How NOT to Hike Roy’s Peak Track

We went on the famous Roy’s peak hike in Wanaka – and we sort of completely failed!

We did make it to the top of Roy’s peak, but we underestimated the difficulty of the hike so badly that we didn’t get to enjoy this beautiful trail that much.

It’s actually a pretty funny story.

So in this blog post, we will share all the necessary information about hiking to the top of Roy’s peak. How much water do you need, how long does it take, at what time of the day should you do the hike, how long is the trail, what’s the elevation gain, and most importantly – how NOT to hike the Roy’s peak track.

We did it completely wrong, so that you can do it right!

We hope you will find this blog post both useful in your own preparation for hiking Roy’s Peak, but we also hope that you will have a laugh or two at our self-inflicted misfortune. So let’s begin this crazy adventure at one of New Zealand’s best trails.

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Roys Peak hiking information

Before we move on to our story, we want to make sure you are all covered in case you’re thinking about hiking Roy’s peak.

So we made a little Q&A about all the important information of this lovely day hike. That way you can do it right the first time!

If you have more questions about Roy’s peak hike, then don’t hesitate to leave a comment and we’ll get back to you.

Where is Roy’s Peak?

The Roy’s peak trailhead starts around 7 kilometers from Wanaka in the Otago region on New Zealand’s South island. So it’s conveniently located right next to Wanaka town and Wanaka lake.

And what better way to finish a day hiking Roy’s Peak than getting some Fish and Chips in Wanaka, having a picnic on the beach, and jumping into the lake to cool off? That’s exactly what we did!

You can also sign up for a Happy Hour Cruise in Lake Wanaka after the hike, we didn’t do it, but it honestly sounds pretty good after a full day of hiking.

How to get to Roy’s Peak car park?

After driving for about 7 kilometers from Wanaka towards Mount Aspiring National Park, you will see the Roy’s Peak car park on your left. This is where you drop off your car and start the hike.

During the peak season, the car park can get pretty full. However, a lot of people go hiking throughout the day, so you shouldn’t have to wait too long to get a free spot.

We (of course) arrived at the worst hour and time for a hike, midday January, yet there were still a few spaces left in the car park.

When is the best time to do the hike?

We hear that watching the sunrise at Roy’s Peak should be an amazing experience! But starting the hike at any time of the day could really do.

Just remember it’s a long and tough hike, so we wouldn’t recommend you to start the hike in the late afternoon. You don’t want it to be dark when you reach the top and the phenomenal viewpoint.

If you visit Roy’s Peak during the New Zealand summer, then make sure to not start the hike around midday. There is no shadow on the trail and the sun is really sharp and hot from December through February.

Roy’s peak is also closed from October 1st until November 10th due to lambing season. So don’t plan on visiting during this time period as you simply can’t.

How many kilometers is Roy’s Peak?

16 kilometers in total.

It’s 8 kilometers up to Roy’s Peak and then 8 kilometers down the very same track.

What is the Roy’s peak elevation gain?

The Roy’s peak summit is at 1578 meters above sea level and the total elevation gain during the hike is 1228 meters. Don’t underestimate how much this is for a day hike.

Roy’s peak has a bigger elevation gain than the Tongariro Alpine Crossing even though it’s actually a shorter hike. Just think about that for comparison.

The elevation gain is definitely the toughest part about Roy’s Peak Track. So please don’t underestimate it!

How much time do you need to hike Roy’s peak?

The Department of Conservation in New Zealand states that you need 5-6 hours to finish the hike. But in our opinion, this is for people who is used to hiking and who is in really good shape.

If you’re a casual hiker like me and Glenn, then expect it to take 6 hours rather than 5 hours.

The hike up is really tough and takes a long time, however, don’t underrate the time it takes to walk down from Roy’s peak. On the way down your legs get really heavy and tired, so you want to slow down in order to not get any injuries.

The hike time took us 3,5 hours up to the top of Roy’s Peak and the hike down took us 2 hours and 15 minutes. So we nearly spent 6 hours on the trail.

What is the hike difficulty at Roy’s peak?

Tough! Hard! Steep! Uncomfortable..?

The Roy’s Peak hike difficulty is definitely something to keep in mind before you embark on this track. It’s a steep zig-zag trail with no shadow that goes on for 8 kilometers up the mountain, and then 8 kilometers down that very same mountain. So the trail ends where it begins.

Please have this in mind before you take your 3 kids along this hike if they aren’t used to tramping. It’s a really tough hike and we wouldn’t recommend it to people with knee injuries or people with a poor fitness level. It’s really tough on the body, so if you’re new to hiking, you might sit this one over.

