Often referred to as 'the world's finest walk', the Milford Track and its rich history continues to captivate adventurers from around the world.
The Milford Track is NZ's most famous walk, hands down. The vast, sprawling walk through the South Island takes you from Te Anau Downs to the ethereal Milford Sound in 53km over four days. Through mountains and fiords, the track takes you not only through the Fiordlands of NZ, but through its history.
Since the 14th century, the area was used by Maori who trekked along carrying greenstone or 'kokotakiwai' between settlements. Greenstone is of major importance to Maori; the name of the South Island, 'Te Wahipounamu', translates to 'The Land of Greenstone Water', the only place greenstone is located. Communicating prestige, these stones are handed down through generations, referred to as treasure or 'taonga'.
Milford Sound, the track's end, is also known as 'Piopiotahi', meaning 'a single piopio', a now-extinct bird native to NZ. It's said that the fiord got its name after the legendary hero Maui died; a single piopio flew to the area in mourning.
It is also believed that the Maori god, Tu-Te-Raki-Whanoa, carved the landscape, honing his skills as he travelled north. Piopiotahi is the culmination of his efforts, his masterpiece and referred to by some, including British author Rudyard Kipling, as “the Eighth Wonder of the world.”
What's in a name?
The beauty of Piopiotahi lured more than just Maori. John Grono, a Welsh immigrant to Australia, was a ship captain, sealer and most importantly, an explorer.
Eventually he grew tired of farming wheat near the Hawkesbury River and set out to explore the new world. It was in the early 19th century, when he chose to cross the Tasman on his ship the Governor Bligh, that he would define the areas of NZ that we know today. Sailing up the cool and serene Fiordland, he provided the first descriptions and maps for them.
The English name of Milford Sound is actually derived from Milford Haven waterway in Wales, an area Grono knew well. He remained an authority on the area for the rest of his life despite moving back to New South Wales.
“If ever I come to anchor it will be here”
In 1877, Scottish soldier, gold prospector and adventurer Donald Sutherland headed out of Dunedin in his boat accompanied by his dog. With no clear objective, he navigated up the Foveaux Strait to the Fiordland Coast. Prior, Sutherland had been an itinerant; bored of working at the herring fishery in his Scottish hometown, he enlisted in the army, which tossed him around Britain, then to Italy and finally to NZ.
It was when he landed at Milford Sound on the 3rd of December, 1877, and looked around at the sprawling mountains and crystal clear water that ensnared him that he declared, “If ever I come to anchor it will be here.”
And so he did. Sutherland spent the next 40 years at Milford Sound, occasionally sauntering down to Dunedin. Described as being “as big as a doorway” and self-educated, he lived a hermit's lifestyle, helped occasional visitors cross the land, prospected for diamonds in nearby Sinbad Gully and even tried his hand at painting.
Eventually his skills and presence in the region were acknowledged and respected. In 1888, the government commissioned him to cut a track from Arthur Valley to Sutherland Falls, a waterfall he had discovered years earlier, which became part of the Milford Track.
After a decade of self-imposed hermitage, he married Elizabeth Samuels, a rich English divorcee, and with her finances established a chalet for tourists and visitors in the region. The chalet welcomed 40 tourists in its first summer season, 70 in its second and formed the beginnings of recreational tramping within the region. In 1919, after years of guiding others around the region and tracks, Donald died and the chalet was sold to the government in 1922.
Break on through
On the other side at Te Anau, another settler began to navigate the track. Quintin McKinnon, another Scotsman, immigrated to NZ in the 1870s, exploring the central and west coast of the South Island. In 1887 he was enlisted by the Otago Survey Department to discover a passage between the head of Lake Te Anau and Clinton Valley.
Though initially unsuccessful, in 1888 McKinnon, accompanied by fellow adventurer Ernest Mitchell, crossed and founded MacKinnon Pass, one of the great sights on the walk and led to the overall cohesion of the Milford Track.
For the rest of his life McKinnon served as mailman, supervisor for the track, mending and carving the path for others, and he acted as a tour guide. Back then things were pretty basic: when McKinnon was guiding he caught kaka (a native parrot) and pigeon to cook in a stew for his clients.
If you were really lucky he'd make his famous pompolona scones out of candles of mutton fat. In 1892 McKinnon drowned crossing his beloved Lake Te Anau towards Milford Sound, his body never found.
Wise words
But it wasn't just men who helped put the Milford Track on the map. One of the most important moments came when the poet B.E. Baughan (1870–1958) wrote an article for the prestigious London Spectator in 1908, where she declared it the finest walk in the world.
“Deep in the south-west corner of New Zealand, far from the familiar scenes of travel, lies the celebrated Milford Sound – an inlet of the sea said to surpass in magnificence even the fjords of Norway. Of late years a track has been made overland to the sound, and this track anyone possessing eyes to see with, feet to walk with, and a love of Nature at her loneliest and loftiest could scarcely do better than essay.”
During most of the 20th century, the track was government held and operated; however, things don't always run smoothly. In 1983, a massive snow avalanche came down and blocked the Clinton River upstream from Pompolona Lodge.
Water built up behind this dam until it eventually burst through and washed the land out from underneath Pompolona, destroying the lodge. This was only six weeks before the new walking season. In that six weeks, a new site was cleared and the lodge was rebuilt in time for the new season.
Creature comforts
The guided walk operation was retained in government control until it was sold to a private enterprise in 1990. Ultimate Hikes acquired the exclusive concession to operate on the Milford Track in 1992.
Track Operations Manager Shaun Liddy has been with Ultimate Hikes for 25 years and he reckons tens of thousands of people have completed the guided walk. The ages range from 10 (the youngest) through to people well into retirement, with the average hiker being in their late 50s.
Different backgrounds also reflect the track’s clientele. Although most tourists are Aussies and Kiwis, according to Shaun there’s been a surge of foreign interest over the years, particularly Japan and South Korea. There’s even been a wedding with a couple from China.
“We had a Chinese couple get married at Pompolona Lodge – they brought a group of 16 including the celebrant and two wedding dresses. We were also told that a couple met on the track last year and got married on the same day a year later,” Shaun told Great Walks.
Walk this way
Part of the reason Ultimate Hikes clientele have such a wonderful and memorable trip is the guides. “When it comes to training our guides a big focus is on safety, including first aid training,” says Shaun. “But as well as this, we have a strong emphasis on interpretation of the natural environment and group management. Our guides bring a wealth of skills and knowledge to the role from different backgrounds that also help to strengthen the team.”
Ultimate Hikes runs four private lodges. On the track there's Glade House, Pompolona Hut and Quintin Hut (named after McKinnon) and on your final night you stay at Mitre Peak Lodge at Milford Sound.
The lodges have been around for a long time but still require maintenance. “We have a continual cycle of investment back into the lodges, adding ensuite options (private rooms) about 15 years ago,” says Shaun. “They are still the original lodges, but have been refurbished over the years.”
The lodges are maintained weekly, with fresh produce and refreshments being flown in by helicopter. Refrigeration and storage is on site, with walkers ending their days on the hike with a clean, staffed and maintained roof over their heads, not to mention a tasty two- or three-course meal and a choice of NZ wines and beers – a far cry from McKinnon's mutton fat scones but we don't think anyone's complaining!