The Tasman glacier view track is one of the best short walks for huge payoffs in the Mt. Cook area. Here are the details on this great, short hike.
If you love mountains then you’ll love Aoraki Mt. Cook National Park in New Zealand’s south island. The tallest peak in New Zealand, Mt. Cook, dominates the landscape in this area. From the visitor center you can see towering snow capped peaks and glaciers around you. There are many longer walks such as Hooker Valley, or shorter ones including Red Tarns, and the Tasman Glacier view walk.
Tasman Glacier View Walk Overview
Highlights – Truly breathtaking views of glacier, glacial moraines, lake, and mountains.
Location – Aoraki Mt. Cook National Park. This is in the Tasman valley, one valley to the east of Hooker valley.
Length Of Walk – 500 m one way, about 15 minutes.
Difficulty – Easy. The trail is steep to the lookout, but it’s a short trail.
The Tasman Glacier View Short Walk
From the carpark you can’t see much except a small hill in front of you and the sides of the valley. The trail quickly starts climbing up, up, and up.
Soon you’ll pass a side trail that heads over to Blue Lakes. I bet at one point those ‘blue lakes’ were actually blue and pretty cool to see, but now they are kind of gross. You can see them from the main trail or you can take a side trail to get right up to them.
A short, steep walk later and soon you crest the climb and come to the spot.
WOW! I heard the views were nice, but holy cow. The views from the glacier view lookout are truly amazing!
I’ve done a lot of hiking in my days and been in some big mountains. The view here compares to just about anywhere else I can think of. It is breathtaking. You can look out across the lake to the tasman glacier at the far end. Then towering above that are the tall peaks of the southern alps.
As I sat there looking out at the view I was completely entranced. I couldn’t believe that we hadn’t heard more about this short walk. I love mountains and the views here were like being in paradise for me.
My Insider Tips
Sometimes this valley will be clear when the Hooker valley is socked in clouds and rain.
There are some other trails in this valley if you are up for a bit more of a walk and exploring than this short trail offers. The Ball Flats Road route takes your farther up the valley. You can also check out a shorter trail to the lake shore, called the Tasman Lake track.