About Occasional Climber
Welcome!
Kiaora … Namaste … Tashi deley … Salam
A mountain resource for outdoors people, publishers, inspiration seekers
At this site you can view and buy mountain images; read about mountain places and experiences; and perhaps even gain some inspiration from my occasional climber‘s perspective.
Who is the Occasional Climber?
I’m Peter Laurenson. Born and raised in New Plymouth in New Zealand, the eldest of three boys. I live in Wellington with my partner and three sons.
Since leaving New Zealand for my OE in 1988, my cameras and I have been drawn to many mountain places, in particular in Nepal, India, Pakistan and Tibet; and back home in New Zealand’s beautiful North and South Islands; and to a few other interesting high places. My approaches to the mountains also take me though some fascinating lowland places too.
From hiking and trekking beginnings I joined the New Zealand Alpine Club (NZAC) in 2002 and have since become an occasional climber, balancing time in the mountains with work and family commitments. Since 2004 I’ve been winning occasional Wellington Section and National NZAC annual photo competition awards, Federated Mountain Club (FMC) photo competition awards, photo challenges and the odd contest at ViewBug and getting the occasional shot published at NationalGeographic.com. Since 2014 I’ve also had short articles featured frequently in Wilderness Magazine, NZAC Vertigo and since 2019, articles in NZ Photographer – the magazine of the photo community Excio.
Read my NZ Photographer profile, Excio Photographer profile, about my Confessions of a not so professional photographer and my views on outdoor photography.
In 2011 I had my right hip replaced. This went well so, to mark reaching fifty in November 2012, I climbed Aoraki Mount Cook. Whilst I still can I try to spend as much time as possible in New Zealand between 2,000 and 3,500 metres.