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List of mountains of New Zealand by height facts for kids

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New Zealand is a country with many amazing mountains! These lists show some of the tallest mountains in New Zealand, ordered by how high they are. The information comes from official maps of New Zealand.

In the Māori language, mountains are called maunga.

New Zealand's Tallest Mountains

Aoraki - Mt Cook, Aoraki - Mount Cook National Park, New Zealand
Aoraki / Mount Cook, located in New Zealand's South Island, is the highest point in the country

All the mountains taller than 2,900 meters (about 9,500 feet) are found in the Southern Alps. This is a long chain of mountains that forms the backbone of New Zealand's South Island. Most of these super-tall peaks are very close to Aoraki / Mount Cook, which is the highest mountain. Only one, Mount Aspiring / Tititea, is a bit further away.

Did you know that Aoraki / Mount Cook used to be even taller? On December 14, 1991, a huge rock and ice slide broke off about 10 meters (33 feet) from its top! Over time, the ice cap on top has worn down even more, making it about 30 meters (98 feet) shorter by 2013.

Here are some of the very tallest mountains in New Zealand:

Rank Mountain Height (meters) Height (feet)
1 Aoraki / Mount Cook 3,724 12,218
2 Aoraki: Middle Peak 3,717 12,195
3 Aoraki: Low Peak 3,593 11,788
4 Mount Tasman 3,497 11,473
5 Mount Dampier 3,440 11,286
6 Mount Vancouver 3,309 10,856
7 Silberhorn 3,300 10,827
8 Malte Brun 3,198 10,492
9 Mount Hicks 3,198 10,492
10 Lendenfeld Peak 3,194 10,479

In 1960, a climber named Gordon Hasell was the first person to climb all of New Zealand's peaks that were taller than 10,000 feet (about 3,048 meters). He climbed 27 different peaks!

The 100 Highest Mountains

These are mountains over 2,400 meters (about 7,874 feet) that also stand out quite a lot from the land around them. This list is similar to one made by the New Zealand Alpine Club.

Most of these 100 mountains are in the South Island. Only two are in the North Island: Ruapehu (Tahurangi Peak) and Mount Taranaki. The tallest mountain outside the Southern Alps is Tapuae-o-Uenuku, which is in the Kaikōura Ranges.

Here are some of the highest mountains and when they were first climbed:

Rank Mountain Height (meters) First Ascent First Ascent Party
1 Aoraki / Mount Cook 3,724 December 25, 1894 Jack Clarke, Tom Fyfe, George Graham
2 Mount Tasman 3,497 February 5, 1895 Jack Clarke, Edward FitzGerald, Matthias Zurbriggen
3 Malte Brun 3,199 March 7, 1894 Tom Fyfe
4 Mount Sefton 3,151 February 14, 1895 Edward FitzGerald, Matthias Zurbriggen
5 Mount Elie de Beaumont 3,109 February 15, 1906 Peter Graham, Henrik Sillem
6 La Perouse 3,078 February 1, 1906 Peter Graham, R S Low, Henry Newton, Ebenezer Teichelmann
7 Douglas Peak 3,077 January 28, 1907 Alexander Graham, Henry Newton, Ebenezer Teichelmann
8 The Minarets 3,040 February 9, 1897 Tom Fyfe, Malcolm Ross
9 Mount Aspiring / Tititea 3,033 November 23, 1909 Bernard Head, Jack Clarke, Peter Graham
10 Mount Hamilton 3,025 December 1, 1909 Laurence M Earle, Bernard Head, Jack Clarke, Peter Graham
11 Mount Chudleigh 2,966 January 1911 Hugh Chambers, Freda Du Faur, Jim Murphy
12 Tapuae-o-Uenuku 2,885 April 1864 Nehemiah McRae and two others
19 Ruapehu (Tahurangi Peak) 2,797 February 1879 George Beetham, Joseph Maxwell
65 Mount Taranaki 2,518 December 23, 1839 Ernst Dieffenbach & James Heberly

Other Interesting Mountains and Hills

New Zealand has many other mountains and hills of different heights. Here are a few examples:

Mountains Over 2,000 Meters (6,562 feet)

  • Te Heuheu – 2,732 meters (8,963 feet) – This is the highest point on the edge of the crater of Mount Ruapehu.
  • Mount Bonpland – 2,343 meters (7,687 feet)
  • Mount Ngauruhoe – 2,287 meters (7,503 feet)
  • Mount Hutt – 2,185 meters (7,169 feet)

Mountains Between 1,000 and 2,000 Meters (3,281 to 6,562 feet)

Hills Under 1,000 Meters (3,281 feet)

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List of mountains of New Zealand by height Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.