Milford Track
OSM hiking route in Fiordland, New Zealand (53.6 km line), Glade Wharf to Sandfly Point. Vertical figures sampled from Copernicus GLO-30. Days (4) is a placeholder from round(lengthKm/12), not the published 4 day / 3 night Great Walk window (unverified).
Byline
- The Hiking World editorial · author
Desk byline for seed records. Named surveying editors replace this once a trail is verified.
Figures marked provisional are seed data and still need verification. Source and last-checked date sit under each cited value.
Editorial v1 · Provisional catalog
Great Walk / easier tramping in season
- SAC T2 (mapped — no official SAC grade)
- Mountain hiking. Continuous trail, some steep ground, sure-footedness helpful.
- YDS Class 1
- Class 1. Walking on an established path; low fall risk.
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Ingested from OpenStreetMap relation 1385121 (ODbL). The mapped line and 2D length are derived from that geometry. Ascent, descent, and high/low points are sampled from Copernicus GLO-30 (copernicus-dem:glo-30) and remain provisional. Water, permits, and hazards were not taken from OSM tags and must be verified.
OSM 2D length is 53.6 km (relation 1385121; DOC Great Walk GW07, Wikidata Q673819). Not Kepler (1385141), Routeburn, Hollyford, or George Sound. Published 53.5 km / 4 days / 3 nights (https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/fiordland/places/fiordland-national-park/things-to-do/tracks/milford-track/, checked 2026-08-25) are cross-checks only, not this DataPoint. The line is point-to-point, one-way: Glade Wharf (OSM start) to Sandfly Point (OSM end).
typicalDays 4 is the published typical: DOC says the track can only be walked in one direction over 3 nights and 4 days (https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/fiordland/places/fiordland-national-park/things-to-do/tracks/milford-track/, checked 2026-08-25). Not a DataPoint. Great Walks season 1 November 2026–30 April 2027 (last departure 28 April 2027); from May to late October it is not a Great Walk / easier tramping track (same page).
DEM high 1,135 m is 19 m under DOC's Omanui/McKinnon Pass Shelter 1,154 m (same page, checked 2026-08-25) — classic DEM/vertex undershoot on the alpine pass. High point left as Copernicus, not overwritten.
Water was not mapped to named WaterSource points (no honest atFraction). Huts have cold running water in the Great Walks season; they were not positioned from an official named list this pass.
Water
No water sources recorded.
Permits & fees
- Permit
- DOC Great Walk hut booking
Log in to view cost, booking, and issuer
Getting there
Sourced legs to the Glade Wharf (OSM line start) base start station — where this trail record begins. This is not a route planner: durations are approximate and marked provisional until an official transport page confirms them.
Bus · Queenstown (ZQN) → Te Anau
Road/shuttle from Queenstown to Te Anau. No rail to Fiordland trailheads.
doc.govt.nz · 2026-08-25 · official · provisionalFerry · Te Anau → Glade Wharf
DOC: from Te Anau, bus or private transport to Te Anau Downs (30 minutes), then a boat to Glade Wharf (1 hour 15 minutes). There is no vehicle or private access to the start. Transport must be booked in advance (https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/fiordland/places/fiordland-national-park/things-to-do/tracks/milford-track/, checked 2026-08-25).
doc.govt.nz · 2026-08-25 · official · provisionalRoad · Invercargill (IVC) → Te Anau
Secondary South Island gateway; road to Te Anau, then Te Anau Downs boat as above. Not named on the DOC Milford page.
en.wikipedia.org · 2026-08-25 · wikidata · official · provisional
No rail. Exit is a 20-minute boat from Sandfly Point to Milford Sound/Piopiotahi, then bus back to Te Anau or Queenstown (same DOC page, checked 2026-08-25).
Plan from your location
Type a city, then pick a match. These links open external search tools — they do not fetch fares or timetables.
Trailheads
- Glade Wharf (OSM line start) car-free: yes
- Sandfly Point (OSM line end) car-free: yes
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Hazards
- Flooding and rapid weather: the Milford Track is not an all-weather track. The Clinton and Arthur valleys become impassable in heavy rain; landslides and river rises are routine (https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/fiordland/places/fiordland-national-park/things-to-do/tracks/milford-track/, checked 2026-08-25).
- Exposed alpine section over Omanui/McKinnon Pass (DOC shelter 1,154 m): steep, slippery, rough, and muddy; not recommended for children under 10 (same page, checked 2026-08-25).
- Avalanche terrain: risk can extend into December; DOC manages it to a low level in the Great Walks season and may fly walkers over dangerous sections at their cost. Outside season, DOC does not manage flooding or avalanches (same page, checked 2026-08-25).
- Insect pressure at the Sound end: DOC names the finish Sandfly Point and lists insect repellent on the packing list (same page, checked 2026-08-25).
Questions
Do I need a permit for Milford Track?
A permit is required for Milford Track: DOC Great Walk hut booking. Cost, booking, and issuer stay behind the login gate on this page.
When is the best time to hike Milford Track?
On this record the best season is: Great Walks season 1 Nov 2026–30 Apr 2027; winter = alpine skills.
How difficult is Milford Track?
Milford Track is graded DOC: Great Walk / Easier tramping track (in season) · SAC T2 (mapped — no official SAC grade) · YDS 1. A sourced hazard on this record: Flooding and rapid weather: the Milford Track is not an all-weather track. The Clinton and Arthur valleys become impassable in heavy rain; landslides and river rises are routine (https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/fiordland/places/fiordland-national-park/things-to-do/tracks/milford-track/, checked 2026-08-25).
How long is Milford Track?
The OSM 2-D length on this record is 53.6 km (provisional). Published figures may differ. See /guides/how-long-is-the-trail
How do I get to Milford Track?
The record’s base start is Glade Wharf (OSM line start). A primary gateway on the record is Queenstown Airport (ZQN). Trailhead transit notes are not included in this public FAQ.
Related trails
- Kepler Track · Compared with this record
- Routeburn Track · Compared with this record
- Tongariro Alpine Crossing · Compared with this record
- Tongariro Northern Circuit · Compared with this record