Aptly named the ‘stairway to heaven’ this track squeezes 2’200 steps and a 600m elevation gain into a 2.5-kilometres uphill hike. It’s a ferociously steep walk but the footpath itself is easy to follow and involves no scrambling over rocks or climbing.

The starting point is the White Horse Hill Campsite and car park at the end of Hooker Valley Road where we set out on the Kea Point Track an hour before sunset and upon reaching a junction with the Sealy Tanrs Track followed the well-maintained path in steep zigzags up the Mueller Range on staircases.

It was late in the day, so everyone was coming down the mountain or had settled into Mueller Hut for the night, escaping the strong winds that day. No-one was headed for Sealy Tarns but us and when we arrived just as sunlight was fading and throwing long shadows on the mountainsides, the small exposed plateau was deserted.

We had to rush quite a bit but we did make it just in time to savour the brilliant display of vibrant red and orange streaks that soon after bled across the darkening sky against a backdrop of rugged mountain scenery.

Depending on the time of day and year and the weather, you may also see beautiful reflections of the snow-covered peaks shrouded in golden-orange mountain glow in the tarns (a tarn is a small alpine pond). If you’re attempting this hike in winter, note that the tarns will likely be frozen and covered with snow.

Above Sealy Tarns, the track changes into a route up a rocky tussock covered slope marked with poles, meaning no more staircases but rougher terrain and just as steep, involving some hands-on climbing as you come to a large rock field towards the end and finally scramble up a steep scree slope.

If you plan to hike to Mueller Hut, Sealy Tarns is the place to reassess your intentions. If you found the track a challenge to this point, it’s safer not to continue but enjoy the stunning views of the Hooker Valley and Aoraki/Mount Cook and return to the car park.