Kepler Track, Te Anau - The Fiordlands

Kepler Track, South Island

Rugged, rough but so wonderful

Good Day All,

The day dawned, heavy with clouds, but no rain…yet. We made our way to the trailhead, locked the car and set off on the Kepler Track, one of the ‘Nine Great Walks’ of New Zealand. The locals have a wonderful sense for understatement. A walk? We notice the Kiwis are a hardy bunch. Think of it. Less than 5 million people and they have dominated world rugby for years. Okay, off to the track. We had no idea what to anticipate.
A Special Place, wind and all

At 3300 feet & rising

First hour in the forest along Lake Te Anau, followed by a steep climb lasting three hours, all but forty-five minutes in that forest. Breaking the tree line was incredible—like a line drawn separating the forest from the open mountainside. We had immediate views of the lake below and the surrounding mountains and cliffs. Staggering. 9 miles, mostly uphill, 3300 feet elevation gain. When we arrived at the hut, we chose our bedroom suite. A beautifully furnished set of rooms, all in pastel shades toning in beautifully with the alpine setting. We were ready to stay a week. Upon awakening from a combination of altitude sickness and fatigue, we opened our sleeping bags and grabbed two bunks. Our roommates for the night were forty-five others. Above Jenni’s bunk and around us were five Israelis, four young men and a woman. When we heard them conversing, we decided to show-off our command of Hebrew. In well structured, grammatically correct and a rather sophisticated manner, we asked the question: ‘Do you speak English?’ As an aside, the hut ranger mentioned that the two most prevalent nationalities visiting New Zealand AND ‘tramping’, are Israelis and Germans. We were also surprised (pleasantly) to find a set of instructions for the cabin in Hebrew.
Approach to base of peak

Peak--Mt Luxmore

Day-two began with a solid four-hour heart-pumping climb reaching the highest point on the track, Mount Luxmore. The ‘walk’ along the saddles, mountaintops and ridges was spectacular. We particular love the combination of outside edges and ridges. One needs to visualize the 360 degrees effect as the camera is unable to capture its essence. It’s like living in a different world, on another planet. We then proceeded down and up the mountains for another two hours, but mostly in descent. This was a further ten miles with an estimated elevation gain before declines of 900 feet. We had gained well over 4,000 feet.
Pretty Exciting stuff

We came across people from all over the world. One young man from South Africa, others from Finland, Germany, locals of course, Australia, Canada, Germany and Slovenia. It’s quite funny being the unofficial representative of the United States, especially, when we sound the way we do. We met two young men from Switzerland —everyone was young from our perspective—Adrian and Todd. It was a delight spending time conversing with them. We discussed a host of topics and left with a better understanding of the younger generation. We wish you well, young fellows. We enjoyed your company immensely. It is not surprising that we meet young people on the trails. Many are in a similar mode to ourselves (only 30 years difference), enjoying the world before settling down to a formal lifestyle. What comes next for us? We were thinking…maybe we should have more children. Maybe, we’ll reconsider that thought.
Half-way-up & still fresh

The huts are equipped with gas stovetops, toilets, bunks and flies. There are no showers, no hot water—no frills. We carried our cooking utensils and food together with clothing and essentials on our backs. Not surprisingly, we took with us the minimum. Like all things in life, it is a trade-off. Others had a different view. Some brought portable gas burners so they could eat between meals on the track. Our editor was most inquisitive of the contents of campers’ packs. There’s no accounting for taste. For one night, we each slept in the upper bunk. It was not a good idea to drink before going to sleep. Try climbing down in the darkness.
Always rising editor

Although we hiked 35 miles in under 3 days, we thought there was too much time spent in the huts. Therefore, we decided to skip the last by combining two legs and straining our four legs. We walked sixteen miles at a fast pace in a little under 5.5hours. It was quite a ‘walk’ as they say in New Zealand. We salute our editor who exceeded our highest expectations. Sometimes, we stand aside and are in awe of this gentle young woman.

It often takes one time to settle comfortably in new surroundings. Strangely, on our return, we were able to handle a hot shower, a spacious room on our own with a soft warm bed quite well. Shows you how adaptable we are!
Insights to Kepler Track

Cheers,

Jenni and her ‘Pack-donkey’
A bridge just in time, to the car park