If you’re planning on visiting Mount Cook National Park during your stay in New Zealand, then the Mueller Hut track is a must. If you’re not, then you should reconsider immediately.
This was one of my favourite stops from my month in Middle Earth. The drive there alone is worth the visit, as it’s one of the most stunning roads I’ve ever had the pleasure of cruising along. Make sure you take advantage of the various stop off points along the way, most notably Peter’s Lookout for one of the more iconic shots of New Zealand.
The national park has a number of hikes to choose from, the notable ones being: Hooker Valley, Tasman Glacier Lookout, Kea Point, and Mueller Hut. I couldn’t tell you much about the others, aside from the Hooker Valley trail being a much easier and shorter alternative to the Mueller Hut track, and that a lot of them share the same starting point - White Horse Hill Campsite.
The Prep
Now before I jump into the hike, I need to state clearly that if you want to stay in the hut overnight, then YOU MUST BOOK IN ADVANCE. You have the option to hike up and back down in the same day, but your legs probably won’t thank you for it. It is a pretty grueling hike - the Department of Conservation classes it as ‘advanced’, and estimate the duration of it at 4 hours one-way.
You can check the hut’s availability here and make a booking if your dates work. It’ll cost you $45 a night (about £23), and you’ll want to do this about a month in advance. I remember that the week I went was pretty booked up already (I was booking mid Feb for a mid March stay), so if that’s anything to go off then don’t leave it to the last minute, or think you can book yourself a place at the visitor centre the day you arrive. With that being said, you’ll still need to stop by the centre on arrival in order to ‘check in’, and get a stamp/ticket to show the warden when you eventually reach the hut.
The Trail
Once you’ve done this, head to White Horse Hill Campsite where you’ll be leaving your car/camper for the night. I set off around 1pm, which gave me easily enough time to reach the top while it was still light out, and then relax a little before sunset.
The path to start the trail is clearly signposted and eases you into the walk before being absolutely unforgiving on your knees. You’ll soon reach a seemingly never ending staircase that takes up about half of the total hike. There’s no other way to describe it other than 'brutal'.
Eventually, you’ll reach the ‘Sealy Tarns’, which is actually a hike in itself. There’s a pretty good viewpoint here which, for a lot of people, is as high as they’ll climb before heading back down. In my case, I was about halfway there. The path becomes less distinguishable as it continues to work its way up the mountain. There are orange poles really well placed the whole way up however, so there shouldn't be any risk of you getting lost.
The last bit of this section is across a large boulder field. Once you conquer this, the path will start to flatten out, and the hut will come into view! I managed to finish the hike in 2.5 hours, but I think for the most part, the 3-5 hours it's estimated to take on the signpost at the very beginning is fair enough.
The Hut
Don’t expect much in the way of amenities, remember that you’re 1800m up, and sharing this space with about 20-30 other people. Gas camping stoves are provided so that you can replenish your energy with a nice warm meal, but you’ll need to take any food up with you. There is water provided, and I believe it’s okay to drink but also remember getting told to take enough drinking water up, so I'm not 100% sure on that one.
There are three main rooms: two sleeping quarters and a kitchen area. Be prepared to get cozy with randomers, as the best way to describe the sleeping arrangement is a massive 'bunk bed’. You can see what I mean from the video below. Also, as you can imagine, there’s quite a pungent odour from the 28, sweaty hikers that are unable to have a shower, but that’ll be no surprise if you’ve stayed in similar hiking cabins before.
There’s a large decking area outside as well with benches for you to take in the view, and two long drop toilets. You’ll also notice lots of wind shelters nearby that have been put together from all the loose rock that makes up the surrounding area. A fair few people hike up with their own camping gear - I believe you still have to pay a $15 fee to ‘secure a place’ (as if there isn’t enough space up there!), but you can research this further on the DOC website.
The View
Now for the reason you hiked all the way up there, the view! Provided you're lucky with the weather, you’ll be rewarded handsomely for the graft you’ve put in to get up there. For sunset, I set-up shop on the large pile of rocks that’s just north of the hut. This gives you a completely unobscured view of Mt. Cook, which turns a magnificent orangey pink colour as it catches the last rays of sunlight.
Sunrise was probably one of the best I've ever experienced. I further up Mount Ollivier, directly behind the hut, for about 20 minutes or so. This gave me more of a 360 panoramic view, which I took in for a couple of hours as I watched the low hanging mist gradually creep it’s way from Lake Pukaki to Mt. Cook village.
Closing Thoughts
Is it worth staying the night in Mueller Hut? I’d say, without a shadow of a doubt, yes. For me, as a keen photographer, the main benefit was that it gave me the opportunity to capture sunset and sunrise at an extreme altitude, which isn’t something I’ve done often. Even though you could be sharing the hut with 20+ other people, I got an incredible sense of isolation up there. It was eerily quiet, with the silence only ever being broken by the deep, thunderous sound of cracking ice and falling snow from Mount Sefton nearby.
For the hike itself, it was definitely the hardest one I did in NZ. While it’s nowhere near as long as something like the Tongariro Crossing, it’s much more intense over a shorter period of time. I’d also say that, for the most part, the view doesn’t really change much as you climb - you’ll always be looking at the same backdrop, just a little higher. Compare this to the Tongariro Crossing, where the landscape is ever changing which makes the hike as a whole much more enjoyable.
In the same way that I rated the spectacle and difficulty of the Crossing in my last post, I’ll do the same here:
Difficulty: 7/10
Spectacle: 7.5/10
If you have any other questions at all regarding the hike or hut itself, then let me know in the comments below, or reach out to me on Instagram.
