Day 4 on the
Milford Track
The rain persisted all night, at times heavy. You might
have thought that Dumpling Hut was going to wash away. The morning brought
no relief.
The evening before we had read a notice on the bulletin
board that there was a large "slip" across the Track before we'd reach the
end at Sandfly Point. The washout was so big and dangerous that if there was
a large amount of rain, the DOC would bring helicopters in to ferry all hikers
past the slip, perhaps to the end itself. (There is no alternative but to
move on since there are 40 other hikers coming to spend the night at the
hut once we leave. And we have to leave.)
As hearty as we were, and fully anticipating hiking
the final leg thereby completing the trek as expected, we looked upon the
possibility of a helicopter ride out as an unanticipated adventure and a
relief from slogging 11 miles in a hard rain. I, at least, crossed my fingers
that the rain would worsen.
