Trails › New Zealand › Canterbury › Spenser Mountains
Waiau Pass Route (Blue Lake Route to Lewis Pass)
Next nearby hike: TA07b Waiau Pass 5.5 mi · 8.9 kmExplore Spenser Mountains →
Waiau Pass Route (Blue Lake Route to Lewis Pass) other trails nearby (tap a dot to open it)
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NZ Department of Conservation (CC BY 4.0) · OpenStreetMap · Official page · Basemap: OpenFreeMap (OpenMapTiles, © OSM contributors).
7-day forecast
Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)Best time to hike
Best months: Oct–Apr · highs 10–18 °C (50–64 °F)
- J18°9°130
- F17°9°111
- M15°7°127
- A12°5°134
- M8°2°150
- J5°-1°173
- J4°-2°169
- A5°-1°152
- S8°1°159
- O10°3°192
- N13°5°162
- D16°7°167
Average high °C · low °C · precipitation mm per month. Highlighted: best months.
How we pick months
Best months are those where the 1981–2010 average daily high is 10–27 °C (50–81 °F), the average overnight low is 0 °C (32 °F) or warmer, and average precipitation is 200 mm (7.9 in) or less. Values are long-term monthly averages for the ~1 km cell at the trail point on the map, from CHELSA V2.1 climatologies (Karger et al., CC0), not a forecast. Higher or more exposed parts of a route can be colder, wetter or snowier.
About this trail
Waiau Pass Route is a very technical alpine crossing, suitable for highly experienced parties only. It links Lewis Pass and Nelson Lakes National Park. This track is part of Te Araroa Trail.
NZ Department of Conservation (CC BY 4.0).
Trail facts
- Length
- 48 km · 30 mi (DOC route geometry)
- Source
- NZ Department of Conservation (CC BY 4.0)
- Difficulty
- Very hard (9/10) (Expert · NZ Department of Conservation difficulty (CC BY 4.0))
- Typical time (DOC)
- 8-10 days for full trip
- Official page
- doc.govt.nz/link/defa3b7f34d24c558ee9a4e8974
- Mountain range
- Spenser Mountains (Main Divide of The Southern Alps › Southern Alps; GMBA)
- Nearest town
- 34 km NW of Hanmer Springs (Hurunui District, Canterbury) · GeoNames
- Park or forest
- St James Conservation Area
- Connects to
- St James Walkway (at its start or end)
- Best months
- Oct–Apr
- Country
- New Zealand
- Region
- Canterbury
- Continent
- Oceania
- Route centre
- -42.2413, 172.6308
How it’s scored
Very hard (9/10). Official rating: Expert · NZ Department of Conservation difficulty (CC BY 4.0).
A score is omitted when we do not have an official rating or enough measured length and elevation gain to compute one. Nothing is guessed. Read the NPS method: https://www.nps.gov/shen/planyourvisit/how-to-determine-hiking-difficulty.htm
Hikers can rate difficulty from 1 to 10 (1 = flat, short, easy walk for anyone; 3 = gentle hills, a little effort; 5 = moderate climbs, some fitness needed; 7 = steep or long, solid fitness required; 10 = extremely strenuous or technical; long steep climbing; experienced hikers only). The community average is shown once at least 3 people have rated the trail; until then the official or computed score is used when we have one.
Nearest trails
distance from the trail centreTA07b Waiau Pass
5.5 mi · 8.9 km · Tasman
Fowlers Pass Track
5.7 mi · 9.1 km · St James Conservation Area
Stanley River Route
9 mi · 14 km · Canterbury
St James Walkway
10 mi · 16 km · Canterbury
Saint James Walkway
13 mi · 21 km · Lewis Pass Scenic Reserve
Homestead Run
13 mi · 22 km · St James Conservation Area
All trails in Canterbury → · All 1,167 trails in New Zealand →