Loch Maree is a special place.  It's pretty from above and it's pretty when you're right next to it.  There are waterfalls flowing into it from the valley walls above and two rivers flow through it.  The mist often blow down the valley followed by sunlight a few minutes later.  On other days it's...oh, lets say it's always nice.  It's also the junction where the three arms of the trail meet.  Head north and you'll go to Centre Pass and Lake Manapouri, head south to Lake Hauroko and the Pleasant Range, and to the west is Dusky Sound.  All three of those paths are the epitome of stunning.

It's waters contain the remants of a forest that usually stick out above the surface.  The loch was created over 100 years ago after a rockslide blocked the path of the river and flooded the valley.  Notice how the valley walls become very narrow on the "Loch Maree Mists" pictures on the far side of the loch.  That's where the slide took place.  Beyond those walls, the loch turns into a more conventional river.