March 8th, 2026 – Joes Milford Run, the 4th Edition.
22 Runners this year with a couple of late withdrawals. Scott of course was back, returning for his forth year in a row! Three runners made their way to Fiordland from the North Island, representing Auckland and Taranaki; and Daniel was our international, joining us all the way from Spain!
With the logistics well and truly dialled in by now, it was very much a case of, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” The weekend kicked off on Saturday evening with our traditional meet-and-greet over pizza and pasta at Nonna Resi’s Italian Restaurant in Te Anau. It was the perfect opportunity for the runners to meet one another, carb load, grab some complementary insect repellent, and run through all the logistics and timings before an early night.
The following morning started well before sunrise. Two private charter 16-seater buses collected runners from Te Anau Downs, driven by local professional tour guides. Special addition this year included a kit of thermoses, mugs, milk and coffee on board so anyone needing caffeination or to warm up before they hit the Milford Track could grab themselves a hot brew! Once everyone was ready, it was over to our waiting water taxi, expertly skippered by some of Fiordland’s finest, who got us all safely over to the start of the track.
This year, Mother Nature decided to put on the full Milford experience, delivering plenty of rain. But with that came reward the waterfalls were simply phenomenal. Every stream and cliff seemed to be pouring with water, transforming an already spectacular place into something truly unforgettable.
54km of Milford Track – a few taking the extra side quest to Sutherland Falls. Rain could not dampen the spirits of these amazing trail runners. Vibes were high, grins wide, and a perfectly timed clearing of skies at the top of Mackinnon Pass was the icing on the cake. A much dryer run from the tops, down through Clinton Valley and back to to the top of Lake Te Anau.
Amazing crew, all finishing strong and on time for their boats. Welcomed into Glade Wharf by their drop bags, a celebratory cold beer (or coke)… and 4 trillion sandflies!
2026 Milford Track legends: Lee, Scott, Alex, Evie, Dan, Joe, Lachlan, Ryan, Carn, Jake, Cameron, Daniel, Raechel, Eline, Anthony, Sarah, Jon-Paul, Emma, Jenn, Meg, Kenny, and shoutout to Storm who came to Milford, but couldn’t join the run.
Thanks to our Drivers Stephen and Sarah of Fiordland Tours, and Fiordland Outdoors Manager Hannah and Skippers Logan (Milford) and Sam (Te Anau) who made the whole adventure possible.
Read about the previous missions, and the origin of this shared adventure here.
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