Tasman River Track: Short Walk but So Many Stunning Views!
I decided to walk to the Tasman River while I was in Mount Cook National Park. The Tasman River Track was a short walk. The round trip was only about 2.6km long (One Way 1.3km). There was a board pointing the way at the beginning of the track.
The road looked pretty empty. There weren’t too many tourists around.
The sky also looked very blue when I arrived. There were snowcapped mountains all around. Since it was winter, all the grass and bushes had dried up. But I knew it must look very green and beautiful in the summer.
The road was quite dry and dusty. But I could see that there was snow lying on the ground here and there. Even though it was sunny at the moment, it must get very cold here at night.
I had to stop often to take pictures of the surrounding peaks.
They were so tall and the tops were covered in snow. It looked absolutely stunning (And if you want to see more stunning pictures around Mount Cook, you can read my articles about Mt Cook Alpine Salmon Shop at Lake Pukaki Visitor Centre and Hermitage Hotel.).
Since I was in a valley, there were tall mountains on all sides.
I came to a place where the road split in two directions. Since I was going to the Tasman River, I took the path on the right.
The path was really rocky and I was glad that I had worn good walking shoes.
Finally, I crossed over a hill. As soon as I reached the other side, I saw the Tasman River in front of me.
The Tasman River was an amazing sight! I had never seen water that looked like that color. It was a very pale sea green in color.
A few tourists stood in front of the river, enjoying the view. But the place was mostly empty and I could take as many pictures as I wanted.
There were huge chunks of ice in the water. I knew that the Tasman Glacier was very close so the ice must have come from the glacier.
The sides of the river were very rocky. Big boulders and rocks lay everywhere and I had to be careful when I climbed down to the river.
I decided to take pictures from a distance first. The sun was shining down on the water at an angle.
The green water, the blue skies and the snowcapped peaks made for the perfect picture, as you can see in the image above.
I was amazed how big the chunks of ice were. They almost looked like islands as they floated in the river.
In this particular area, the water looked very still and calm. It wasn’t very forceful.
I knew that the water must be very cold since it has just melted from a glacier.
I climbed down to the river so that I could take some pictures from up close.
There was a cool breeze and the water was rippling. I was glad that the sun was up.
The sun fell on the snow and the snow looked bright white in color.
I just couldn’t stop being shocked at the huge blocks of snow.
Some of the snow had even gathered near the banks of the river. Visitors would be able to pick it up in their hands if they wanted to.
The sun made the water glitter. It looked extremely pretty. I knew I would get some awesome photos.
Just behind the river was a mountain that looked absolutely white with snow.
Some of the hills around the river were very steep and rocky.
I walked along the river and saw that it was starting to gather force. Soon it would be a big, rushing river.
Even though the sun had risen, I could see some haze around the mountaintops.
I followed the river downstream for a little distance before I had to return.
As the river continued to flow, it seemed to get bluer and bluer! As you can see in the image above, the Tasman River now looked blue instead of green.
I returned to take one final picture of the mountains around the river. A few white clouds had started floating around.
Then it was time to return. I started my trek back along the path that I had come. I was very pleased that I had decided to visit the lovely Tasman River. The walk was worth the view!
