Aoraki / Mount Cook & the Hooker Valley

You round one more bend, the cloud lifts for a second, and there it is. Aoraki / Mount Cook, the tallest mountain in the country, standing at the head of the valley like it owns the place. We may have made a small, undignified noise.

This was the part of the trip we’d dreamed about most, and Mount Cook National Park did not disappoint. We based ourselves at Glentanner Park Centre, a short drive from the village, and woke up to mountains for three mornings straight.

The road into Mount Cook National Park. The mountains just keep getting bigger.

The Hooker River and the valley, the big peaks lost in cloud.

Mueller Lake (the Hooker Valley Track was closed)

The Hooker Valley Track is the one everyone tells you to do. It is mostly flat, with swing bridges over the milky, glacier-fed Hooker River and snowy peaks on every side. Sadly, they had closed it for safety reasons when we were there. So we hung out at Mueller Lake instead, and then went to Tasman Lake.

Mueller Lake from the first lookout on the Hooker Valley Track.

Note: The full Hooker Valley Track is roughly a 10 km round trip out to the glacier lake at the foot of Mount Cook. Check that it’s open at the visitor centre in Mount Cook Village before you go.

One of the swing bridges over the Hooker River.

Tip: The weather here turns fast. We had cloud, sun and a cold wind all in the same walk. Carry a warm layer and a rain jacket even if it looks clear when you set off.

Cold, windy and very happy 😊

Icebergs on Tasman Lake

The surprise of the day was Tasman Lake, fed by the Tasman Glacier. We walked up over the moraine, came over the ridge, and there were actual icebergs floating in a still, milky-blue lake. In April. We stood there grinning like kids.

Me on the rocks at Tasman Lake. Yes, those are icebergs!

Down on the rocks at the lake edge, an iceberg close enough to make us feel very small.

A huge iceberg floating in Tasman Lake.

My husband at Tasman Lake. The water really is that colour.

Note: Don’t walk out onto the ice or get too close to the bergs. They can roll without warning. We admired them from the shoreline and the viewpoint.

The Blue Lakes on the way back. They are green now, and a sign explains why.

Looking down the Tasman Valley on the walk back.

Getting there

Mount Cook Village sits about 50 km up the road from the Lake Pukaki turnoff, along one of the most jaw-dropping drives we’ve ever done. The mountains just grow in your windscreen the whole way. There’s plenty of parking at the trailheads, but it fills early in peak season, so an early start helps.

Next up, we went up. Way up. The Sealy Tarns “Stairway to Heaven”. Our calves are still recovering. 😅

Categories: New Zealand, Places Tags: Mount Cook, Aoraki, Hooker Valley, hiking, glaciers, Nature