The Mueller Hut Route New Zealand

#Muller_Hut_Trail_NewZealand

Heading to Mount Cook Village on the South Island of New Zealand to take on this latest adventure
 There are seasonal restrictions from November to April and bookings are required

 For the Muller Hut
  There are only 28 bunks in two separate rooms, large communal kitchen plus a huge outdoor deck at a cost of $36.00 per night PP or $15 PP to camp near the facility
 With that fee it gives you access to the building plus you will need to bring your own food, sleeping bags, flashlight and toilet paper

KeyTip;
At no cost i did the hike as far as Sealy Tarns ( 500 meters of elevation left to the Mueller Hut)
  plus i added Hooker Valley Track to my itinerary
So i got all the views and experience of the trail without any overnight complications

Also VERY IMPORTANT;
You need to register what you intend on doing for the day at the Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park Visitor Centre.
So sign in then sign out..... or it may result in a formal search  

 

The Mueller Hut 1800 meter mark (5900 feet) at Sealy Range will provide you a 360 degree panorama view of glaciers, ice cliffs, vertical rock faces and of New Zealands highest peaks

The route starts at the White Horse Hill Campsite and a roundtrip is around 10 kms (6 miles) which should take you under 6 hours for an experienced adventurer.

The hike is considered highly challenging with all sorts of rugged terrain, steep inclines plus changing weather conditions to navigate.
  But a really rewarding alpine hike because of the views

As we start, the first 20 minutes are on flat wooden boardwalks through the grass plus tussocks then it starts inclining up the mountain which you will feel the change immediately

Weather can change quickly here so always bring extra warm clothes, rain jacket, hat, sunscreen, snacks, water and so on
You know, common sense stuff 😀

The route is marked with signs (plus poles with orange triangles) so look for that plus the path is worn so i good indicator until you get near the Mueller Hut , which is just straight up jajajaja

. Not sure how good the cell coverage is for GPS (alltrails wikiloc) but perhaps this will help for a backup plan

Your safety is YOUR responsibility so be prepared, especially going solo like myself
Choose the right route for your fitness level and maybe even bring a distress beacon for a level of comfort

Crossing this swing bridge into the Hooker Valley Track
This trail will give you much scenery of mountains, Mueller and Hooker Lakes (which if the winter months you might see icebergs) plus a vista of the valley.

It was a windy day and i now know why they call it a swing bridge 😁

Had a young lady in front of me "freeze up" on the span, so i calmly talked to her about not looking down but to the end of the structure
The gal made it to the other side but not sure how she was going to manage on the return

The river runs into a lake at the base of Hooker Valley
Footing is indeed slippery and time is needed so take those baby steps

KeyTip
The body of water here is a glacial lake, so extremely cold and dangerous
Needless to say do not swim in it plus be careful near the icebergs of Hooker Lake

The history of "Tramping" in New Zealand began with the Maori who traveled for trade plus survival, then the European settlers followed the trails for alpine climbing 
Then the popularity of these routes became recreational paths supported by clubs, which developed them into famous walks 

If your going into the mountains, be smart and check the New Zealand Avalanche Advisory plus the weather forecasts before heading out

Aoraki / Mount Cook 

Aoraki is the Maori name for "cloud piercer"
Sir Edmund Hillary used this area as a training ground before he came the first to conquer Mount Everest
The mountain actually has three summits; the Low, Middle and High Peaks
Finally it is considered New Zealands most dangerous peak, with many climbers having died attempting the challenging ascent

The original Mueller Hut was built in 1914 and was used as a shelter to explore the glacier that was nearby
Then between 1947-1953 two more Mueller Huts were destroyed by avalanches, so again we need to respect the elements of nature here

 To present times, new construction was completed in 2003 for what we see today

As i make my way back using the orange triangle markers, was having some photograph fun on the swing bridge and with the shadows on the rock face