An hour apart along a legendary road that hugs the side of Lake Wakatipu, Glenorchy and Queenstown may share the same stunning views but otherwise are worlds apart.
Glenorchy is a small, quiet and relatively undeveloped settlement of 360 people, ending at the rather wonderful Glenorchy Lagoon. I was a little late to catch the autumn colours in full bloom but it was still a rather lovely spot.
Built in 2012 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of European settlement at the head of Lake Wakatipu, there’s about 5km of flat easy walkway that runs through the lagoon, with plenty of boardwalk and scenic spots.
The road from Glenorchy to Queenstown is pretty intense. It’s hard to enjoy the view when the road requires 100% concentration, but I took a break half way to take a few photos.
And another break at Wilson’s Bay as the sun started to disappear for the day.
Queenstown was a little more subdued than usual, with a brief pause before the winter ski season started. I headed up the hill as far as the roads would allow to take a final few photos before catching a flight back to Auckland.
Hmmm…wow that is quite some walkway to maintain out there.
And a lull in Queenstown? We thought it brims with life all year round!
It was a relative lull, Queenstown is pretty full on all year round now, but less overseas tourists in June and little too early for the locals and Aussie’s to come over for the snow.