Mount Cook National Park

Mt. Cook as seen from the one of the main roads on the south island.

 

The Southern Alps run through the length of the park.

Vegetation changes due to altitude are easily seen largely thanks to the steep slopes of the park.

Gorgeous bridges line a lot of the paths along the national park.

A vew of man and nature as one.  Along the main road to the base of Hooker glacier.

Hooker glacier and Mt. Cook as seen from the end of the Hooker Valley hike.

The Tasman glacier extends straight to a lake and is well seen from the hiking path.

Massive glacier chunks float on the lake of Tasman glacier. 

You can take a boat around the lake to get up close and personal with these broken off ice pieces.

 

    New Zealand has some of the most beautiful scenery in the entire world.  The Lord of the Rings was filmed here for a reason: beautiful and dramatic landscape.  Some of the most impressive of that New Zealand scenery are the Southern Alps running along the west side of the southern island, and some of the most impressive sections of those Southern Alps lie in Mt. Cook National Park.

                Nestled halfway up the south island, the park is home to the tallest peak in all of New Zealand (Mt. Cook, 12,313 feet) and the longest glacier (Tasman glacier, 17 miles).  The mountains and glaciers are so large that they can be seen from the main highway over fifty miles away.  Aside from those facts, the park has dramatic cliffs and glaciers all everywhere.  There are several hikes in the area showcasing the gorgeous alpine plants and birds.  One hike featured several mountain parrots that we saw at the terminus. 

                There are scenic flights, star gazing, mountain biking, and even boat rides that skim close to the large chunks of the Tasman glacier now sitting in the lake.  The best and most common activity is hiking the Hooker valley and trail up to the Tasman glacier.  With the outdoor recreation and long distance from civilization, Mount Cook National Park is one of fourteen national parks that tourists flock to every year for their dramatic beauty.