Why this ride
On the way it passes Queenstown, Scenic stretch near Arrowtown and near Wanaka. The climb of the day is near Queenstown. It tops out at about 1,300 m.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Mount Cook High Country · short arc
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 292 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 59
- 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.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Fuel stop near Queenstown
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.
Read the complete Near Queenstown write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mount Cook High Country is where the day begins. Next is High point near Queenstown.
2. High point near Queenstown
Planning note
You top out here; the road stops climbing. Next is Mount Cook High Country checkpoint 8.
3. Near Queenstown
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.
Read the complete Near Queenstown 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 292 km. Next is Scenic stretch near Arrowtown.
4. Scenic stretch near Arrowtown
Planning note
Scenic stretch near Arrowtown, about halfway. Next is Photo stop near Wanaka.
5. Photo stop near Wanaka
Planning note
Photo stop near Wanaka sits at 195 km, about halfway. Next is Queenstown / South Island return.
6. Queenstown / South Island return
Clyde is a small, handsome town on the Clutha River in Central Otago, and it lies in one of the driest and sunniest parts of New Zealand, where schist hills run in smooth brown folds under a huge sky. The old gold-rush town of the 1860s survives in its main street, with stone buildings, cafes and a historic hotel, and the Clyde Dam, completed in the early 1990s, now holds back the waters of Lake Dunstan to the north. It was a major engineering project and a controversial one, and the old Cromwell town was partly drowned in the process.
Read the complete Queenstown / South Island return write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Queenstown / South Island return comes up about 252 km into the recorded legs. Next is Food stop near Kingston.
7. Food stop near Kingston
Planning note
Food stop near Kingston closes the day.
Leg by leg
Fuel stop near Queenstown to High point near Queenstown
Fuel stop near Queenstown → High point near Queenstown is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
High point near Queenstown to Near Queenstown
High point near Queenstown → Near Queenstown is 41 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Scenic stretch near Arrowtown to Photo stop near Wanaka
Scenic stretch near Arrowtown → Photo stop near Wanaka is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Photo stop near Wanaka to Queenstown / South Island return
Photo stop near Wanaka → Queenstown / South Island return is 115 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Queenstown / South Island return to Food stop near Kingston
Queenstown / South Island return → Food stop near Kingston is 40 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
More motorcycle rides nearby
- Haast Pass West Coast · 620 km
- Central Otago Vineyard Sweep · 907 km
- Mount Cook High Country · part 2 · 233 km
- Lindis Pass and Tekapo · 958 km