Why this ride
The climbs: near Kingston, Scenic stretch near Te Anau and Haast Pass West Coast. It tops out at about 1,150 m.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Haast Pass West Coast · short arc
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 440 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 8 h 07
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. 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.
Scenic road chapters
Haast Pass West Coast fuel gate → Haast Pass West Coast high point
Slow enough to look. The surface follows the shoreline, so the corners arrive where the water decided, not where an engineer did. Water arrives beside the road and stays for 68 km. The line follows the shore because there is nowhere else for it to go.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 68 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Fuel stop near Kingston
Planning note
Haast Pass West Coast is where the day begins. Next is High point near Kingston.
2. High point near Kingston
Planning note
You top out here; the road stops climbing. Next is Scenic stretch near Te Anau.
3. Scenic stretch near Te Anau
Planning note
This is where the road stops climbing. Next is Haast Pass West Coast photo pull-off.
4. Haast Pass West Coast photo pull-off
Look at the map and this point lands deep in Fiordland, on the wet western side of the Southern Alps, nowhere near the Haast Pass road the ride is named for. No road reaches it. It sits in the rainforest and rock between the Hollyford and the Darran Mountains, in some of the wettest country on earth, where Milford Sound collects around six metres of rain in a typical year. Waterfalls appear on every cliff after a downpour and vanish the day after.
Read the complete Haast Pass West Coast photo pull-off write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The high point of this section. Next is Food stop near Wanaka.
5. Food stop near Wanaka
Planning note
Food at 352 km, roughly 7 hours into the riding. Next is Queenstown / South Island.
6. Queenstown / South Island
The lake itself is a deep blue, ringed with brown hills in summer and white peaks in winter, and it is smaller and quieter than its neighbour, Lake Wānaka, which lies just across a low neck of land. The lake level was raised in the 1950s by a dam at its outlet, drowning old shorelines and giving the water its present form.
Read the complete Queenstown / South Island write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 440 km.
Leg by leg
Fuel stop near Kingston to High point near Kingston
Fuel stop near Kingston → High point near Kingston is 68 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
High point near Kingston to Scenic stretch near Te Anau
High point near Kingston → Scenic stretch near Te Anau is 62 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Scenic stretch near Te Anau to Haast Pass West Coast photo pull-off
Scenic stretch near Te Anau → Haast Pass West Coast photo pull-off is 96 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Haast Pass West Coast photo pull-off to Food stop near Wanaka
Haast Pass West Coast photo pull-off → Food stop near Wanaka is 180 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Food stop near Wanaka to Queenstown / South Island
Food stop near Wanaka → Queenstown / South Island return is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
More motorcycle rides nearby
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