Two easy outings for a short day or a recovery day: a hill straight behind the town with a view over the bay, the Remarkables and Coronet Peak, and a flat loop around a mirror-still lake in a bowl of tussock hills.
Not every Queenstown walk needs an alpine start. These two are close enough to fit around lunch, a lake cruise or a rainy morning.
Queenstown Hill, Te Tapu-nui, sits behind the town. The climb starts at the top of Belfast Street and passes through Douglas fir to the Basket of Dreams, a basket-shaped steel sculpture, then reaches the 907-metre summit with views over the bay, the Remarkables and Coronet Peak. Time Walk plaques along the way cover Māori and settler history. It's about 90 minutes up and an hour down. Go at sunset and carry a torch for the forest on the way down.
Moke Lake is a flat 7-kilometre circuit of a mirror-still lake in a bowl of tussock hills, reached by a gravel road about 20 minutes north-west of town. There's a DOC campsite on the shore, and the clearest night sky near Queenstown.
Moke Lake is at its best early, when the water is still; Queenstown Hill is best late.
Walk uphill from the town centre to the trailhead at the top of Belfast Street.
Climb through the fir forest to the sculpture on its open shoulder, with the town and lake below.
Continue up tussock to the 907-metre top for the full view of the Remarkables, Coronet Peak and Frankton Arm.
Drive the gravel road to the DOC campsite and start the loop anticlockwise along the shore.
A flat path circles the water through tussock and wetland, with reflections of the surrounding hills.
Walkable from any hotel in town; there's limited parking at the top of Belfast Street.
About 15 km from town off the Glenorchy road; the last stretch is gravel. Campsite fees are paid on site.
Camp at Moke Lake on a clear, moonless night for the Milky Way over the hills.
Queenstown practical notes →Wikimedia Commons photographs are used under their licences; Pexels photographs under the Pexels licence.
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