A young New Zealand-born woman whose father and brother died trying to climb the world's deadliest mountain is battling one of the world's biggest banks over her inheritance.

Police have found a sleeping bag and other items believed to belong to missing climber Simon Bell.

A mountaineer aiming to conquer a record 100 NZ peaks - and who once saved a companion's life in a daring rescue - is missing in Mt Aspiring National Park.

Mountaineer Ben Dare will receive a bravery award for an incredible rescue that took 24 hours and a superhuman effort.

Three German hikers have been rescued from Aoraki-Mt Cook National Park this morning after spending a night lost in mild conditions.

Search resumes for three men who have been missing on Aoraki-Mt Cook since Monday as police warn families to prepare for the worst.

A snowboarder who slipped on ice at the top of a steep cliff before plummeting 15 metres was lucky to survive, an onlooker says.

A series of poor decisions and missed opportunities may have contributed to the deaths of two climbers after they spent two freezing nights stuck near the summit of Mt Taranaki.

A woman trapped in blizzard conditions near the top of Mt Taranaki last year texted police for help, saying her partner would not last the night.

A two-day rescue operation to save two climbers stranded on top of Mt Taranaki in blizzard conditions last year was the first of its type, an inquest has been told.

Rescuers have denied there was a "window of opportunity" to rescue two climbers, who later died on top of Mt Taranaki, on the evening before they were found.

The second day of an inquest into the death of two trampers who died on Mt Taranaki last year has begun in New Plymouth this morning.

A tramping group's decision to climb Mt Taranaki despite worsening weather has been labelled "gung-ho" by one of the group.

A renowned Swedish extreme skier who plunged 600m to his death on Aoraki-Mt Cook may have made a miscalculation or had problems with his equipment.

A special forces soldier who tumbled to his death on NZ's deadliest mountain yesterday was "unlucky", as snow and ice gave way to a deep crevasse, a rescuer says.

It was the Everest of its time, and some 25,000 people try to scale it every year. But the issue of climbing Europe's tallest mountain has come to an ugly head.

This winter was not a good one for farmers in the Fertile Crescent.

When Sir Edmund Hillary said of Mt Everest "we knocked the bastard off", it turns out he meant it literally.

Few people in New Zealand, despite its long mountaineering tradition, or elsewhere, are likely to remember the names of 16 Sherpas who lost their lives recently .

Nepal has named two Himalayan peaks near Mount Everest after Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and opened them to foreigners for climbing.

I'm sure I can speak for all of our World Vision team when I say that if it hadn't been for our porters and guides, none of us would have come close to climbing Mt Kilimanjaro last year.

Four Kiwis were among a climbing group on Mt Everest when a deadly avalanche struck on Friday, killing at least 12 Nepalese advance party guides and leaving four others missing.

The moment Matt Stewart clicked his safety harness on to the line, he realised his mistake. It very nearly cost him his life.