Why this ride
A 56 km round trip from Te Anau - roughly 58 min in the saddle. It goes by way of Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand and back through Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Te Anau day out · Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 56 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 58 min
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: planning record, not independently verified geometry.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distances and riding times are planning figures. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Te Anau
Te Anau is the last proper town before Fiordland, and nearly everything about it is a preparation for the wild country beyond. It sits on the eastern shore of the lake of the same name, the biggest lake in the South Island, with the Kepler and Murchison mountains rising on the far side, and about two thousand people live here, serving the hikers, boaters and bus tours that pass through. Maori knew the area as a source of greenstone and a place to hunt weka and eel. In 1948 a doctor named Geoffrey Orbell found a small population of takahe, a large flightless bird thought extinct for fifty years, in a remote valley in the Murchison Mountains across the water, one of the great wildlife stories of New Zealand.
Read the complete Te Anau write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Te Anau is where the day begins. Next is Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand.
2. Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand
South-west New Zealand is the wettest, wildest quarter of the country, and Te Wahipounamu, which in Māori means the place of greenstone, is its official name. The World Heritage area stretches over about two and a half million hectares and takes in four national parks: Fiordland, Mount Aspiring, Aoraki Mount Cook and Westland Tai Poutini.
Read the complete Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand comes up 14 km in. Next is Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand.
3. Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
28 km in you reach Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand. Next is back through Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand.
4. back through Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand, late in the day. Next is Te Anau.
5. Te Anau
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Te Anau write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Te Anau. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Te Anau to Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand
Te Anau → Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand is 28 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand to Te Anau
back through Te Wahipounamu - South West New Zealand → Te Anau is 28 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.