Hooker Lake

Hooker Lake is a glacier-fed lake beneath Aoraki / Mount Cook, reached at the end of the Hooker Valley Track. In summer, icebergs sometimes drift across the water, with the Southern Alps rising behind it. The view makes this one of the park’s priority walks if you want a close mountain and glacier-lake experience, but it’s not a quick roadside stop.

From White Horse Hill car park, the track is 10 km return on the same route, with an official estimate of about three hours. It’s graded easy to intermediate, but it’s still a proper day walk. The gravel path has some steps and crosses three swing bridges; after the second bridge, the valley opens into tussock before the final bridge and lake.

Pack food and water; don’t count on a service at the lake. Toilets sit along the route about 15 minutes beyond the second swing bridge. White Horse Hill has treated drinking water, a public shelter and accessible toilets at the campground by the trailhead, so use those before setting off. Check DOC’s track information and the weather forecast before you start: alpine conditions change quickly, and shaded sections can be icy in winter.

Hooker Lake grew as Hooker Glacier retreated and calved ice into the valley. The floating ice is the clearest sign of that ongoing change. Icebergs move and can tip, so admire them from shore.

Hooker Valley and the surrounding area are sacred to Ngāi Tahu. The area has Tōpuni status, a symbolic cloak of protection that recognizes its significance.

Keep an eye out for celmisia and the Mount Cook buttercup, or kōpukupuku, which is the world’s largest buttercup. Kea and kārearea (New Zealand falcon) can sometimes be heard or seen along the track.