Steven and I were relieved that we visited Queenstown in the early fall, as we couldn't believe how much more hectic it could get during the height of summer travel! For us, the small downtown area seemed unpleasantly congested morning, noon, and night. Located in the center of the Southern Lakes region in western Otago, the town of approximately 20,000 must be overwhelmed by its three million visitors each year.
For us, the area's beauty lay outside the city center, with some of the country's most iconic scenery, and it certainly earned its colorful description: "Wildlife and world-class wineries; watercolor scenery and gold-rush tales; middle-earth magic and Māori myth." Queenstown is nestled under the cloak of the sublime Remarkables range as it juts up against the cobalt Lake Wakatipu.
Leaving Queenstown, we drove along the Tommy Thompson Scenic Drive to follow the lake up to the village of Glenorchy on the lake's northern edge. There was a definite chill to the air after a dusting of snow overnight in the higher elevations, but at least one hardy soul was out sailing. Diana, I'm sure you and David would have loved sailing on the lake!
The road was named in memory of the former mining engineer, a strong advocate for the Glenorchy-Queenstown road and instrumental in getting it built by working with the local roads committee, local contractors, and the government to secure funding for major rock sections beginning in the mid-1950s. Before the road was opened in 1962, after multiple funding delays, there was only a bridle track and lake steamers to access Glenorchy, aka Head of the Lake. The town's community had a strong desire for a road to be built since the 1930s.
Views from just outside of Queenstown at the Seven Mile Recreation Reserve:
A few days ago, I'd stopped at the Op Shop in Motueka and bought a lightweight fleece, thinking that would be all I needed in the way of cold-weather gear for the rest of our trip. Ha ha - when the temperature was barely 40 degrees Fahrenheit that morning, I had to hightail it to the string of secondhand shops very near our rental and buy warm gloves and a hat. As the choices were minimal at the end of summer, I wasn't going to win any fashion contests, but at least I'd be warm for the duration of our trip!
Even though we were still so close to the South Island's adventure capital, there already seemed to be one spectacular sight around each bend in the road. Fortunately, there was excellent signage alerting drivers to the road's constant twists and turns. Don't forget that the 35 is in km/h, not mph! Fortunately, road planners had taken into account the few opportunities to pass on the narrow road by installing passing bays at regular intervals, allowing faster drivers to overtake slower-moving tourists like us. Similarly, the "Traffic Behind You? Let Them Pass" signs were a brilliant idea.
Views of Wilson Bay Preserve:
I couldn't help but smile at the contrast between the palm trees in the foreground and the snow-capped mountains in the background!
One of the village's iconic sights is the red timber Glenorchy Historic Wharf Shed, a red timber building located on the edge of Lake Wakatipu. The shed was originally built by the NZ Railroad Department as a goods shed for freight carried on the steamers between Queenstown and Glenorchy. As the steamers were owned by the railways, the village was officially a railway station. The rails from the end of the wharf to the shed were the shortest piece of railway in New Zealand!
Scenes from our stroll along the Glenorchy Lagoon Scenic Walkway:
The Glenorchy Valley:
I imagined what it would be like to walk on a tightrope wire as we walked along the very narrow path! We had to do the sideways shuffle a few times when others passed us. I was thankful for the wire mesh covering, as it gave us better traction.
It looked like a bayou in the heart of Louisiana, but at least there were no alligators here.
I was relieved to have the new hat when we climbed the trail to the top of Bennetts Bluff Viewpoint, as my headband wouldn't have been enough in the brisk weather. We had breathtaking panoramic vistas of the lake, again framed by the impressive Remarkables mountain range.
Across the highway were the small, but still mighty, 35-m-high Lake Face Creek Falls.
I couldn't help but smile at the contrast between the palm trees in the foreground and the snow-capped mountains in the background!
A key feature of the lake is its tide-like standing wave, which causes the water level to rise and fall by about 10 cm every 25 minutes. We looked for it at the Little Stony Creek Viewpoint, but missed it.
Though Glenorchy was only 48 km from Queenstown, it had taken us the better part of an hour to reach it with all our stops. Glenorchy is on the edge of Mount Aspiring National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which served as the Misty Mountains in the Hobbit films. The nearby Mt. Earnslaw was the setting for several mountain scenes in The Two Towers.
Naomi: Has Adrienne been to this part of New Zealand before? There were plenty of horse trails here she'd like.
One of the village's iconic sights is the red timber Glenorchy Historic Wharf Shed, a red timber building located on the edge of Lake Wakatipu. The shed was originally built by the NZ Railroad Department as a goods shed for freight carried on the steamers between Queenstown and Glenorchy. As the steamers were owned by the railways, the village was officially a railway station. The rails from the end of the wharf to the shed were the shortest piece of railway in New Zealand!
