All That Gliiters by Timothy Poulton

All That Gliiters by Timothy Poulton

It goes without saying that hiking or (tramping, as it is known locally), is a major highlight of any visit to New Zealand and the Hooker Valley is at the top of the list. Mount Cook is New Zealand’s highest mountain, towering above it’s spiny brethren in the southern alps. Climbing to the top of it is not the sort of thing one tackles as a day jaunt – this is serious mountain climbing country which has been tackled by world famous climbers such Edmund Hillary. However, you can get some epically rewarding day hiking achieved around the base of this mountain, starting from the Mount Cook village. One walk that stands out in this area is the walk to the lake at the foot of one of Mount Cook’s glaciers, a two – three hour return walk that crosses snow covered boulder fields and a number of glacially fed startlingly blue rivers. The walk isn’t particularly tough, other than being potentially slippy due to snow and ice, but the views are absolutely mind blowing, as Mount Cook looms over you, with snow coated mountains all around.

Timothy Poulton: Photos