~ Milford Track - Day 4

Did I mention that Clinton Hut, where we stayed the first night gets an average rainfall of 3m per year? That’s like 108 inches! But that’s nothing to where we stayed, near the pass, the second night. They get 6m a year. But that’s nothing to where we stayed the last night, at Dumpling Hut. They get 9m of rain a year. So we finally got to hike in the pouring rain, and really test the seaworthiness of our gear. I’ll just say that some of it held up better than other bits, and that my passport will never look the same again.Today we had to change our ambling ways. We had a six hour hike to get done in six hours in order to make the last ferry out of here. In pouring rain we made our way across and through stream after stream after stream. I would estimate that there were 20-30 bridges that we crossed, many of them full of crashing water, and there were probably 10-15 streams we had to cross that didn’t have bridges. So no one’s feet were dry by the end. The views continued to be absolutely spectacular, but this time we couldn’t take as many pictures because of the pouring water. We reached the ferry stop and debated about whether to change into dry clothes. We couldn’t resist, but then ended up having to run through a waterfall (literally!) to get to the ferry! Oh well. After a hour wait for a two-hour bus ride, we were able to grab fish and chips from a Te Anau shop, and then book it back to Invercargill for our night’s stay. Tomorrow? Steward Island!