Helicopter to Mt. Aoraki (Mt Cook)

Mount Cook National Park is home to many of the ‘Southern Alps’.   The largest mountain was named in 1851 for explorer James Cook.  In Maori, its name is  'Aoraki' , which comes from an ancient myth in which the Gods turned a wrecked canoe into hills (this seems to be the Maori explanation for a lot of natural phenomena). The 'tallest' of the canoers was a child named Aoraki, who was sitting on the chief's shoulders.   Another account says that the mountain was named in honor of Aoraki, the first-born son of the Sky Father.  I would welcome any more detailed information or clarification if anyone is inclined to share it here in comments, or on social media.

Whatever you call them, the mountains are majestic.

Mt. Cook National Park

Our Helicopter

I’ve been in helicopters before--- several times when I went hili-hiking,  and again when I was getting to know the polar bears up close and personal.  I remember the first flight vividly.  I was nervous and really didn’t get how this little thing with the noisy propellers was going to get us up safely into the sky, much less land us on a mountain.  I remember sitting behind the pilot and, (as if this would help) using my hands to create an upward motion, the way you might do to a child who was learning to walk and had stumbled.  ‘C’mon,  up,  up,  you can do it....’  I so desperately wanted helicopter to get us safely above the mountain that was looming directly in front of  us.  

I don’t think the waving helped.  The pilots in all of these flights and the helicopters--they didn’t seem to need my assistance at all.  

heli-happy me

Mt. Aoraki, which has three main peaks, is more than one-third permanent ice and snow.  Aoraki is the highest peak at 11,290 feet (over 2 miles) above sea level. Twenty-two other peaks exceed 9,100 feet including Mt. Tasman, the second highest in the country at 10,490 feet. 

One hundred forty climbers have lost their lives on Aoraki’s slopes-- this is not the place for a novice to try hiking. These peaks have been the training ground for notable New Zealand mountaineers, including Sir Edmund Hillary and his son Peter.

Hell-happy Kate

I don’t know if Kate has been in a helicopter before--I know Gary has.  The headphones you see in the photo above the passenger to hear anything the pilot; that would be impossible otherwise.  Helicopters are very noisy.

We’re going land on a fairly level area of the mountain--no hiking, no records to challenge.  I’m just going to let mountains do what they always do -- mesmerize me  The view and understanding of these natural wonders put everything in perspective. I realize how great the grand scheme of nature is, how small our roles, how insignificant I am.   These peaks are billions of years old.  They shift and change under the weight of ice and snow, the ice thickens and thins with the altering earth and its environment, and here they still are.  Blllions of years old.  
What was it I was worried about?  

Oh, yeah… 

Nothing.

Where clouds meet mountains

We exit the copter and leave our insignificant marks---a few footprints in the snow.  In a matter of days or even hours,  our prints will be obliterated by wind and more precipitation. 

In some areas you can see some of the blue unique to glacial ice.  Compression by the weight of accumulating ice and snow squeezes out air bubbles below; the deeper layers of ice then reflect more blue.   

At some points you can see the blue ice seen only in glaciers

At this point I think the photos of our helicopter excursion speak for themselves, and make clear why we waited so anxiously throughout the trip for the weather to clear so we could fly.

Mt. Aoraki

Really, there is nothing words can add to the beauty of these mountains.

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Oamaru Heritage Week

We depart the giant Moeraki boulders of the beach and proceed to Oamaru, a normally quiet little place that is in just the right spot to break up the ride to Mt. Cook National Park. The first thing I see when I step off the bus is people dressed in Victorian clothes.

They seem to be having an argument about a woman’s right to vote....

....a very heated (and very staged) argument.

Police on a penny farthing

There are policemen patrolling the streets on ‘penny farthing cycles’. I’d never seen these ‘live' before.  This means of transport goes back to the 1870s, and the only explanation I can find for the name 'penny farthing' is that the two drastically different sized wheels reminded people of the two coins.  

The front wheel has a diameter of about five feet.  The large size offered greater speed.  Speed is good.  Getting around fast is good.  All I can think of is,  the front tire is taller than I am...how would a person get on that bike to take advantage of the great speed?

Apparently, with a step or stool, a little practice, and good balance, the owner--often a policeman-- could get on and off with ease,  Relative ease. Maybe. But being that high up on a narrow-wheeled bicycle creates a unique set of hazards, like flying over the handlebars when you hit a hole in the road.  I like modern cycles better.

All of the costumes and fun mark the culmination of Heritage Week in Oamaru.  There’s a parade...

a chance to ride an old steam locomotive,

 and a real sense of the period celebrated.

We skip the train ride, enjoy the celebration while dining at a pub, and then learn that the bright, clear sunny weather is giving us our longed-for chance to take a helicopter up to Mount Cook. This adventure has been postponed several times because of weather...We’re not going to miss this long-awaited opportunity.

The recently released movie ‘Suffragette’ addresses the British version of the fight for women’s rights that these people were staging for us in New Zealand.  I haven’t seen the movie, only the trailers, so I can’t offer any critique,  but it is a reminder of the freedoms and liberties so many of us enjoy -- and take for granted.