Tasman Lake, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park

There can be few more energising and invigorating ways to begin your day than an early morning walk to the Blue Lakes and Tasman Glacier viewpoint to watch the sunrise.

An easy walk in summer and a little more challenging in winter, the hardest part of this adventure is dragging yourself out of bed in the predawn dark.   In winter, snow often blankets the ground in the Tasman Valley and the icy mountain air freezes anything that lingers, making the walk a winter lover’s paradise.

The snowy track leads over the glacial moraine and ascends a few steps to arrive at the vantage point. The view is unrivalled, with the Tasman Glacier – New Zealand’s longest – and its terminal lake sprawled out in front. Dominating the view are some of the tallest and most magnificent mountains in New Zealand: the Mt Cook Range, Maltebrun Range and the Liebig Range. They frame the lake perfectly as chiselled icebergs, having calved from the glacier face, float across the turquoise water. 

To sit here and watch as the day begins is truly magical.