Maggie Evans

From the road to Pakituhi Hut the track is a steady climb rising 400 meters on a formed zig-zag track to a small saddle. You'll get increasingly better views of Lake Hawea as you climb up the switch-backs, and you might walk alongside some sheep that make the uphill slog look much easier than it feels. The next section of track follows a prominent ridge to the highest point (1300 m). This secti...

Sandfly Bay is one of the iconic beaches on the Otago Peninsula, and is home to a variety of New Zealand natives, including yellow-eyed penguins, sea lions and fur seals. A short but steep (and scenic!) downhill hike is required to access the beach from the carpark, but once you make it down you'll be greeted with close-up views of the sea lions and the chatty oyster catchers.At the far end of ...

The Mount Somers circuit is a tough 26km adventure, but it rewards you with constantly changing but beautiful scenery. From the start at the Sharplin Falls carpark, the trail immediately climbs upward through lush forest. As soon you reach a highpoint, you descend again to cross the river (via a swingbridge!) only to start another upward climb. You eventually break the tree line and start to se...

The drive to Moke Lake from Queenstown is only 14km but it takes about 30 minutes since you're on a dirt road for a good portion of it. You'll pass Lake Kirkpatrick and lots of sheep on your way to Moke Lake, but keep driving until you get to the campground that's on the southeast end of the lake. Once you're there, finding the ~7km track that loops around the lake is pretty straightforward if ...

The West Matukituki Valley is a playground for those who love the outdoors. There are 2 sub-alpine huts, one on either side of the river, that make great backpacking destinations. French Ridge Hut (1470m) and Liverpool hut (~1140m) are both about 40km return trips from the carpark, and each can be enjoyed as a challenging overnight trip or as a more leisurely trip over 2 nights, as described be...

This track starts at the end of Tomahawk Road (by Smaills beach) and climbs 200 meters uphill over its 2km one-way length. The walking track ends at Karetai Road, so you could also start it at that end.The track provides amazing views of Smaills beach and the beautiful coastline further south. And about half a kilometer along the track (starting from the bottom) you get to the cliff edge and yo...

The Minaret Burn Track starts at the end of West Wanaka Road at Homestead Bay, which many tourists (and locals!) unknowingly drive past on their way to Treble Cone, Diamond Lake and/or the Rob Roy glacier. The start of the track is signposted and trail times to Colquhouns Beach (2-3 hrs; 7km) and the Mount Alta Conservation Area (5-6 hrs) are listed.The trail to Colquhouns Beach follows a 4WD t...

The Isthmus Peak Track is a 16km out-and-back hike to the summit of Isthmus Peak (1,385 meters), where you get great views of Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka and the Southern Alps. The track starts off the Lake Hawea section of SH6, about a 30 minute drive from Wanaka Township, and there's a yellow 'Isthmus Peak' signpost at the carpark. From the bottom, you follow a poled route along the true right...

To access the Routeburn North Branch, you start out from the Routeburn Shelter and head along the Routeburn Track towards Routeburn Flats Hut (6.5km). At the hut, cross the wide but shallow North Branch to pick up the poled route on the other side that leads through the last of the Routeburn flats. The track then enters forest and climbs upwards before emerging in the open space of an old slip....

The Upper Clutha River track and Newcastle track can be joined to form a great ~28km loop that I highly recommend as a long run or a fun mountain bike ride. I suggest parking at the Hawea River swing bridge in Albert Town and starting off by going over the swing bridge to pick up the signposted Newcastle Track that follows the true left of the river. It will be a righthand turn off the main tra...

Adventuring up to Ben Lomond's summit is an out-and-back day hike with views that are arguably more rewarding than some of those you get on New Zealand's Great Walks. You can take the Skyline gondola part way up if you want to shorten the climb, but I usually start at the small signposted carpark on Lomond Crescent and take the 4-WD track up the first stretch. It's supposedly a 6-8 hour hike to...

The Waterfall Creek Track is a well-formed track without any major undulations that can be enjoyed by foot or bike. It's family- and dog-friendly, and is perhaps the most heavily walked stretch of Wanaka's shoreline.Within the first few hundred meters along the Waterfall Creek track you'll come upon 'that Wanaka tree", which is one of the most photographed (and Instagrammed!) trees in the world...

This loop track is intended to be walked over 3 days (2 nights) and is just over 60km long with nearly 1,000 meters elevation gain. For those of you uber fit people with an appetite for a more intense adventure, it's also possible to tackle the whole thing in a single day, but be prepared for a challenging 10-15 hours on your feet (likely in wet and muddy shoes...). A lot of the track is boardw...