2Mt. Cook National Park, New Zealand

Strolling through Mt Cook National Park will have you stepping to the beat of snow avalanches as you wander through fog-filled valleys surrounded by snow capped mountains.

Snow avalanches—such as this one seen from the Mueller Glacier in Mt Cook National Park—are among nature’s most striking spectacles. An avalanche occurs when the layers of accumulated snow on the side of a mountain are disturbed in some way.