The Kepler Track is often compared with the Routeburn Track and Milford Track (also both in Fiordland) when hikers are extolling the various virtues of NZ's Great Walks. Many people say the Kepler Track is their favourite as it has a little bit of both the other tracks combined. Having hiked both other tracks in 2019 and 2021, I definitely agree with this!
The first 5.6 km from the Control Gates at Te Anau to Brod Bay are a flat 5km walking through forest beside Lake Te Anau, and there are plenty of other flat sections experiencing the lush native NZ forest on days 3 and 4 of the hike, so we didn't feel like we would be missing much if we skipped this section.
The last 9.5km on Day 4 from Rainbow Reach back to the Control Gates are also not known to be as scenic as the first 6km of that day from Moturau Hut so again, we made a call to bypass this section. We also had to get back to Queenstown the same day that we finished, so after a short 1.5 hour hike out, we saved ourselves another 2 hours of hiking when we had 2 hours of driving ahead of us which was also appealing!
Hiking the 45km version will cost you an extra 50 per person to take the Tracknet Transport water taxi across the lake and then the shuttle back from Rainbow Reach to Te Anau, so this is something to consider for your hike budget.
The current fees for the 2024/25 season are $80 a night for NZ adults or $120 for international visitors, and $40 for children ($60 international). 2024 is the first year that you have to pay fees for children on Great Walks, we were fortunate to hike the track in April 2024 at the end of the 23/24 season before the new fee structure came into place.
So as an NZ adult it'll cost tiy $240 for the 3 nights or $360 as an international hiker.
After leaving our van at the Te Anau Holiday Park and storing our valuables in the lockers there, we made our way to the wharf in the centre of town, where our Fiordland Outdoors water taxi departed at 9.30am for the quick 15 minute trip across the lake. It was quite a choppy ride with a strong wind, and it took a bit of timing to safely navigate the descent onto the beach without getting our feet wet in the waves! We were immediately attacked by the sandflies the minute we alighted onto the beach, so it was a quick hoist of the packs on the backs, a few adjustments to hiking poles and straps and then we were quickly on our way.
There is no gentle easing into the day's hike starting from Brod Bay, as you are climbing up and up from the minute you leave the beach. We were all pretty hot and sweaty from the exertion, but it doesn't take long before you are rewarded with snippets of views of Te Anau visible through the trees.
After about an hour and a half, we reached and wound our way under the impressive Luxmore bluffs, with views through the beech forest of the valleys south of Te Anau.
By the time we popped out of the tree line at the 2.5 hour mark, the temperature had dropped considerably and it was time to put on some warmer gear and rain covers as there were showers threatening all around, and a full rainbow visible in the distance towards Lake Manapouri too.
But despite the wind and cold, we managed good time across the tops, the views on this part of the track are spectacular, you can see a long way up Lake Te Anau to the east, there was epic lighting hitting the Murchison Mountains to our north, and views towards the Jackson Peaks to our west.
The time across the ridge didn't seem to take long at all, and we arrived at Luxmore Hut around 1pm, much earlier than we'd thought we would.
Luxmore Hut is situated at almost 1,100 metres with views towards the Murchison mountains and over South Fiord and the main body of Lake Te Anau. Having skipped the first 5km, we were first to the hut and had the pick of the beds, with the best option being the smaller bunk room at the top of the stairs. It was a pleasure to sit and stare out the window while playing card games and watching everyone else gradually arrive during the afternoon. If there is a better view from a Great Walk hut in NZ, I'd like to know!
Later that afternoon, we made the short 1km return trip to see inside Luxmore cave, it was a good excuse to stretch the legs which were prone to seizing up a bit after the uphill exertion of the day.
Our Scottish hut ranger talked for almost an hour that night, it was a highly informative and entertaining session which included learning a waiata (Maori song) which we were to sing at each of the huts. He did warn us of the bad weather due the next morning and suggested the best plan of attack would be to wait out the worst of the rain and leave later in the morning, but still allowing ourselves enough time to complete what was going to be a very long day of hiking across the tops of the peaks and down the steep valley to Iris Burn Hut.
