After entering the debate over whether the highest unnamed peak in Central Otago should be named "Te Kohua".
Mr Lepper decided he should have first-hand knowledge of the mountain at the centre of the controversy.
Together with his wife, Bernie, and Central Otago district councillor Gordon Stewart, Mr Lepper recently hiked up the 2307m peak in the Hector Range, abandoning the climb about 150m from the top.
"We were running out of daylight to reach the top and get back down safely again so stopped short, not wanting to risk it this time of the year. But it's an extremely impressive peak and we'll be going back in summer to repeat the climb, and make sure we finish it," Mr Lepper said yesterday.
The trio spent seven hours on the mountain. Mr Stewart has already climbed to the top several times but it was the first time for the Leppers, who are both experienced triathletes.
"It was a reasonable sort of hike, about three and a-half hours each way, but it wasn't like we needed to use ice-axes or anything," Mr Lepper said.
The New Zealand Geographic Board recently rejected opposition to its plan to name the peak Te Kohua, after a three-legged cooking pot. Thirty-five of the 37 submissions to the board opposed the name.
The board said Ngai Tahu chief Reko guided Otago farmer Nathanael Chalmers on an expedition through the Nevis Valley in 1853 and was paid with a cooking pot.
The final decision now rests with the Minister for Land Information, Maurice Williamson.
Mr Lepper and Mr Stewart have concerns about the appropriateness of the name and the process by which the board reached its decision. They feel the Central Otago District Council should have been consulted.
"I feel strongly that the local community should be consulted and should play a greater role in the naming of a feature that lies entirely inside our boundary," Mr Lepper said.
He wants to meet Mr Williamson to outline his concerns before the minister makes a decision on the name.
Mr Stewart is hoping "common sense will prevail". He started the initial discussion on the peak by suggesting it be named after Sir Edmund Hillary.
That name was rejected by the board and the alternative suggested by one of the other submitters was proposed in its place.