Related post: Hiking for Beginners

Glenn and I both found that the Roy’s peak hike difficulty was greater than the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. The Tongariro’s landscape is constantly changing, whereas the Roy’s Peak track’s landscape stays the same during the whole hike.

This means Roy’s Peak is also mentally challenging. But once you’re at the summit, you’ll realize that the incredible view is worth the pain.

What to bring for the hike?

Water!

Bring at least 2 Liter per person. Running out of water on top of Roy’s Peak was probably one of the lowest moments in all of my hiking adventures. You can never bring enough water with you on a tough hike – especially if you’re hiking Roy’s Peak during the summer.

Also, dress in layers! The weather in New Zealand can change pretty quickly, especially on the trails with high elevation gain such as Roy’s Peak. So be prepared with an extra layer of clothing to put on and off.

This is a full day hike so remember to pack a lunch and some snacks – we always bring some nuts and fruits. A juicy peach can easily brighten the mood on this track!

There is no shadow on the trail, so bring a hat and some sunscreen. The sun in New Zealand is very strong.

And most importantly, bring some good walking shoes and bandages for blisters. Walking 8 kilometers straight up and then 8 kilometers straight down is hard for the body – especially the feet!

Related post: What to pack for a day hike?

This wraps up all the important questions we could think of. If you want to know more about the Roy’s Peak Track, then go to the Department of Conservation’s website, or leave a comment here on the blog.

Our story of how NOT to hike Roy’s Peak Track

Okay now that we’ve answered all the need-to-know questions about hiking Roy’s Peak, it’s time for us to tell you what NOT to do.

This is our story about how NOT to hike Roy’s Peak. We did it wrong, so that you can do it right!

1. The hike begins: Underestimating the difficulty and not preparing enough

On a sunny day in January, we decided to go hike Roy’s Peak now that we were driving through Wanaka on our road trip. We had heard about the track, but we actually never did any research before pulling our van into Roy’s Peak car park.

So just before midday, about 11 AM, we parked The Gladiator (our prestigious van with graffiti picturing a gladiator) at the beginning of the trail. We were lucky to get a spot because the parking lot was almost full.

This looked like a popular hike. So it must be good!

We packed 2 Liters of water, some fruits, and peanut butter sandwiches. Next we put on our hiking shoes, tied the shoe laces into a sturdy double knot, placed our caps on our heads, before applying a thick layer of sunscreen on our exposed skin. Feeling like super(hiking)heroes, we were ready to go!

We looked at the sign by the trailhead. The hike time to and from Roy’s Peak said 5-6 hours in total – easy! We can do that, no biggie.

So with high spirits we started the ascent to the mountain top.

It wasn’t long before we met someone who were on their way down. They looked very tired, but their mood was high. They told us that the hike to Roy’s Peak was hard, but definitely worth the lookout at the top. Sounds good to me!

We later discovered that their mood was high because they were almost back at the parking lot and finished with the hike. How do I know? Because that was exactly how I felt when the hike was almost over…

After hiking for a little while, we realized that there would be NO flat part on the trail – the elevation gain on Roy’s Peak Track is a constant. There is walking up, and then there is walking down, and that’s it.

2. Halfway up the mountain: I am thirsty, what about you?

After zig-zagging up the mountain for 2 hours, our spirits started to crumble. What had we gotten ourselves into? This hike was so tough.

All the people we met on the way were walking down. We were idiots for embarking on this hike so late in the day during the summer. The sun was blazing hot and there was no shadow on the trail.

We stopped to have an overview of our provisions. We already drank 1 Liter of water and we had only finished 1/4 of the trail. This didn’t look promising. And we were so thirsty!

We started to discuss whether we should give up and walk down.

The only problem is that both Glenn and I are very stubborn when it comes to hiking. On top of that, we were also vlogging the hike for our YouTube channel Worldwide Walkers, so we didn’t want to quit the hike.

Basically none of us wanted to give up. So we decided to save our water and just keep on going.

If we can give you one important hiking tip – don’t stop drinking water. Water is the most essential thing you can bring on a hike and it shouldn’t be up for discussion.

Dehydrating while hiking up a mountain in the blazing sun can be really dangerous. This is NOT the way to hike Roy’s Peak. Trust me! Just bring more water.

3. We made it to Roy’s Peak lookout

Eventually we made it to Roy’s Peak! The top of the mountain! After hiking for nearly 4 hours and filming all the way, this felt like a true victory.

But was it really?

We were so tired from the hike and we had started to dehydrate, so it was hard to really enjoy the view. We both just sat down feeling beaten by the mountain rather than feeling like we conquered it.

We’ve never felt this awful on a hike before. Normally we LOVE hiking! There is no better feeling than when you reach the top and it feels like you got a little bit closer to nature that day. This feeling simply didn’t come to us because our misery was in the way.

