Parking
Start at White Horse Hill Campground at the end of Hooker Valley Road, about 2.5 km from Mount Cook Village. Day parking is in the adjacent car park; charges apply. This one-way route ends at Mount Cook Airport, so arrange return transport.
Overview
About Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail: White Horse Hill to Mount Cook Airport
Why go
- Easy grade with a long valley descent
- The Southern Alps open up behind you
Heads up
- One-way route; you need a pickup from the airport
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Aoraki / Mount Cook map
Full mapElevation648–761 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Aoraki / Mount Cook Tour Guide
Your drive to Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail: White Horse Hill to Mount Cook Airport, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
White Horse Hill and Kea Point0:00 / 0:21
“White Horse Hill is coming up, and Kea Point is my pick for a gentler mountain walk from here. Allow about an hour return on gravel with some loose stones.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Aoraki / Mount Cook Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Hooker Valley and the Walk to Hooker Lake
- The Hermitage and Hillary’s Alpine Centre
- Visitor Centre and Old Mountaineers’ Café
- Village Petrol Pumps and Bowen Bush Walk
- 24 audio storiesacross Aoraki / Mount Cook’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Kea, Rockwren, New Zealand Falcon, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 15 trails, 30 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail: White Horse Hill to Mount Cook Airport
The easy one-way routeThis 8 km section of the Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail runs from White Horse Hill Campground to…
This 8 km section of the Alps 2 Ocean Cycle Trail runs from White Horse Hill Campground to Mount Cook Airport through the Tasman Valley. It’s a shared cycle trail that walkers can use, with a gentle downhill feel rather than a summit climb. Allow around 2 to 2.5 hours on foot.
Look back as you goThe full route drops about 110 m from the campground to the airport.
The full route drops about 110 m from the campground to the airport. It begins on the formed cycleway beside Hooker Valley Road, then follows the main A2O line down the Tasman Valley. The best view is behind you: look back toward the Southern Alps as you head down-valley.
Make a plan for the finishThis is point-to-point, so arrange a pickup from Mount Cook Airport or plan the return before…
This is point-to-point, so arrange a pickup from Mount Cook Airport or plan the return before setting out. The regional trail does not continue across the Tasman River on foot; continuing east requires a helicopter transfer. That transfer is beyond the mapped 8 km.
At White Horse HillParking is in the car park beside the campground, where charges apply.
Parking is in the car park beside the campground, where charges apply. The campsite has treated drinking water and basic toilets; facilities are reduced in winter, and running water may be unavailable. Mount Cook Village, 2.5 km away, has a few café, restaurant and bar options. Dogs and other pets aren’t allowed in the national park. Alpine weather can turn cold, and snow or frost is possible in winter.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Aoraki /
139 sightingsKeaMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
73 sightingsRockwrenMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
46 sightingsNew Zealand FalconMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
15 sightingsKererūMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
16 sightingsBellbirdMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
33 sightingsBlack-fronted TernMost seen around 5 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Aoraki / Mount Cook. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
