Milford Track in Fiordland reopens for tramping

For the first time since devastating floods hit Fiordland in February, trampers can now walk the Milford Track end-to-end.

Floods damaged several sections of the Great Walk track, with repairs to the Clinton Valley section finished during winter.

The damage was more severe between Dumpling Hut and Sandfly Point in the Arthur Valley and repairs took a bit longer.

Department of Conservation operations director for the southern South Island Aaron Fleming told Morning Report there had been a lot of work into planning the repairs.

"It is one of our most iconic tracks, not just in New Zealand, but around the world, so it's fantastic news today to have trampers back out there and able to walk the full length of the track."

Visitors will notice some areas with new tracks and a new bridge to replace one that was wiped out by the flooding.

Fleming said they were unsure at first how much interest there would be in bookings, but they sold out by lunchtime when they opened spaces a few months ago.

"It's almost like trying to get a concert ticket getting on to the Milford Track. That's just blown us away, it's New Zealanders getting out, exploring our backyard and exploring Fiordland which is such an important part of conservation New Zealand."

Building resilience would always be a challenge but they were working on it, he said.

"When we do this work we want to make sure that we're taking climate change in mind in our planning and ensuring that when we're looking at infrastructure and when we're preparing for the next weather event, the work we're doing today can outlast that and sustain that."