We sat down and unpacked our peanut butter sandwiches.

Now imagine that you’re super thirsty and you’re eating dry bread with peanut butter… It literally felt like my whole mouth had just turned into sand. It was so hard to swallow that sandwich. Glenn and I looked at each other and just started laughing.

If I had had any water left inside of me, I would have cried while I drank those last drops of water on the top of Roy’s Peak. But I was all dried out.

Glenn and I looked down at the trail we had just walked up. It was time. There was only one way down.

4. Dehydrating hard on the way down

When most people read that Roy’s peak has an elevation gain of 1228 meters, they only focus on how tough the way up is going to be. However, don’t underestimate how hard it is to walk down this elevation in one go.

At this point of the hike, your legs will be very tired, which means that the possibility to twist your angle or fall is higher than usual. So remember to take breaks on the way down so you don’t become sloppy with your footwork.

But of course Glenn and I also did this wrong – we didn’t take any breaks. We were so thirsty and tired that we basically tried to get back down to the car park as soon as possible. And I think we were lucky that none of us slipped and hurt ourselves.

The hike time to Roy’s Peak took us almost 4 hours, whereas the way down took us about 2,5 hours. So it’s definitely faster to walk down. We also put away our camera and stopped filming on the way down. We had to direct all of our energy into keeping our feet grounded and our minds strong.

The way down was so tough on the body! My knees hurt and my toes started to blister.

However, it felt good getting closer and closer to the car park and further and further away from Roy’s Peak. It was really motivating to be able to see our van standing in the car park while we were on our way down from Roy’s peak. The van was our home. Where we had some drinks waiting for us!

At some point towards the end, Glenn just started running.

He later told me that he was so thirsty that he couldn’t wait to get down to the van. Isn’t it funny how the human mind and body works sometimes? If adrenalin kicks in you can do anything. All of a sudden Glenn could run, while only a few minutes earlier he could barely walk.

5. Back to the Roy’s Peak car park and into lake Wanaka

We were finally back down! In one piece! Alive! Okay, a bit too dramatic, sorry. Of course we were alive.

I spotted Glenn next to our van chugging a bottle of milk.

He said, “it was the only cold thing we had left”.

Since the van had been standing in the January sun for almost 6 hours, it was like a sauna inside. You could almost make tea with the gallon of water we had in the car. But at this point I didn’t care.

I was drinking hot water from a gallon while Glenn was chugging milk in the car park. Oh what a pitiful sight!

We had somehow survived Roy’s Peak – the (so far) toughest day hike we had done in New Zealand. When we had begun the hike almost 6 hours earlier, we had no clue that it would be this hard. We had completely underestimated Roy’s Peak Track.

We drove back to Wanaka, parked the car by the beach, and jumped straight into the lake.

Splashing around lake Wanaka was just the sweetest way to end our day hiking to Roy’s Peak! Make sure to also check out some of the adventures in Lake Wanaka such as the Happy Hour Cruise or the Jet boat adventure in Clutha River.

After our dip in the lake, we headed into town for some well-deserved Fish n’ Chips – the best way to get saturated again after a full day of hiking.

This miserable (yet very adventurous) day turned out to be one of my favorite days while traveling in New Zealand. So if you’re up for a challenge, go hike Roy’s peak Track!

Final comments about hiking Roy’s Peak

We know that most of you must think we were idiots for not doing any research ahead and that we went hiking Roy’s Peak in the middle of the day in sunny January with waaaaay too little water.

BUT being full-time travellers, we can’t always think ahead about every adventure we do.

Sometimes we just gotta go for it and hope for the best. However, what we can do, is share our stories in the hope that other people learn from our mistakes and misadventures.

So if you’re reading this post and you want to hike Roy’s Peak, then expect it to be difficult. Please prepare yourself properly. Don’t just throw your van into the car park, put on some sunscreen, and hope for the best – like we did.

Roy’s Peak is an amazing track with the most beautiful lookout over lake Wanaka and Mount Aspiring National Park. So please do the hike right, so that you can enjoy it the way it’s supposed to be enjoyed!

If we were to do it again, we would definitely aim for sunrise at Roy’s Peak. Just imagine that sight!

Remember, Roy’s Peak is not for everyone. So if you’re looking for a more easy day hike on New Zealand’s South island, with no significant elevation gain, then we recommend you to go check out Hooker Valley Track and Franz Josef Glacier Walk.

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Thank you for reading this blog post about how NOT to hike Roy’s peak. We hope you had fun and that you feel more prepared to go on this beautiful day hike yourself. Please don’t hesitate to comment with any questions.

If you want to read more entertaining stories from the road, then check out our blog post compilation of Funny Travel Stories. Thanks for reading and happy travels!

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