Mt Cook: Cloud Piercer

Aoraki Mt Cook (‘cloud piercer’ in Maori) sits majestically in the middle of New Zealand’s South Island. It’s the tallest mountain in the country, at 3,754 metres, and a four-hour foray from my humble abode in Queenstown, through Middle Earth scenery. Sir Edmund Hillary cut his spikes there – he’s the one famous for climbing some other mountain and being the only New Zealander to appear on a bank note in his lifetime (he insisted it be Mt Cook that appear on its background).

I tripped back there last year and something struck me. As I skipped along the track to Kea Point and a view of the peak, I realised I’d first stepped on its slats ten years ago, almost to the month. I counted the number of times I’d visited this sanctuary in that time, hoping to count to ten (I do appreciate a little order and symmetry in life). Although I tried to distort the stats by counting times I’d driven past and enjoyed the view from afar, the number of times I'd actually gone into the wilds of the national park and trod to Kea Point came to eight. I realised both how much my life changed in between those trips and how little my experience of Mt Cook did. No matter how many times I’ve dropped by to say hi, the mountain has always left me awed. The glacier may be receding and my life may be ever-changing, but the important things don’t change. Nature reigns there, in all its glory, and the national park remains a place you can find beauty seeping through all your senses.

My first visit was during my gap year, back in 2004. That year was the first time I’d truly felt free – New Zealand was the first place. But I didn’t return for seven and a half years. In the meantime, I went to Cambridge, sat a Masters in theology, and transitioned easily into the big-city-life of London Town, becoming an accountant. But both freedom and New Zealand remained on my mind. When I decided to change career and country (that is: quit and travel), there were many who called me crazy. There were some who accused me of wanting to relive, or at least recall, the glory of my gap year, and who warned me it would never work. There were others who couldn’t believe I was swan-diving off the corporate ladder and into oblivion. Even I wasn’t sure what I was doing. All I knew was that I wanted to be back in New Zealand some day, so that's where I ended up.

And because of its wonder, that's where I've stayed. I'll never be bored of travelling, but when I see Mt Cook piercing the clouds, I know I'm home.