There was no better time to book my first trip to Mount Cook Village.
At a time when the Hooker and Tasman Valleys would typically be sprawling with tourists from all over the world exploring the majestic lands that lay below Mount Cook – instead, the odd group of New Zealanders (like me) were about, filling up their adventure cup in their homeland. It was hard to see mostly empty cafes, carparks, hotel rooms and businesses downsized. But I was grateful for the opportunity to explore the true heart of the Southern Alps with its sub-alpine hikes and glacial lakes with my partner Barny Young and a couple of our good friends without competing for carpark, café, track and view point space. Now knowing how accessible and mind-blowing this place is I can only imagine how busy it must get in peak season, when international borders are open.
After previously postponing our mid-winter adventure to Mount Cook due to a bad weather outlook, we finally set off from my parent’s house in Wanaka on a crisp mid-July morning, picked up
