Day 14 - Lake Marian, a hike through the wilderness

Our day started like almost every day here in New Zealand, with packing our stuff and dressing according to the weather. Since it rained and stormed all night, we had to put on our rain gear again.

To avoid having cold and completely soaked legs after our hike today, we first took a little detour. We found exactly what we needed in a small outdoor shop in town and bought two waterproof overpants. Fully prepared, we set off towards Milford Sound. A hike to Lake Marian was on the agenda for today.

Compared to yesterday, the weather was much more stable today... It rained almost continuously, it was gray and cloudy.

However, the closer we got to our destination, the more the storm subsided. At the starting point of the hike, there was only a gentle breeze.

The rain, on the other hand, persisted and did not let up. But we were prepared for it. With our new acquisitions, we set off completely weatherproof. The first short stop was a river, which was the goal of a 10-minute mini hike.

Up to this point, the path was very well developed, reinforced with wooden planks, leveled, and relatively dry. However, the further path was anything but developed, this was where the adventure through the jungle began.

The path consisted basically of roots and stones in all shapes and sizes. Thanks to the persistent rain, it was also nice and wet, slippery, and muddy. We stepped into mud more than once, just to continue walking with a delightful squelching sound. So actually the perfect hiking trail through the deepest nature of New Zealand. Due to the many stones and the especially wet and muddy surfaces, the track is only recommended with good footwear, especially in rainy weather.

There were also some short climbing passages

In total, the path went uphill almost the entire way (about 400 meters in altitude) and after about 1 hour and 15 minutes over sticks and stones (and mud), we reached our destination and stood at Lake Marian.

We were greeted with the sight of a perfectly smooth lake, surrounded by mountain slopes, where many small waterfalls made their way into the lake, and the mountain peaks above looked as if they had been sprinkled with powdered sugar.

We then walked around the lake to broaden our perspective and discovered many more small waterfalls. Hiking in the rain may not be as pleasant as in sunny weather. But the atmosphere of deep tranquility that we felt up there, created by the wet weather and the many waterfalls, is something I can't quite imagine in sunshine.

When we finally started our way back, it was Tobi's turn to carry the backpack. Feeling about 50 kg lighter, I skipped down the path like an elf. The only problem was that the path was even more slippery on the way down...

Of course, I slipped at one point on a bigger rock. Thanks to my cat-like reflexes, I can write to you here now. Because I was able to regain my balance while sliding and landed safely on my feet (you can ask Tobi, it must have looked extremely elegant). So both of us arrived back down safely.

When we arrived at the car, we proudly realized that our rain gear kept us dry and warm from the outside. Unfortunately, the material is not very breathable. Well, it's just plastic after all...

Today we are staying in a small motel, where I even have my own bedroom (I had the Wi-Fi password and could exchange it for the right to have the room). And the best part is: we are staying here for two nights. So the best conditions are set to be fit for the next two days...

We are heading to the sounds!