Pass Day (Thursday, March 12)
The morning of our push over the pass started like every other day on the Milford Track—rinse and repeat.
Wake up. Eat. Pack lunch. Hit the trail.
But this day went sideways fast.
It started with serious rain from the moment we stepped out, meaning we got wet immediately and stayed wet—until the rain upgraded itself to sleet… and then hail.
That felt personal.
Pass Day is known as the hardest day on the Milford Track, and after living it, I can confirm that reputation is well earned. Endless rocks. Endless switchbacks. Endless opportunities to question your life choices.
The climb to McKinnon Pass tops out at nearly 3,800 feet and includes a half-mile of exposed alpine trail where the weather makes the rules.
Crossing McKinnon Pass means walking in the footsteps of legendary explorer Quintin McKinnon, who hacked this route through Fiordland in 1888—then vanished in a storm just four years later. With the wind gusting in excess of sixty-five mph across that ridge, I had more than one moment wondering if history was about to repeat itself. 😊
And then there were the waterfalls.
So many waterfalls that trying to pick a favorite feels impossible. The famous ones include Anderson Cascades and Sutherland Falls—one of the tallest waterfalls in the world, dropping nearly 1,900 feet.
This part of Fiordland sits in New Zealand’s Southern Alps—the “Alps of the South”—where mountains rise straight out of the earth and storms seem to build in real time.
We stopped at Pass Hut for lunch and a desperately needed hot coffee just beyond the McKinnon Memorial. Psychologically, it felt like victory.
It wasn’t.
The descent into Arthur Valley was steep, slick, relentless, and punishing on tired legs. Real relief didn’t come until we crossed the final swing bridge over the Roaring Burn and dragged ourselves into Quintin Lodge.
Quick Summary:
• One of the wettest inhabited places on earth: 252–268 inches of rain a year (Seattle gets 37)
• More than a dozen rocky switchbacks in alpine terrain
• Exposed mountain pass with wind gusts over 65 mph
• Rain, sleet, hail, near-freezing temps, and weather changes by the minute
Basically… a perfect hiking day.
Lesson Learned: If you asked the team that night, most would have said: Take the helicopter or go to the beach instead.
By then, we were too tired to care.
