which is the only way you can see the lake hanging on the edge of the valley above, from which it falls.

After arriving back at Quinlan Hut, there was still an hour walk, gently downhill, to Dumpling Hut. My GoreTex boots were now leaking badly, and I stopped to wring the water out of my socks and insoles before continuing. I was the last one to arrive at Dumpling Hut, due to my frequent and probably futile attempts at photography. I stayed in the lower hut, since the upper one with the cookers and drying room was already full. When I took a close look at my camera, I could see that the lens was thoroughly fogged, both internally and externally.

The hut warden came in at 8 PM, just after I finished dinner. He gave us the usual safety and cleanliness talk, and told us about tomorrow's walk to meet the boat at the end of the track. The walk would take about six hours, and we would have to be careful not to miss the last boat at 3 PM. It was expected that the independent trampers, staying ahead of the guided walkers, would probably be able to actually make the 2 PM boat. The forecast for tomorrow simply said "rain".

Tonight, I tried to dry out my fogged camera lens by putting it in a plastic bag with some silica gel from my binoculars, and taking it to bed with me to gently warm it. I was not sure it would recover from this, and I was glad I had a backup camera, the small Vivitar I was using to take slides. I went to bed at 9:45 expecting to get an early start tomorrow. I set my alarm for 5:30 and slept with my camera lens.

Copyright Scott A. Yost, 1996. All rights reserved.