Haast Pass West Coast

3 passes in 620 km, topping out at 1780 m

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Why this ride

Built for flow, views and useful stops rather than navigation busywork. The climbs: near Kingston, Scenic stretch near Te Anau and Haast Pass West Coast. It tops out at about 1,150 m.

Roadbook

1. Fuel stop near Kingston fuel

   Fuel at 0 km.

2. High point near Kingston pass

   You top out here; the road stops climbing.

3. Scenic stretch near Te Anau pass

   This is where the road stops climbing.

4. Haast Pass West Coast photo pull-off pass

   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.

   The genuine Haast Pass is a different thing, and a lovely one. At 563 metres it is one of the lowest crossings of the Southern Alps, linking Wanaka and the Otago lakes to the West Coast through beech forest and past a succession of waterfalls, the Fantail and the Thunder Creek falls being the best known. The road follows the Makarora and then the Haast rivers down to the coast, passing blue pools and river flats where the water runs the colour of milk and pale jade. The highway was only completed in the 1960s, so for generations the West Coast had to be reached by sea or mountain track.

   For the rider, Haast is wonderfully easy by alpine standards: wide, smooth, with long relaxed bends and little traffic. What bites is the weather. West of the main divide it can rain for days, the sandflies are fierce at every stop, and low cloud will hide the peaks you came for. Ride it on a settled forecast and keep the rain gear on top of the pannier. Towns are far apart. There is fuel at Wanaka, and at Haast on the coast, but the long stretch between is empty, so fill up before you leave and treat any pump on the way as a bonus rather than a plan.

   The old Maori route over the pass was a greenstone trail, for pounamu is found on the West Coast and was carried east in small, treasured pieces. Early European explorers like Julius von Haast, after whom the pass is named, spent a good deal of effort finding what the Maori already knew.

   As for this particular spot, treat it as a reminder of the scale of the country. The Fiordland ranges stand to the south-west, impenetrable and unlogged, and a rider looking at them from the road is looking at one of the great wildernesses of the Southern Hemisphere.

5. Food stop near Wanaka food

   Food at 354 km, roughly 7 hours into the riding.

6. Queenstown / South Island return swim

   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.

   The Haast Pass Highway, State Highway 6, runs along the lake's edge before climbing into the mountains, and it is one of the great rides of the South Island. From Hawea, the road follows the lake's shore with moderate bends and views across the water, then passes through the settlement of Makarora and climbs over the Haast Pass, at five hundred and sixty-three metres, one of the lowest crossings of the Southern Alps. On the western side, the road drops through rainforest to the coast, with waterfalls and gorges on the way.

   The mountains here are the heart of the Southern Alps, with snow on the peaks for much of the year and glaciers in the highest basins. The Hunter valley, behind the lake, is a remote area of tussock, beech forest and braided rivers, with a few huts for hikers and anglers. The air is clear and cold, and the water in the lake is glacial, so swimming is brisk, even in the middle of summer. A dip in the shallows on a hot day is a good way to wake up.

   For fuel, fill in Wānaka or Hawea before heading toward the pass, as supplies on the road are limited. Makarora has a small shop and cafe, and the next stations are on the west coast, a long way off. In winter, ice and snow can affect the road, and sandflies on the west side can be fierce in summer, so carry repellent. Spring and autumn offer the best light, and the colours of the larches in May are striking.

7. Near Queenstown finish

   South of Queenstown, the road to Kingston follows the eastern shore of Lake Wakatipu, squeezed between deep, cold water and the jagged wall of the Remarkables. In winter they are white to their bases; in summer the bare rock glows gold and grey in the evening light.

   Lake Wakatipu is a long, narrow glacial trough shaped like a lightning bolt, and it has a curious habit: its surface rises and falls by several centimetres every few minutes, a slow breathing caused by a standing wave. Māori legend explains it as the heartbeat of the giant Matau, who lies sleeping at the bottom of the lake, his body forming its zigzag shape. The water is clear, startlingly blue and very cold even in summer.

   The road south is a good one. It runs along the lake with long sweepers, a few tighter bends and a stretch known as the Devil's Staircase, where it climbs and twists above the water before dropping toward Kingston at the lake's southern tip. Traffic can be heavy with campervans and tourist coaches, many driven by visitors still adjusting to the left side of the road, so give them room. Strong winds can funnel down the lake, and black ice is a real danger on shaded bends in winter.

   The rides from here go in two directions. The Milford Road continues south through Kingston and across the plains to Te Anau, then up through the Eglinton Valley and the Homer Tunnel to Milford Sound, one of the world's great mountain roads. The vineyard ride heads the other way, through Frankton and the Kawarau Gorge to Gibbston, Cromwell and Bannockburn, where pinot noir grows on terraces of gravel left by gold miners. The first commercial bungy jump was set up on the Kawarau Bridge, and you can still watch people leap from it.

   Fill the tank in Queenstown or Frankton, which have everything. On the way to Milford, Te Anau is the last reliable fuel stop, and there is a long stretch beyond with almost nothing. Bring warm, waterproof layers whatever the season, because weather in Fiordland and around the lakes changes fast.

8. Back to Haast finish

   East of Kingston the lake country loosens its grip and the land turns to schist hills, tussock and wide, dry valleys with merino sheep spread across them like a scattering of rice. This point lies in that stretch, between the southern end of Lake Wakatipu and the Cromwell Basin, in a region where stone walls, shearing sheds and old gold workings tell the history of the Otago high country.

   Gold is the thread that runs through it. After 1861, when Gabriel Read found gold at Tuapeka, prospectors flooded into the area, sluicing the creeks and tearing apart the riverbanks, and the remains of their water races and stone huts survive in the hills. Later came sheep runs of enormous size, many of which are still working stations today. The land is harsh, hot and dusty in summer and bitterly cold in winter, and the vegetation, mostly tussock and scrub, has an austere beauty that grows on you.

   Kingston, a small settlement with a couple of thousand people, sits at the lake's southern tip and was once the terminus of the Kingston Flyer, a steam train that ran to Fairlight. Cromwell, about thirty-five kilometres away, is the main town of the region, known for stone fruit, with a giant fibreglass piece of fruit by the roadside as a monument to its orchards. Between them the roads run through open, rolling country with long visibility and often a strong wind, and the traffic is light.

   The Haast Pass route begins from this country and heads north, but here you are still far from the mountain walls. Riding is easy, with good surfaces and gentle gradients, and the main hazards are crosswinds, stock on unfenced roads and the glare of low sun. In winter, black ice may form on shaded corners at dawn. Expect cold nights even in summer, and dry air that parches your throat.

   For fuel, use Cromwell or Queenstown, as small settlements have limited hours. Cromwell also has bakeries and fruit stalls in season, so a stop for apricots or cherries in summer is almost obligatory. Water is worth carrying, as shops are few and far between.

   The light is best early or late, when the tussock glows gold and the hills cast long shadows. This is a landscape of space, and it rewards a slow pace.

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