Fiordland - 1777

Today, I got back from a GREAT trip to Fiordland.  Yesterday, we hiked to Key Summit and to an unnamed peak measuring 1,777 meters above sea level.  There was some talk about bringing a crowbar to shorten it to 1776 meters tall and calling it Independence Peak.

Due to the amount of rain this region receives, the plant life was very lush.  I loved how soft and green it was on the way up the track.

Mt. Xenicus, the summit we hiked to two weeks ago, is off to the left in this picture below.

Photo op at Key Summit.

We stayed on the trail until we arrived at Howden Hut.  This is the lake we refilled our water bottles from.

After a quick picture, we bushbashed our way up the mountain.

I loved working hard for an hour or two and then sitting down to enjoy our progress!

Another quick break... I'm second in from the left.

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This was a great group to hike with - everyone was very relaxed about hanging out while everyone else caught up with the group.

I couldn't help stopping from time to time just to stare and ponder, "How did I get so lucky to be here?"

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Check out how windy it became the closer we got to the summit!

I did not always enjoy scrambling up this rocky stuff, but sliding down was a whole other story.  I loved it!!!  If we turned our body parallel to the mountain we could slide down several feet at a time.  SO MUCH FUN!

Last week we learned how to safely cross rivers to prepare for this trip.  Thankfully, we didn't have to go waist deep where we hiked.

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Sunday was terrible weather, so we decided to hike to Howden Hut and have an extended lunch there.

Before and after group photos...

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* Photos by Kalina Kassadjikova posted with permission.
** Photo by Tiffany Stephens posted without permission, but bribery may be an option if she objects.