It was hard to believe looking out from the hut on this beautiful dusk with the moon shining that the weather was going to be so bad the next day, but that is the mountains for you!
The dreaded rain turned up as expected around dawn, so most people (including us) heeded the hut ranger's advice and hung out in the hut till late morning when the worst of the deluge and wind was due to subside. We eventually set off just after 10am, wanting to give ourselves enough time to reach the hut before dark. We weren't long into the journey before I realised that I was going to be the slowest and weakest link in our group, and with it important that we all stayed warm walking, we let my two boys go on ahead with our friends while hubby and I brought up the rear.
I'm not going to lie, I was pretty GRUMPY about how bad the weather was.... if there was one day on the Kepler that you want good views to see and capture, then Day 2 is it! But alas it was not to be. It was a grim, cold and wet walk for the entire day, and simply a matter of putting one foot in front of the other for most of the day (hence the distinct lack of camera photos since there was little to photograph!).
On a good day you can take the side route up to Mt Luxmore for the views which of course we didn't, but we did get to see the well-known kea Melroy hanging out at the turnoff, just waiting for some poor unsuspecting hiker to leave their pack for him to attack. There are two (very welcome) shelters as you walk across the tops, the first is Forest Burn Shelter approximately 2 hours into the hike. It's certainly a good place to take a break from the elements on a nasty day! The hut ranger mentioned how 'rustic' the toilet is up here, telling us that the wind had blown the door off its hinges some weeks back so you're only choice is to sit on the loo hoping that no-one happens to walk past on the track at that very moment, and ensuring that you put the rock back on the toilet lid after you're done to stop the kea from getting into the toilet, apparently they love diving down into the excrement to see what goodies they can find.... this defies belief!
The middle section of the day between the two shelters is a bit of a blur for me of a solid trudge with one foot in front of the other. We'd sent the rest of our group on ahead and told them not to wait for us at the next shelter as it was more important to keep as warm as possible by keeping moving. The views were tantalising at times, with the odd glimpse of valleys far below and peaks peeking out from clouds, but for the most part, the clouds kept the views excruciatingly hidden.
After 4 hours of up and down along the tops, the final, big descent remained, 1000 metres downhill over 5km - it sounds just as nasty as it actually is on the knees! Add to that the fact that the track was basically a river running downhill and it made for slow, carefully planned steps. One of our friends fell and ripped her knee open not long after starting the descent, and another person in a different party who had stayed at Luxmore hut the night before injured their knee and ankle so badly they had to be airlifted out the next day - this part of the hike is not something to take lightly, particularly in bad weather when it is more slippery!
The descent feels never ending - I was occasionally looking at my Topo GPS app so I could see exactly how far we'd gone and what was still to come, but that's not necessarily a good thing when you are at the point of just WILLING yourself to get to the hut with little energy left in the tank. Occasionally we'd glimpse where we were in relation to the bottom of the valley as the weather started to clear, although it was usually a bit depressing to realise how much further we still had to descend!
My oldest boy managed to get to the hut in only 4.5 hours, while Mark and I brought up the rear at about the 6 hour mark. We certainly weren't the last to arrive though, and the hut warden had to go out in search of the injured party in the dark which delayed the hut talk till later in the evening.
On the ranger's recommendation, we went out on a hunt for the local kiwi along the walk to the waterfall, sadly we didn't see any but we did hear one. The downside of a an entire 6 hours of walking in the rain is that there really isn't enough space for 50 hikers to dry gear in the small living area of the hut, so we knew we would be hiking in still wet gear come the morning...yuck!
We woke to misty, atmospheric conditions but clear skies overhead, a sign the day was going to be much better than the one before! After chatting with a very talkative kea who was determined to come and visit us inside the bunk room, we donned our (yep still damp!) clothing from the day before and headed out around 9am.
