The first section of the Mueller Hut Track starts as a pleasant walk through the forest, but the comfort doesn’t last long. Before we knew it, the track transformed into an endless slog up staircase after staircase. The grind was tough, but the surrounding views of Mount Cook and its neighbors helped to ease the pain in our legs.

Snow began to appear around the Sealy Tarns area, which oddly felt like a relief—charging straight uphill through snow was far easier than battling the stairs. The remainder of the ascent to Mueller Hut passed without major issues, though we did have one unique interruption.

Partway up, a helicopter suddenly buzzed overhead and landed close by, covering us in a whiteout of flying snow. We learned later that another tramper had accidentally activated a PLB (personal locator beacon), and for a moment, the rescue team thought it might have been ours. Luckily, the mix-up was quickly resolved.

When we finally arrived, Mueller Hut did not disappoint. It’s a large hut with plenty of space and stocked cooking fuel, which made for a comfortable evening. While the $50 per person hut fee felt steep, the amenities and location made it worth every dollar.

The highlight of the night was watching Mount Cook glow in the sunset light, followed by a perfectly clear night sky. The Milky Way stretched right above the hut, though my cell phone camera couldn’t capture its brilliance. We turned in early, around 9 p.m., knowing we’d need to be up by 5:30 a.m. for our next objective.

We set off from the hut around 5:45 a.m. with hopes of reaching Mount Ollivier. However, the ridge proved difficult to navigate in the snow, so we abandoned that plan and descended to about 1,700 meters before traversing across toward the Annette Plateau.

The traverse was grueling. With knee-deep snow and no snowshoes, we spent hours post-holing across the slope—definitely a reminder that we could have planned our gear better. After four long hours, we reached the Annette Plateau.

From there, the climb of Mount Annette was much quicker. It took us only about an hour to reach the summit. The view was everything we’d hoped for: sweeping panoramas of Mount Cook’s core peaks and the dramatic alpine terrain all around.

We didn’t linger long on the summit, as the day was warming quickly and we had a long drive home. By retracing our tracks, the return to Mueller Hut took just 3.5 hours.

Back at Mueller Hut, we rested, refueled, and reluctantly packed up. It was hard to leave behind such rewarding views, but work obligations meant we couldn’t stay another night.

Still, we left with a smile. Mount Annette marked our first successful climb in Mount Cook National Park. Now, we’re eager to return and tackle The Footstool—another worthy peak in this alpine wonderland.

Overall, the climb of Mount Annette was a straightforward alpine route with minimal technical difficulty, but in such a beautiful place, it felt like a worthy and memorable goal.