Alpine environments and mountains are some of our favourite landscapes. We can’t tear our eyes away from that cold, hard, craggy, white image. Maybe it’s because it’s such a forbidding environment, and one that we haven’t tackled outside of ski resorts. Who knows!
A few years back, we headed down to New Zealand’s South Island for a quick weekend road trip, to visit some places that Shaun hadn’t been to before. One of these places was Aoraki/Mt Cook – New Zealand’s loftiest peak. Aoraki is the Maori name for the mountain, meaning “Cloud Piercer”.
Aoraki/Mt Cook at sunset
Standing at 3,754 m, Aoraki/Mt Cook and its twin peaks are pretty damn impressive. It’s a mass of a mountain. While visiting, we took the opportunity to hop on a little plane and get up close and personal with the Cloud Piercer. I think my shutter was clicking for the whole 20 minutes of the flight!
Aoraki/Mt Cook and Tasman Glacier
The treeline
Reflection of Aoraki/Mt Cook in the Tasman Glacier terminal lake
The Southern Alps north of Aoraki/Mt Cook
Iceberg in Tasman Glacier terminal lake
Can you spot the hut?
Glacier near Aoraki/Mt Cook
Southern Alps mountains near Aoraki/Mt Cook
Icy textures at Aoraki/Mt Cook
Tasman Glacier terminal lake
Glacial ice at the base of Aoraki/Mt Cook
Aoraki/Mt Cook and the surrounding National Park, as well as the rest of the Southern Alps, are impressive parts of New Zealand. It is truly stunning to fly alongside these behemoths, and it really makes you appreciate their scale. Hopefully one day we will get to explore the mountains on foot!
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