We had only made it 5 minutes up the track before one of our teenagers discovered he'd left his phone in the bunkroom (how this happened when it is permanently in his hand I'll never know!) but we all stopped and waited while he ran back to retrieve it.
We began our hike along the river valley, and the views were so atmospheric, with mist hanging about the hills, it certainly felt like a reward for slogging through the rain the day before! Even navigating the odd section of mud in this low lying part of the track could not dampen our spirits.
Despite the fact today's hike eventually descends 300m to the shores of Lake Manapouri, there's still some small naughty uphill and steep downhill sections to navigate along the way. Walking through the forest is just so stunning on this day though, I couldn't stop exclaiming over it!
The last few kilometres which skirt around the lake are a little tedious when by this stage your feet are rather aching, but it was nice to come upon a clearing and actually see all the way across the lake, and then it is a huge relief about half an hour later to finally see Moturau Hut appear in the clearing.
The hut has such a gorgeous setting looking out over Lake Manapouri. We were again reasonably early to arrive to the hut and managed to snag one of the small bunk rooms just off the kitchen, definitely a bonus not having to go outdoors and up the outdoor stairs to the upstairs larger bunk room with tired knees and feet!
We arrived to windy, clear conditions and took advantage of this to try and dry out some of our wet gear outside. Two of our party also braved a dip in Lake Manapouri as well - I only wish I could handle cold water swimming - even dipping my feet in cold water is a big enough challenge for me! The afternoon was spent playing card games and chatting while gradually the hut filled up.
One memorable incident occurred that night - we were the last to make our way to bed, and as we were just hopping into sleeping bags the smoke alarm went off in the kitchen. Upon returning we discovered that someone else in the hut had recently stoked the fire but left the hearth brush on top of the burner, and it had caught fire! Queue a mad dash to run outdoors with the brush and douse the flames, while opening up all the windows to let the smoke out. No one else came to investigate the noise so it was a good thing our party of six was still awake or it could have been a full evacuation had the clothing drying on the racks above the fire also caught alight!
Waking up on Day 4 and knowing that there was only a short and reasonably flat walk to the finish line was rather nice! Watching the sun light up the mountains across Lake Manapouri during sunrise was the best way to begin the final day too.
Our shuttle was booked for 10am so we just had to make it to the shuttle pick up point at Rainbow Reach by then. The walk itself, while mainly flat, still has a few short, sharp up and down sections which is a bit hard on sore knees, especially the final descent down to cross the Waiau River bridge. The highlight of the morning was the lovely golden light streaming through the forest and the small, reflective tarn we found along the way. At this time of the year in mid autumn (April), the sun takes a while to get high in the sky so the light and shadows are much softer, definitely my kind of photography light!
It wasn't long before we were at the last bridge which signalled the end of the track and we took time to enjoy the views up the Waiau river towards the mountains, revelling in the fact we had made it to the finish!
On balance, I do think the Kepler is probably a harder hike than either the Milford or Routeburn Tracks, especially if you choose to do the full 60km. If you hike the full 60km, each day would feel long, and it's 6km longer in total than the Milford Track.
Day 3 on Milford Track is the most challenging going over Mckinnon Pass as you descend 1,000 metres on the other side (much like Day 2 of the Kepler), but then once you include the side trip to Sutherland Falls, it's up near 21km for the day. Day 4 of the Milford is a long but mostly flat 18km walking out to Sandfly Point.
None of the days on the Routeburn Track are as long or challenging (each day is only 10-12km without adding any of the side trips to Conical Hill or Key Summit). The best thing about walking the shorter 45km version of the Kepler Track is that you have shorter, easier days on the first and last day, even the climb up to Luxmore Hut does not feel that challenging as you are freshest on Day One.
Enjoy this short 4 minute highlight video as a good taster of what you can expect, though hopefully you might have better luck on Day 2 with the weather and views than we did! We really did have good weather for the rest of the days we hiked so I can't complain too much!
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