Aoraki/Mount Cook NP
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Hooker Valley Track Aoraki/Mount Cook NP |
March 11, 2017
Mount Cook is the highest peak in New Zealand.
The original plan was to climb the 3,800 feet to the
Mueller Hut, where Dave and I have a reservation, and
partake of all the great views. Unfortunately,
the area is totally socked in by clouds. About all
that we can see is at ground-level; so we abandon
that plan, which would have been a bit more than we were
prepared to chew anyway.
Once in Mount Cook Village, which is inside Mount Cook National Park, Dave and I head for the DOC, which we call the National Park Service at home.
The visitor centre is very nice
A common Maori theme
Despite the weather, we must do something enterprising with our day. On our way over to a popular trail, we give a ride to a Danish backpacker for the final two miles.
Setting out on the Hooker Valley Track
I'll be using my rain-proof camera for the first time on this trip; I suspect that it will get a lot more action later.
Freda Rock
When a man is the first to ascend a mountain peak, they name it after him. When a woman does it, they give her a rock. Go figure.
Mueller Lake
The lake's namesake glacier is obscured by the clouds;
we will not see it today. These features were named
after Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller
(1825-1896), a German-Australian physician,
geographer, and most notably, a botanist. Mueller was
appointed government botanist for the then colony of Victoria
in 1853, and later served as director of the Royal Botanic
Gardens in Melbourne. He also founded the National
Herbarium of Victoria, wrote many books, and named many
Australian plants.
Approaching Swinging Bridge #1
This is a big one — capacity 20!
The Hooker River from the center of the bridge
Foxglove
Mullein
That's quite a wall of scree
It is quite beautiful here. In peak flower season this place could well be a garden of Eden.
Evergreen Huckleberry
Pearly Everlasting (the pink one)
Swinging Bridge #2 is the longest one I have seen on any trail
That could be the end of the line
A nice dry place to rest up
The trail continues a bit farther, but we will turn back
here. It is raining non-stop now, and it isn't
as much fun as it was.
Interesting pattern
Back to Mueller Lake
Near the end of a walk is a shrine dedicated to some hikers who perished in an avalanche on Valentine's Day three years ago.
⇔
At the base of the monument is something as unusual as it is precious:
This guy has made my day
End of the line
Campers at the trailhead
§: Well, we did what we could with what
was available. On a clear day the alpine views around here
are world-class, but we could not enjoy them today.
| Scenery |  |
| Difficulty |  |
| Weather | |
| Solitude |  |
