We stayed for two nights in Omarama, a tiny town which felt like it was in the middle of nowhere, but it acted as a good base of operations for some fun hikes that lay ahead. This area is also known for where Richie McCaw, the All Blacks most celebrated captain, grew up.
About 50km southwest of Omarama is the Lindis Pass, where the highway cuts through a range of bare, windswept mountains. It reminded me of some of the ranges we encountered driving through Ireland.
From the road they didn’t look so threatening, and it felt like it would be a gentle stroll up a hill. It turned out to be a pretty punishing climb, and we were quite out of breath by the time we reached the summit. You can’t really feel the scale until you look and see how small the cars are down by the roadside parking lot.
The view was nice at the top, especially with the sunlight of the setting sun shortly before dusk.
The following day we headed to do a couple of hikes around Mount Cook. To get there the highway travels alongside Lake Pukaki, where we stopped for some nice views of the mountains in the distance. The tall one you see in the center is Mount Cook.
Continuing on our way to the Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park, we couldn’t help but stop again to take even more photos. We could not have asked for better weather.
Our first destination was one of three glaciers in the region: Tasman Glacier. It’s New Zealand’s longest glacier, although it has shrunk considerably over the years.
The extremely cold water of Tasman Lake had a beautiful turquoise colour. You can see Mount Cook off to the left.
The path to get to the lake consisted of a series of winding steps, offering views of the beautifully rugged valley below.
Our next destination was a gentle hike on the Hooker Valley Track, where we would encounter two other glaciers. This 3 hour trek had some stunning scenery, and had a very well maintained path, including boardwalks and three swing bridges.
The bridges were very sturdy and didn’t swing at all.
That’s Mueller Lake in the distance, and around the corner to the left hides Mueller Glacier. This is where Hooker River is formed, which we crossed on the first swing bridge.
Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand, standing at 3,724 meters (12,218 feet)
The never-ending boardwalks certainly made this hike non-strenuous.
The structure on the left is an Alpine Memorial, which was erected in memory of those who perished in Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park.
We took a detour visit Richie McCaw’s hometown, and found this sign along the way.
Our campsite in Omarama, which was pleasant and had some nice facilities like a shared kitchen and rec room.
But of course the best thing about the campsite was the very socialble tabby cat.
