Mitre peak Lodge

Milford track day 4:

This morning was the hardest to get up, after walking just over 20 miles the previous few days. Today's walk will take us to the last 13 and a bit miles to Sandfly point at the 33.5 mile marker where a boat will meet us to take us to the final Lodge overlooking the Milford sound and Mitre peak.

Today's walk was basically the distance of a half marathon which just confirmed to me that I will never attempt a half marathon, as walking alone was quite hard. Yes our legs did have some miles on them already, but this was quite an easy walk that was seemingly flat. The first 12 or so km I thought this is a walk in the park and somewhere between km 12 and 13 things changed and started to get aches and pains in my legs that made walking less fun. Naturally the last 5 km's it was head down and walk, I could not care less about the beautiful scenery. Once we reached the final mile the enjoyment of the whole experience just drowned out any aches and it was really a lovely ending to 4 spectacular days on the track.

According to my gps ⌚️️I walked 21.67km's at 18 minutes per km which took 40,420 steps and burnt 2659 calories.

Ultimate hikes really surpassed our expectations and I would recommend anyone planning to do the Milford track, the Route burn or Grand Traverse tracks to use them.
When we originally booked, we compared the all inclusive option with Ultimate hikes & walking this track independently. First of all as an accountant I had a spreadsheet costing out an independent hike of the Milford track, taking into account that we will have to buy all the gear like sleeping bags, pots and pans for cooking and we would have to carry all our food etc with us. Further you would have to find your own way to Te Anau downs, pay for the boat trip across to the start of the track, pay for boat tickets accommodation in Milford sound after the walk. All and all it would have been only about $200 cheaper to do it independently and we would have probably not showered for 4 days as the independent huts only have cold water and let me tell you the mountain water was freezing.
Ultimate hikes not only made the logistics of getting to and from the track so easy, they also provided gear like walking packs rain coats etc. as part of the booking cost. The food absolutely stunned us, it was on the same level and quality of the cruise, hence we never felt hungry on the track. We were able to pack lunch every morning before leaving the lodge. The accommodation with laundry and drying facilities was so great you could only pack one set of clothes to walk in and one set to use at night as we were able to wash as dry everything everyday. The biggest bonus at the last lodge was the automatic washers and drying rooms, so we washed everything so we start our camper van living clean and fresh. Then the guides made this such a rich experience with insights about anything and everything on the track and a "hot drink and warm smile" just when you needed it most. Kelly, Grace and Ellis were fantastic!
Lastly we were lucky to be in a small group of 24 people who all enjoyed each others company and it was really special to finish this journey together, and you could really see how happy everyone were for each other with the accomplishment when the guides handed out our certificates of completion at sun set on the last night.

What an experience, I think hiking is a new sport/hubby that Isabel and I will share for a long time to come.

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