After spending the previous 16 days in sunny, temperate weather in Australia and the South Island of New Zealand, the weather suddenly turned overcast and threatening rain when we arrived in Picton, New Zealand. As our cruise ship docked at Waimahara Pier at 7:00 am, we wondered whether any excursions would be canceled due to the threatening weather. Most of our fellow passengers had signed up for this and the five other outdoor activities a year earlier, so we would have been disappointed if we couldn't experience the trail. Well, the drizzle and dark clouds weren't severe enough to cancel the 5 various scheduled excursions to explore Picton, so we intrepidly boarded the shuttle bus to Picton Harbor to catch a launch to the Queen Charlotte Track for a hike in the natural, lush landscape. It took us about 45 minutes to reach the 45-mile-long Queen Charlotte Track by speedboat, one of New Zealand's leading hiking or walking tracks. Of course, because we could not hike the entire track during a cruise excursion, as it would probably take several days to complete, the excursion covered only about 2 miles, a 4-mile round trip. We anticipated hiking on uneven, unpaved trails with elevation changes, with fantastic views of the Marlborough Sounds, while learning about the native plants, flowers, trees, birds, animals, and insects. We could have gone farther than 2 miles in, but because of the weather and for the safety of others who weren't as prepared for the slippery, wet, and muddy conditions, our guide turned us back. Also, because our ship was scheduled to depart Picton by 2:30 pm, we returned to the harbor by noon. Our guide was very knowledgeable, vivacious, and uber-fit! She made our trail hiking a pleasure and offered her guiding services to us if we ever consider returning to Picton, since we discussed our "bucket list" wish to hike the 33-mile Milford Track at Milford Sound, Fiordland National Park. I'd recommend hiking this trail to most fitness and experience levels but, I'll not sugarcoat the experience because there are parts of this trail where it becomes quite narrow or elevated where you will be challenged. read more

See all

I had the pleasure of spending this past Labour weekend at the glorious Queen Charlotte Track also know as...76 kilometres of PURE BLISS (at least for the outdoors-obsessed such as myself). There are a few long climbs but, in my opinion, this is a walk that can be completed by any moderately fit (and determined) person. I won't lie to you, getting up to some of those lookout points was a bit strenuous but HOLY HELL, they were worth it. My favorite was Eatwell Lookout #2 which included not only signage to let you know just how far London, New York, Auckland etc. was from that precise point, but also offered panoramic views across the entire, spectacular Marlborough Sounds. Refer to photo and drool. The great thing about QTC is that is offers options that cater to many different categories of trampers (i.e. a wide range of accommodation along the track [DOC campsites, homestays all the way through to to flash resorts]). The water taxi services also offer the option to carry your bags to your accommodation each day which proves mighty handy if you don't feel like walking for 8 hours AND lugging a tent/sleeping bag etc around :) Tips/notes/learn from my mistakes: - A QCTLC track pass is required for the second and third days which can either be purchased in Picton by the water taxis or at Punga Cove ($18). - You can complete the track in three days (albeit long ones). Four days is more than enough to finish it at a pretty leisurely pace. - Mountain bikes are allowed on the track outside of peak season. The MTB option did not look easy (specifically not for Days 1 and 2!) - Bring a camera and try to restrain yourself (unless you want to end up with 200+ photos like my click-happy self. This is what gorgeous landscapes to do to the best of us!) - Save a day for wine tasting in Blenheim before heading home! I mean you're already there, right? ;) read more

Queen Charlotte Track - Hiking Near Me