Aoraki/Mount Cook

It’s Okay To Yodel

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The Hooker Valley – Buy 

I remember reading once that in Greek mythology there was a belief that snow was caused by Zeus who brought it to mankind by means of his arrows. His arrows were believed to be responsible for weather phenomena like snowfall. 

Some of the more interesting facts about snow include; snow is not white, there must be pollen or dust in the air to form snow, no two snowflakes are exactly alike, it takes about 1 hour for a snowflake to reach the ground and my favourite, yodelling won’t cause an avalanche. It turns out that there are a number of factors that can trigger an avalanche, but noise isn’t one of them. For an avalanche to happen, a shift in weight or pressure is needed such as a blizzard, high winds, earth vibrations, a change in temperature or even human activity. But, noise won’t create an avalanche, even yodelling. Yodelling was first used by shepherds to call their stock and to communicate between Alpine villages in the Alps in Central Europe. It then became popular in the 1830s as entertainment in theatres and music halls and extended to places such as America, Romania, Bulgaria, Africa, Hawaii, Madagascar and the Solomon Islands however there has never been an avalanche created by yodelling.

So, if you’re ever high in the Alps surrounded by heavy snow, rest assured that a loud burst of terrible singing won’t bring a mass of snow, ice, and rocks falling rapidly down a mountainside.

Aoraki/Mount Cook

A Glitch & Mount Cook Village

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Mountain Range In Mount Cook Village – Buy 

I think there might be a small glitch or bug happening in my blog feed. It’s really strange. I’ve written and posted this about four times but for some reason it doesn’t stay on the feed, it keeps disappearing or slipping off. Another strange thing was that it was publishing posts with a date two years ago. I’m not sure why?! I’ll have to look into it.

Aoraki/Mount Cook, Aotearoa, The Hooker Valley, Travel

The Hooker Valley Track

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The Hooker Valley Track – Buy 

The walk through The Hooker Valley is rated as one of the best walks in the country and it’s not hard to see why. Starting at the White Horse car park, the track begins by passing the Alpine Memorial and Freda’s Rock before the Mueller Glacier comes into view. The track crosses the Hooker River, it ventures into the wider valley and open tussock which includes three swing bridges that need to be crossed. After passing over the third swing bridge, the path leads to the source of the Hooker River and amazing views of Hooker Lake.

Aoraki/Mount Cook, Aotearoa, Travel

Freda du Faur & Mount Cook

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Mount Cook – Buy 

High on Mount Cook, in the cold, early hours of Saturday 3rd December 1910, Australian mountaineer Freda du Faur and her companions Peter and Alec Graham started their final ascent on the summit. 

Born and raised in Sydney, Freda taught herself to rock climb and pursued it with a passion. In 1906, at the age of 24, she summered in New Zealand and after seeing images of Mount Cook became determined to climb it. She then spent the years between 1908 and 1910 preparing for her ascent on the peak. So, on Saturday 3rd December 1910, accompanied with two companions, Freda du Faur became the first woman to successfully climb Mount Cook.

Aoraki/Mount Cook, Aotearoa, Travel

Aoraki/Mount Cook Village

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Aoraki/Mount Cook Village – Buy 

By the time I arrived in the Mount Cook Village it was snowing heavily. Once I’d found the car park and after navigating my way through the snow in the fading dusk to the Alpine Lodge, I walked in through the front door to the reception covered in a blanket of snow. The owner then informed me that it had been snowing for around 12 to 18 hours and it seemed to be easing. 

The next morning in the bright sunlight, the village was covered in deep snow. Scanning the village around me, it all looked very wonderful. The day’s expedition involved a 10km round trip hike through the Hooker Valley to the Hooker Lake. Now, with the heavy snowfall, I found myself eager to get going.

Aoraki/Mount Cook, Aotearoa, Travel

The Hooker Valley Walk

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The Hooker Valley – Buy 

The walk through The Hooker Valley is rated as one of the best walks in the country and it’s not hard to see why. Starting at the White Horse car park, the track begins by passing the Alpine Memorial and Freda’s Rock before the Mueller Glacier comes into view. The track crosses the Hooker River, it ventures into the wider valley and open tussock which includes three swing bridges that need to be crossed. After passing over the third swing bridge, the path leads to the source of the Hooker River and amazing views of Hooker Lake.

Aoraki/Mount Cook, Travel, Winter

Mount Cook And The Hooker Valley

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Mount Cook and The Hooker Lake– Buy or view the Ōtepoti | Dunedin gallery

Covered in deep snow, the track led up the Hooker Valley towards Aoraki/Mount Cook. It started by passing close to Freda’s Rock. It’s named after Emmeline Freda du Faur who was the first woman to climb Aoraki/Mount Cook. This amazing accomplishment she achieved in 1910 and remains forever immortalised in New Zealand mountaineering history. I happily followed the snowy path, kicking snow and trying to decide if it would be socially acceptable to throw snowballs at strangers when Mueller Glacier and the first swing bridge came into view. The path crossed the Hooker River and carried on to the second swing bridge. 

It was somewhere between the Mueller Glacier and the second swing bridge that I suddenly had the overwhelming feeling that I might be getting sunburnt. I rummaged through my bag but soon realized that bringing sunblock really would have been a good idea. resigning myself to the fact that I was going to end up very burnt, I pushed on. 

Passing the second bridge, the track opened to the wider valley floor, and even deeper snow until I arrived at the third swing bridge and headed for the glacier lake. 

Upon arriving at my destination I came across a view that is pretty well unimprovable. Mountains, rocks, snow, ice, a glacier and lake in every direction. The last 20 meters of the track is a gentle incline until reaching the top of the path where it opens out to an amazing view of Aoraki/Mount Cook, Hooker Glacier and the Southern Alps. This is one of the beautiful things about Aotearoa, if you are prepared to walk then you’re in for some spectacular scenery. 

I stood and daydreamed for a bit, ate my carefully packed sandwiches, explored the different vantage spots with my camera before turning my attention to the walk back. By this time, under the hot sun, the snowy track was turning to slush and I had 5km of splashing through puddles ahead of me. 

Sometime later, upon my return, I fetched a Speight’s from my improvised ice bucket fashioned from  rocks and snow and settled on my bed. My legs aching and my face burning, I started the process of uploading flash cards to my computer.

Aoraki/Mount Cook, Travel

Aoraki/Mount Cook

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A Walk In The Snow

Buy & Order Print

Some people are blessed when it comes to clothes shopping. They have an innate ability to trust their inner voice and listen to intuitive hints when shopping. Somehow, without trying, they understand both fashion and style. Unfortunately, I possess neither of these. I have a long history of poor choices that prove my hunches and gut feelings should not be listened to. I am not allowed to shop by myself. It’s not that I can’t, it’s just that my fashion judgement can’t be trusted. 

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