After admiring the shed, we headed down to the lake to marvel yet again at the Southern Alps that stretched out before us.
Since William Gilbert Rees began farming here in the early 1860s, pastoral farming has continued to the present. Lake steamers were the lifeline to the community at the Head of the Lake for over 100 years, bringing people, essential supplies, and transporting goods and livestock to market. The Earnslaw carried anything from a horse or a bull to thousands of sheep or hundreds of cattle so that they could be loaded onto trains for the journey to sale yards.
Gold mining first began at the Bucklerburn, where a canvas town of 300 miners quickly sprang up. Sawmilling also became critical in the 1860s.
Once the first tourists began appearing in the 1860s, Richard Bryant opened accommodations and a bar at Kinloch in 1870 and provided guides and transport for them. That year's Otago Almanac stated, "Did such a lake exist in Europe, it would be classed as one of the most picturesque and wildly grand." When the center of tourism shifted in the 1900s to Arcadia and Paradise, the 14-mile trip from Glenorchy was by buggy and dray.
Unloading the Glenorchy Motors bus in 1950:
The Glenorchy War Memorial commemorates local soldiers who "gave their lives in the Empire's cause" in both world wars.
Scenes from our stroll along the Glenorchy Lagoon Scenic Walkway:
We chatted for a few minutes with a couple who lived nearby. When I remarked on the huge crowds of particularly Asian tourists, the man responded, "We Kiwis know to keep away from Queenstown because of the tourists."
The Glenorchy Valley:
I imagined what it would be like to walk on a tightrope wire as we walked along the very narrow path! We had to do the sideways shuffle a few times when others passed us. I was thankful for the wire mesh covering, as it gave us better traction.
It looked like a bayou in the heart of Louisiana, but at least there were no alligators here.
Have you ever tried to find a location where a movie was filmed?! I ask because we had very vague information for some of the Lord of the Rings scenes, and thought it would be intriguing to find those spots. Ha ha - the joke was on us, as it proved impossible. But at least, I got some cute shots of newly shorn sheep north of Glenorchy, so all was not lost.
More supposed film scenes at the Isengard lookout with the same unfruitful results!
We watched a jetboat following the Dart River into the national park, and were glad we'd chosen the more action-packed Shotover Jet Canyon ride the previous day instead of this pale imitation!
Other LOTR scenes were also supposedly filmed somewhere by the Rees Briver Bridge Viewpoint. Please tell me if they remind you of any scene in the trilogy!
This is indeed a 'real' picture I took of Pigeon Island in the middle of Lake Wakatipu on the way back to Queenstown, even though the turquoise tint looks so fake, like an AI-generated image.
Scenes back in Queenstown:
The statue on the lakefront was of William Gilbert Rees, the recognized founder of Queenstown and also Glenorchy.
How the water could change color so drastically in the span of 45 minutes, and a few kilometers, confounded me.
Different types of boats plyed the waters.
A fun design in the brick wall along the waterfront:
The glorious red Japanese maple in the city's park reminded me of fall in the Canadian or American Northeast.
The entire US and Canada could learn a lot from the New Zealanders, who provide attractive, comfortable, immaculately clean, and accessible bathrooms in every park and town we visited.
Waterfront buildings along the lake:
The Marine Parade overlooked Queenstown Beach, Lake Wakatipu, and the Queenstown Gardens. Its entrance was marked by the Queenstown Fallen Soldiers Memorial, which was opened in 1922 to remind locals and tourists alike of the sacrifices made by the community during WWI.
Not ten minutes away from the other bathrooms were these. Just amazing what could and should be done in our part of the world.
The Fern bronze sculpture at the entrance to the gardens:
The Gardens' Band Rotunda was built in 1894.
We were pleasantly surprised at how lush the flowers were, considering it was fall.
The Gardens' stone monument also honored Rees.
How imaginative to have what appeared to be an indigenous sculpture prop up a low-lying branch!
I'll leave you with a shot of the historic Eichardt's Private Hotel, a prominent landmark fronting Lake Wakatipu since 1861. The building was originally a woolshed before being converted into a hotel during the 1860s gold rush.
Next post: Arresting Arrowtown & Cromwell's Historic Precinct.
Posted on June 16th, 2026, from Hualien in northeast Taiwan, on our last night of this very long adventure. How is it possible that almost three months have passed since we touched the shores of Fiji, basked on NZ's South Island for two glorious weeks, were captivated by the sights and sounds of two distinct regions of Western Australia for a month, struggled discovering anew of man's inhumanity in Timor Leste, dazzled by Bali's temples, and finally explored the length and breadth of Taiwan for three plus weeks? It's time to head home to family and other loved ones after visiting our son and his family in San Francisco for a few nights. Please take care of yourself and your loved ones.
