One of so many amazing walks in the Wanaka area, heading up to Diamond Lake and Rocky Mountain made for an enjoyable half day trip.
Even from the car park there were impressive views of the mountains.
It’s a short and relatively easy walk uphill to reach Diamond Lake, where a loop track runs around the lake.
The only way to really see the lake clearly is to continue further up the hill to look down on it below.
Heading further up the hill also brings expansive views from the self explanatory Lake Wanaka Lookout, complete with a handy bench.
In late September I was blessed with both good weather, and a fresh dump of snow the night before adding some white magic to the surrounding mountains.
The track gets narrower and steeper heading toward the Rocky Mountain summit but the views are ample reward.
The 775m summit was an ideal spot for lunch, allowing time to soak in the panoramic views of Lake Wanaka, the mouth of the Matukituki River, and the mountainous skyline.
The zip zag road up the mountainside leads to Treble Cone, one of a number of ski fields in the region.
The track to the summit is in the shape of a figure of eight, with a return side trip to the Lake Wanaka Lookout. I came up the east track, and down the west track, which offered possibly more interesting views. The west track is probably steeper than the east track though, and would have been a better option heading up, to avoid having to descend some particularly slippery sections.
The scenery never stops in this part of the world, with a few shots to finish with from my drive back toward Wanaka, stopping at a few lookouts.
