Mirror Lakes Walk

EARLY BIRD GETS THE WORM

10 DECEMBER 2023

Run, Click, Hurry Up, Click, Click, Click

Driving along the Milford Road out to Milford Sound in the South Island of New Zealand is an experience in itself. You have to drive along it to get out to the Sounds (unless you take a helicopter from Te Anau or Queenstown) and it's seriously underrated as everyone's focused on the cruise out at the Sounds, but we truly believe more travellers should take the time to stop along the way because they're missing out on a whole lot of awesomeness. Some of the bus companies stop at certain points on the road but it is limited on time and limited to where they stop, so having a car means having time freedom and that's the best kind of freedom you can have in this situation.

One of the main attractions along the road is the Mirror Lakes, which are beside the main highway just an hour before you get into Milford Sound. They are a collection of small reflective lakes, nestled in amongst over hanging trees, with a backdrop of the Earl Mountains. We absolutely love a mountain reflection in a lake and the Mirror Lakes truly live up to their name!

The lakes in Southland are some of the best we've seen in New Zealand, alongside the lakes on the West Coast, as the tannins in the water give the best reflections you can get! Of course, there need to be little to no wind too, but the glass-like lakes are all down to this brown water you'd think twice about jumping into.

The track to the lakes is just 400m and from memory it only took us a minute or two to get to the end! We didn't take too many photos while we were visiting Mirror Lakes as we were trying to see as much as possible before our cruise set off at 10am at Milford Sound, so it was a run, click, run, click, hurry up guys, click, click, click kinda situation! The board walk is mostly flat and it is wheelchair and pram accessible.

The Only Situation Where Fog Is Acceptable

We had left Te Anau early so we could fit in as many awesome places as possible and being winter, the sun didn't rise till 8:30 or so, which meant that we got to witness an incredible golden glow on top of the Earl Mountains... what a sight that was!! It lasted less than 10-minutes then the colour completely disappeared as the sun got higher, we were so happy that we had the most perfect timing at the lakes. You have to see the rest of the photos of the sunrise along Milford Road - click here!

Winter in Southland can bring a lot of fog and inversion layers, which I think makes photos look more interesting and mystical, and on the day we visited the lakes, we were greeted with a small fog layer against the Earl Mountains which looked so beautiful! We enjoyed the views from each viewpoint and especially loved how the trees "framed" the view.

The best time of day to visit the lakes is early in the morning when the wind is calmer, plus you're more likely to have the place to yourself which is ideal if you're a keen photographer. As you can see, we didn't have the most perfect conditions, but it was close!

Unfortunately, I only have a few photos from my DSLR as my external HD crashed and I didn't have a backup of that HD, so I lost 6 months worth of photos... not fun!

Know Before You Go

The Mirror Lakes walk is pram and wheelchair friendly
No dogs are allowed here (or anywhere in Fiordland National Park)
We recommend you go as early as possible to get the best reflections (as the wind is calmer first thing in the morning) and there will be less people visiting first thing in the morning
Fiordland National Park is the wettest place in New Zealand so be prepared for rain!
The track is only 400m long and the lakes are pretty much beside the carpark (it's a zig-zag kinda path)

How To Get To The Mirror Lakes In Milford

The Mirror Lakes are in the Fiordland National Park in the South Island of New Zealand. They're 45 minutes north of Te Anau, on State Highway 94.

Click here to find Mirror Lakes on Google Maps.

Conclusion

Stopping to view the Mirror Lakes along Milford Road is a must! Morning times are the best to view the glass-like reflections and we think sunrise is a pretty special time to visit because who doesn't love golden hour on the mountains! It's a super easy walk that takes a couple of minutes, perfect to stretch your legs before making the rest of the way out to Milford Sound. It's an ideal walk for kids, due to it being so short, and they might even spot some wildlife amongst the wetlands.