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Testing if you actually need heavy-duty hiking boots for this loop, and navigating the tree roots along the shoreline. I packed my Adidas Agravic TT expecting a total ankle-breaker of a trail, turns out a solid pair of trail runners is all you need for the Bob's Cove track. The path is mostly well-formed, packed dirt and gravel that weaves right along the water's edge. My weak ankles definitely had to work a bit when tackling the short, steep climb up to Picnic Point, but the rest of the 2km loo

Uncovering why this specific bay looks like a tropical lagoon, and climbing up the 77-meter limestone ridge to Picnic Point. I assumed the water colour here was just standard lake reflection, turns out Bob's Cove sits right on a massive limestone bed from the ancient Moonlight Sea. Millions of years ago, this whole area was ocean, and now those dissolved limestone minerals give the water this insanely vivid, almost unnatural turquoise color. Grinding up the short, steep hill to the lookout defin

Investigating the bathroom situation on the Glenorchy road, and finding the facilities ten minutes into the Bob's Cove track. I assumed this was going to be a completely wild bush walk with zero infrastructure, turns out there is actually a long-drop toilet hiding right on the trail. You've got to survive a 10-minute walk from the main gravel car park to reach it. Is it a luxurious experience? Absolutely not. It smells exactly how you'd expect a remote bush toilet to smell. But when your spine i

Why the clearest water in Queenstown is a total trap, and standing on the edge of the Bob's Cove jetty. I read this sheltered cove was a massive local swimming hotspot, turns out "swimming" in Lake Wakatipu actually means aggressive cold-water survival. The water in this bay is so violently emerald green and clear that you can see every single pebble on the bottom, which makes it look incredibly inviting. Don't be fooled. It is basically glacial run-off and it will absolutely numb your soul the

Walking through one of Queenstown's only surviving native forests, and dodging the massive ferns at Bob's Cove. I thought everything around Queenstown was just exotic pine trees, turns out this pocket of Bob's Cove is actually packed with original native bush that somehow survived the 1800s logging boom. You get the intense earthy smell of damp soil and ancient beech trees right off the bat. It's a 2km loop, meaning my herniated discs are only mildly annoyed by the terrain. You're walking under

Staring at a massive boulder that shouldn't be here, and walking up to the Scott Memorial on the lake edge. I thought the giant grey rock holding the memorial plaque was just hauled in by modern landscapers, turns out it’s a "glacial erratic." During the last ice age, this entire peninsula was submerged under 45 meters of solid ice and freezing water, which dragged these massive boulders down the valley. The local Māori originally named this spot Te Kirikiri, literally meaning "gravel place," wh

Surviving New Zealand's oldest disc golf course, and dodging high-speed plastic through the pine forest. I wore my heavy-duty jacket expecting the wind to be my biggest hazard, turns out the real danger to my concussion-prone skull is an army of flying frisbees. The Gardens host an 18-hole disc golf course winding right through the trees. You'll be peacefully enjoying the quiet crunch of the gravel and the earthy smell of the pines, and suddenly you hear the loud "ching" of a disc hitting a meta

Rating the bathroom logistics before committing to the peninsula loop, and hitting the pavement near the Park Street playground. I assumed I was going to have to severely dehydrate myself to survive this walk, turns out there are perfectly functioning public toilets right at the main entrance by the kids' playground. Are you getting a five-star spa experience? No, it smells faintly of damp sand and cold concrete. But when your back has multiple herniated discs, the concept of trying to squat beh

Finding out Queenstown Gardens is basically a fake forest, and walking under the massive Douglas fir canopy. I assumed all these towering pines and giant English oaks were ancient native fixtures, turns out back in 1860 this entire peninsula was nothing but bare gravel, prickly bracken, and tussock scrub. When the first European settlers arrived, they looked at the scrub-land and essentially went crazy with “arbormania.” They shipped in hundreds of exotic trees from Tasmania and planted them eve

Dodging the Queenstown crowds to walk a completely flat peninsula, and stepping onto the wide path of the Gardens loop. I read the reviews saying this was just a basic city park, turns out it's a massive 12.5-hectare sanctuary jutting straight into Lake Wakatipu. I fully expected to be grinding up a steep hill and torturing my bad ankle like every other Queenstown activity, but the gravel track here is blessedly flat. The freezing wind coming off the lake hits your face while the smell of damp p