So the next stop was Mount Cook which was always going to be a bit of a gamble as it is one of the wettest parts of New Zealand and Mount Cook is notorious for being hidden in a thick blanket of cloud and many people who visit never get to see the unusually shaped peak. We arrived late in the afternoon and as we were nearing mount cook true to form there were blue skies however there was a thick band of cloud covering the peaks of the Mackenzie mountain range including Mount Cook! Our campsite was a little outside of Mount Cook village however we decided to go to the visitor centre to get information on the different walks available so we could choose one for the following day. Fortunately we arrived on opening day of the new multi million pound visitor centre. Whilst some of the exhibits were tstill to be finished many of the installations were in place and we were able to fill our heads with lots of information about Mount Cook and the stories associated with its explorations. We were advised to wait until the following day to take on any walks as there was some snow forecast for early evening which we were assured would be gone by the following afternoon! The village itself is very modern with only a couple of privately owned housing estates and everything else has been built with the tourist in mind. There are no shops, banks or any of the other amenities you might expect. Everything is supplied via a huge hotel and entertainment complex called The Hermitage where as expected everything comes at a cost. After the visitors centre we had a walk around the gardens where for a window of maybe 3 minutes the very peak of mount cook appeared through the clouds we couldn't believe our luck! Whilst it wasn't the best view it was still better than no view and as far as we knew it might be the only view we get so we quickly took a few photos as proof that we were actually there. We were just about to head to the campsite when the rain started so we knew that was it on for the rest of the day. Tonight was the rugby final of the Air New Zealand Cup and fortunately the campsite had sky TV so in order to secure the channel changer when the game started we spent the afternoon camped on a couch in the common area with the heat of a log burning stove! Just before the game as predicted it started to snow which for us is not particularly exciting if anything it makes us anxious as we have no snow chains (they are a must in mountainous parts of New Zealand) however to see the reactions of the Indian and Chinese tourists who have obviously never seen snow before was hilarious. They all dropped everything to run outside in the freezing, howling wind to run around in the snow. No jackets, hats or gloves they are all just screaming and running around in their t-shirts trying to eat the snowflakes as they fall from the sky whilst Michael and I are literally doubled over laughing our heads off and getting annoyed that they keep leaving the door open freezing us half to death! Once the novelty of the snow had worn off normality returned and everyone settled in to watch the rugby. It was a really nice cozy atmosphere with everyone chatting to each other and having a laugh. So often the common areas are cold and uninviting but because of the weather and the log fire everyone had congregated on the many couches and chairs. We met a really lovely couple who were originally from Scotland and had moved down south around 20 years ago. They were instantly drawn to our accents and with a similar sense of humour we spent the rest of the evening sharing stories with them! By the end of the night they had given us a Daily Record to remind us of home and I had given them some of my old magazines I had collected on my travels! Whilst we do enjoy our own company in the campervan every night it is really nice to enjoy someone else's company from time to time and to hear other stories is always good fun! The next morning and it felt like we were in a completely different place from when we arrived. The clouds were gone to be replaced by beautiful blue skies and because of the previous nights snow everything was covered in a beautiful white frosting. We had decided to do a 3-4 hour walk through the hooker valley over 2 swing bridges to hooker lake which cloud permitting allowed fantastic views of Mount Cook. The drive to the walk itself was enough to take your breath away as everything was covered with snow and whilst we couldn't see Mount Cook from the road the other Mackenzie mountains were awesome. We parked up in the visitors car park and as the snow had not yet melted we were crunching through the snow most of which was still untouched. Within a few minutes of starting the walk we heard a loud bang almost like thunder and when we got to the first vista point we were told that the noise was an avalanche. Due to the heavy snow fall followed by lovely weather it was predicted that there would be many avalanches that day! We waited watching for maybe 15 minutes before continuing the walk glancing occasionally up to the mountains to make sure we were not missing anything! About 15 minutes later I glanced up only to see a massive shelf of snow start to fall, I shouted for Michael to look and we were both able to see an avalanche in real time! Once the snow had fallen it landed in the valley below with a loud crash which echoed around the valley. A huge cloud of white snow then came billowing up from the valley to engulf the air around it. We managed to catch some photos of the snow cloud and for about 10 minutes after it happened we were both so excited to have seen a real avalanche. The rest of the walk to the lake was stunning as the whole way everything sparkled as the sun hit the snow. We were maybe about 20 minutes from the lake when Mount Cook suddenly came into view with its unusual pyramid shaped peak. Not a cloud in sight it was the most amazing uninterrupted view of Mount Cook. The mountain that so many people hope to see but never do was right there for everyone to see. You take a photo and then a minute down the track you have to take another one as it seems better than the last. It is an awesome sight and having read the stories the previous day of the people who have lived and died conquering this massive mountain it just made it an even more interesting experience. We have to be two of the luckiest people to get to see an amazing part of New Zealand looking as beautiful as it did that day. We kept bumping into people who had stared at the mountain all their lives and even they had to agree it was an amazing sight. Eventually we managed to stop taking photos long enough to reach hooker lake which is a beautiful milky grey colour and when surrounded by the slate grey mountains, black stones and the white snow it was like something from a postcard. After a short break and a sugar boost it was time to make our way back to the camp and as there was less stopping on the homeward stretch we made it back in about 90 minutes. The whole walk had taken us 4 hours so by the time we got back to the van we were starving and ready for a warming bowl of soup. Rather than spend another night in the area we decided to head on round to another pretty spot at Lake Tekapo. The drive from Mount Cook to Lake Tekapo is listed as one of the most beautiful roads in New Zealand and without a shadow of a doubt it did not disappoint. The entire way we were surrounded by snow capped mountains and beautiful turquoise blue lakes. Needless to say we just took our time on this stretch of the journey as there were just so many beautiful sights to take in. We arrived at Lake Tekapo around dinner time to find that the town is very small and offers only a couple of tourist shops, a supermarket and some restaurants so we headed straight to the campsite to have some dinner, and rest our weary legs.