Lake Ohau feels like a place the mountains have been keeping for themselves — wide, quiet, and full of light. By day, the trails lead through high-country landscapes; by night, the sky opens above the lake in one of the world’s dark sky reserves.
This horseback journey begins at the station woolshed, where you meet your horse and set out across Lake Ohau Station, a historic high-country property first farmed in 1857. You ride through mountain valleys, along ice-blue braided rivers, and beneath native beech trees where birdlife follows the trail. The Huxley Valley brings glacier-fed water and wide views, while Temple Valley feels deeper and older, with mist often hanging around the peaks. Each day gives around five to six hours in the saddle, with picnic lunches, farmhouse breakfasts, and evenings by the fire.
You stay at Lake Ohau Quarters, with time to soak in the hot tub under the stars, share dinner, sing by the open fire, or simply sit with the silence of the lake. