Explore and enjoy the rugged back country terrain at Walter Peak on our electric trail bikes.
Board the historic TSS Earnslaw Vintage Steamship for a spectacular cruise across Lake Wakatipu to Walter Peak. At Walter Peak High Country Farm you’ll meet your guide who will provide you with a briefing and familiarisation of the electric trail bikes.
This unique experience is exciting and provides a fun, low impact activity in peaceful and stunning surroundings. You will be guided through gentle rolling farmland, then climb "The Hill" and take in the views of the Colonel's Homestead and beautiful Lake Wakatipu below. Then ride the undulating tracks towards the lakeside peninsula at Beach Point reserve. Here there is a stop for refreshments and time for you to learn about the history of Walter Peak and high country farming. Your guide will also update you on Real Journeys award-winning conservation efforts to remove the invasive wilding pine trees, replacing them with pockets of native plant and bush.
Return back to the farm after riding the flat natural terraces overlooking the lake, soaking in the stunning alpine scenery. There's time to visit the gift shop and take photos before boarding the TSS Earnslaw for your return cruise to Queenstown Bay.
Walter Peak was founded in 1860. It is a 25,758 hectare working high country sheep station on the southern shore of Lake Wakatipu.
It runs approximately 18,000 Merino and Perendale sheep and about 800 beef cows.
Real Journeys Visitor Centre on Steamer Wharf, 88 Beach Street, Queenstown Bay
The Ubco dual electric motor bike is light weight with an extremely strong frame (super x frame), designed and built in New Zealand, with silent motors making this the ideal bike for a sustainable farm bike adventure. The bike is charged by a 40 Ah lithium battery. It has rear and front brakes with front and rear shocks and is suitable for anyone over the age of 13 years and above and 150cm’s in height and over.
This product has been audited by Worksafe under the NZ Adventure tourism regulations. We observe strict safety procedures; however electric trail bikes involve a degree of risk. We cannot be responsible for personal injury, loss and damage to equipment. Participants will be required to sign a liability waiver form before starting the tour.
TSS Earnslaw Vintage Steamship, 1912
The TSS Earnslaw is an integral part of Queenstown’s pioneering history and to this day a Queenstown icon.
She was commissioned by New Zealand Railways to service the communities around Lake Wakatipu. Launched in the same year as the Titanic, the TSS Earnslaw’s maiden voyage was on 18 October 1912.
Soon known as The Lady of the Lake, she provided an essential link between the isolated farming communities along the lake and the outside world. At 48 metres long, she was the biggest boat on the Lake and carried passengers, sheep, cattle, mail and supplies.
Nearly scrapped in 1968, she was rescued and purchased by Real Journeys and put to work once again carrying passengers around the Lake. Since then the TSS Earnslaw has been painstakingly restored to its original condition – everything you see is pretty much like it was a 100 years ago. Today, the TSS Earnslaw is the only coal fired steamship in operation in the southern hemisphere, making her one of the most unique experiences in the world.
The TSS Earnslaw has featured in several movies including a cameo in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull as an Amazon River Boat. Parts of the trawler SS Venture in Peter Jackson’s King Kong were inspired by the TSS Earnslaw. Famous composer Ron Goodwin composed a piece of music inspired by the rhythm of the TSS Earnslaw’s engines.
10 July 2017
Beautiful trip across Lake Wakatipu, delicious gourmet BBQ lunch followed by a fun electric bike farm tour with spectacular views. A huge thanks to Peter and his energetic dog Skye for being our tour guides. We really enjoyed our time at Walter Peak.
Visited July 2017
1 May 2017
Fresh delicious food cooked to perfection in a beautiful place. We also did the Electric Bikes which were loads of fun, they have mountain bike riding or horse riding there too.
Visited May 2017
7 March 2017
The Bikes are very easy to ride even for the most inexperienced riders. They are stable and automatic and so much fun & best of all no hard work needed as the Bike does it all. You tour the farm and there are several fantastic photo opportunities not to be missed.
Visited March 2017
2 March 2017
Excellent value for money and the views from the bike track were absolutely incredible.
Visited March 2017
2 January 2017
We booked a last minute ticket across the lake on the TSS Earnslaw Steam Engine to Walter Peak farm where we would ride the Electric Trail Bikes. The bikes are a brand new product and only a small handful of people have gone on them so far.
The boat ride took about 30-45 minutes and was smooth as anything.
On arrival we were greeted by a really friendly kiwi girl who would be our tour guide. She was both instructive and personable.
We rode for about 1.5 hours through the several paddocks to get to top speed. These electric bikes are surprisingly fast and when cranked right up can get you to 45km/h.
Towards the end of the ride we rode up large hill where we got to take the most extraordinary photos. Then we hooned down the hill back to the farm house where we ate fruit salad and biscuits whilst drinking lemon ice tea. Sounds lame but it was actually pretty cool.
After that we walked around the beautiful farm house rose garden while we waited for the TSS Earnslaw to pick us back up and take us back to Queenstown.
All-in-all we had a wicked time. There's a few different tours and activities you can do at the Walter Peak farm, most of are family oriented, so if you're anything like Taryn and I (adventurous) then get on the bikes!!
Visited January 2017
21 December 2016
After a ferry ride, we were met by Matt who had our bikes loaded and ready. The ride distance was optional in length and effort. The views were magnificent! The after the ride tea and crumpets was a class act! Highly recommend.
Visited December 2016
Walter Peak was founded in 1860. It is a 25,758 hectare working high country sheep station on the southern shore of Lake Wakatipu.
It runs approximately 18,000 Merino and Perendale sheep and about 800 beef cows.
In case you haven't found the information you were looking for, we've put together some of the most common questions our customers ask about our trips. If you need more specific answers, please contact us directly.
Queenstown has a climate with four distinct seasons however, being located in an alpine environment means the weather can be changeable. A guide for the temperatures you can expect is as follows: summer (December-February) 19-29 Celsius,autumn (March-May) 15-25 Celsius, winter (June-August) 5-10 Celsius, spring (September-November) 9-15 Celsius.
Please allow an additional 30 minutes to find parking for your vehicle prior to your check in time.
There is limited free street parking available in the streets surrounding central Queenstown. There is paid parking available in the Man Street and Church Street parking buildings plus pay and display parking at the Boundary Street and Ballarat Street carparks.
Boundary Street and Ballarat Street carparks are suitable for motorhomes. Please allow 15 minutes to walk to the Real Journeys office from there.
The scenic cruise from Queenstown to Walter Peak takes 45 minutes and it takes in views of Walter Peak, Cecil Peak and the Remarkables mountain range plus panoramic views around Lake Wakatipu.
From Christchurch to Queenstown by car takes around 7 hrs 15 mins. For more information refer to our Driving Times webpage.
The TSS Earnslaw is scheduled to operate every day of the year (except when she undergoes annual maintenance). This is currently planned for early June 2018 - early July 2018 and during this period travel to/from Walter Peak is by one of our smaller boats. Walter Peak Independent Cycling does NOT operate during this time.
Our staff are trained to deal with incidents and in case of an emergency you should listen to their instructions.
We have a portable defibrillator on board each of our overnight cruise vessels (Milford Mariner, Milford Wanderer and Fiordland Navigator).
In addition to this we also have portable defibrillators at the following locations:
• Milford Sound Visitor Terminal
• Real Journeys Visitor Centre, Manapouri
• Cavern House (Te Anau Glowworm Caves)
• Colonel’s Homestead Restaurant, Walter Peak
• TSS Earnslaw Vintage Steamship
• Stewart Island Ferry (Bluff - Oban - Bluff).
All prices and transactions on the Real Journeys website are in New Zealand dollars (NZD). This is specified on the Terms & Conditions page.
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