One thing we were learning was that New Zealand weather is horribly unpredictable. We had weather predictions that changed every few hours, making it virtually impossible to plan anything around the prediction. We decided to take our chances and drive further north with the hope of seeing Mt. Cook ("Aoraki" in Maori) , the highest mountain in New Zealand, from the dry (east) side.
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| Lake Hawea |
In order to get to the east side of Mt. Cook from Haast, we had to cross back over Haast Pass, down the lakes we had just come up, then north and back west. As we headed down the pass it started drying out, until we were out in broken clouds and sunny skies. It was dry all the way down to Wanaka and up to about 30 km short of Mt. Cook. Then things deteriorated again, and when we arrived at the end of the road near Mt. Cook we were socked in under a torrential downpour with high winds. We decided to splurge and try to find a dry room for the night instead of spending it in our tent.
The first place we tried was full; we ended up at The Hermitage, a huge hotel pretty much out of our price range and style. Our room was expensive ($200), had no towells, no water glasses, and twin bunk beds. The place was crowded, noisy, and generally had the atmosphere of a "destination" ski lodge in high season. The food was mediocre, and the internet didn't work. In case you missed it, we don't recommend it.
The forecast for the next two days was clearing by 10 a.m., but it seemed unlikely. We played bananagrams and then hit the sack to the sound of driving rain pelting the windows.
But then... Wow! We woke up the next morning to clearing skies and views of Mt. Sefton and Mt. Cook! These are impressive mountains, living up to their name in character as well as size — the "Southern Alps." We grabbed breakfast and headed out for some hiking.
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| Mt. Sefton
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Mt. Cook (Aoraki)
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We decided to hike up this "short" trail to the Sealy Tarns on the Mueller Hut trail. It is commonly referred to as the "Stairway to Heaven". Short is a funny term. Measured from above it's maybe 0.5 km long. Measured from the side it's less than 2 km long. But it consists of several thousand steps and a lot of switchbacks going up a steep hillside. We paced ourselves, started slowly, and said hi to all the people passing us.
Our son Sid had tentatively planned to meet a friend in New Zealand after he gets out of the army and climb Mt. Cook, but after looking at it long and hard I think he needs to do a few other climbs first... It looks like a fun one for those prepared and used to alpine climbing. If we ever go back and I can still climb maybe I'll try it...
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| Aoraki / Mt. Cook
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| Looking down on the Kea Pt. Lookout | Stairway To Heaven
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| Shrub Xxx Red Leaves
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Grass Xxx
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| Mt. Cook, Hooker Lake and Mueller Lake | Hooker River and Tasman River Valley |
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| Mt. Sefton | Tuckett Glacier on Mt. Sefton
this would not be fun to cross... |
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| Mt. Cook from Sealy Tarns | Aoraki (Mt. Cook) |
We tried to take a picture usable on our holiday card, but the lighting and the gymnastics to get where I needed to be in 12 seconds on a steep slope wasn't especially in our favor.
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| Gary and Dona | |
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| Flower Xxx Blue (Plumbago?) | Grass |
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| Dona Descending the Stairway to Heaven |
We would have liked to stay another day and hike some more, but we had arranged to meet some friends who live over on the coast the next day. So we said good-bye to the park and started the long drive back around, back over Haast pass, and down to the coast. We had stunning views as we departed. We hoped the weather would hold.
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| Mt. Sefton
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| La Perouse (left), Mt. Hicks (w/Cloud), Aoraki / Mt. Cook behind and to right of Mt. Wakefield |
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| Aoraki and Neighbors |
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| Mt. Sefton, La Perouse, Aoraki / Mt. Cook, Lake Pukaki |
We spent the night along the Makarora River at Cameron Flat, where we enjoyed the view and took a short hike along the river. A local fellow headed down to the fjord country was interested in our tent, as it looked a lot more waterproof than his ... It's not real light, but it has been a bastion of comfort over the years in crappy weather.
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| Camp on Makarora River at Cameron Flat | |
The next morning we retraced our steps over Haast Pass and down to the coast.
This page last updated on 2016-11-29.
