Aoraki Mt Cook National Park is a spectacular alpine area along the Southern Alps of the South Island. The name has both native Maori and colonial English derivations. In Maori, Aoraki means "High Mountain to the West" and is the name of the first born son of Rakinui, the sky father. The mountain was given its English name in honor of Captain James Cook, the great English navigator and explorer. Within the park, 22 peaks soar over 10,000 feet including Mt Cook, the highest mountain in all of New Zealand at almost 12,300 feet. More than a third of the park is covered in permanent ice and snow by these peaks and five large glaciers including the 17 mile long Tasman Glacier, one of the world's largest glaciers outside the polar regions. Throughout the park, large valleys occupied by glaciers and rivers separate the mountain ranges. (Click on the pictures to enlarge.)
