You have almost certainly seen the photo: a figure standing on a narrow ridge, Lake Wānaka spread out below, peninsulas and islands fading into the Southern Alps. That spot is real, it is on the Roys Peak Track, and getting there is a long, honest climb. In summer people queue for it. On a still July morning I had it almost to myself.
The walk
The track starts from a car park on Mount Aspiring Road, a few minutes out of Wānaka, and climbs relentlessly up open farmland in long zigzags. There are no trees and very little flat ground. What you get instead is a view that grows every time you turn around, and in winter a lake that turns from steel grey to deep blue as the sun clears the mountains.
The famous ridge viewpoint comes most of the way up. Above it the track steepens towards the summit at 1,578 metres, and on my day the last stretch was crusted with old snow. On a clear day you can pick out Mount Aspiring among the peaks. The descent is the same way you came, and on frozen ground it is slower and harder on the knees than the climb.
Good to know
- The track closes every year from 1 October to 10 November for lambing.
- In winter the upper track can be icy or under snow. I carried microspikes and used them above the viewpoint.
- Winter days are short. Start early and know when the sun sets, because the walk down takes longer than you think.
- There is no water on the way and no shade at all. Carry more than you expect to drink, in any season.
- Stay on the track. It crosses working farmland, and access depends on walkers respecting it.