Aoraki is the Māori name for New Zealand's highest mountain, and it matters. In Ngāi Tahu tradition, Aoraki and his brothers were sons of the sky who came down in a canoe, which ran aground and turned to stone; the canoe became the South Island, and the brothers became the peaks of the Southern Alps, with Aoraki the tallest. Mount Cook, the English name, honours the navigator James Cook, who never actually saw it up close. The summit stands at about 3,724 metres.
The mountain lies far to the north-east of this point, which sits in the mountains west of Queenstown, and the ride called Mount Cook High Country goes there by way of Twizel and Lake Pukaki. The lake is the great surprise on the way, with water of an almost unnatural turquoise colour, caused by rock flour from the glaciers, and the white mountain reflected in it. A road runs along its western shore towards the village at the foot of the mountain, with views that justify frequent stops.
The first ascent of Aoraki was made on Christmas Day 1894, by Tom Fyfe, George Graham and Jack Clarke, who climbed from the Hooker Valley without much equipment. Edmund Hillary learned his craft on its slopes, and the Hermitage hotel at the village has long been a base for climbers and walkers. The Hooker Valley track, an easy walk of a couple of hours, leads to a glacial lake with icebergs floating in front of the mountain, and it is hard to beat.
For riding, the road to the village is very good, with long, open bends beside the lake, exposed to wind from the mountains and sometimes crossed by sheep. The weather can change rapidly, with snow possible on the approach at any time of year, and cloud often hides the summit. The traffic is mostly coaches and campervans in summer. Make sure you have enough fuel, because services in the village are limited, and fill up in Twizel, which has stations and a supermarket.
The Mackenzie Basin is high, cold and dry, and the nights are brilliant with stars. If you can, camp or stay overnight and watch the mountain turn pink at dawn.