Background
Between Sunday the 19th Tuesday the 21st of February, 2023, I hiked the Kepler Track on New Zealand's South Island. It's a hiking trail which is typically done over 3-days.
Itinerary
- Sunday, February 19th, 2023
- 3PM - I started at the Rainbow Reach Car Park and left towards Brod Bay. It was drizzling on and off while I hiked. The trail to Broad Bay was almost completely flat.
- 6:28PM - I arrived at Broad Bay Campground
- Monday, February 20th, 2023
- 8:43AM - I left Brod Bay Campground, heading towards Luxmore Hut. On the way I saw Kea, a mountain parrot.
- Around 11:30AM - I made it to Luxmore Hut where I stopped to eat lunch outside. It was very windy at this time. From here I took a side trip to Luxmore Cave.
- 12:13PM - I arrived at and went into Luxmore Cave. The cave quickly became narrow and required crawling. I didn't go too deep into the cave. It was a break from the wind and was somewhat cold inside.
- 12:48PM - I made it to the summit of Mount Luxmore. The wind was quite strong at the top and in the surrouding area. After leaving the summit of Mount Luxmore, I headed towards Iris Burn Campsite. On the way I went to some lookouts. Most of the way was downhill. I eventually stopped at a small bridge and dunked myself in the water of a waterfall.
- 6:50PM - My tent was setup at the Iris Burn Campsite. From here I decided to visit the nearby waterfall before it got too dark and after many people had left it.
- 7:15PM - I made it to Iris Burn Falls. This waterfall had a deep pool to swim in and was rather powerful. The area around the waterfall had an intense amount of sandflies.
- Tuesday, February 21st, 2023
- Around 8AM - I departed Iris Burn Campground
- 11:53AM - I made it to Shallow Bay, stopping at Cozy Cove and Moturau Hut.
- 1:32PM - I was in a wetland area.
- 2:23PM - I crossed the final bridge back to the Rainbow Reach parking lot.
Kepler Track Summary
In total I went over 41 miles, gaining over 7,700 feet in elevation in under 48 hours.
The Kepler Track provides views of New Zealand's Fiordland. There are mountain views, lakes, waterfalls and even a cave. As with most Great Walks in New Zealand, doing the side hikes (which are each about 5-20 minutes out of the way) add much to the hike. The first and last days were mostly in forests and had little to no views.
If staying in a tent, Broad Bay and Iris Burn are the only two official campsites. One can camp 500 meters off of the track in certain areas but there are no facilities there. Otherwise, you have to book the campsites in advance.
Overall, Kepler Track has many views to offer. They are almost all confined to the area around Mount Luxmore, however.
No Comments
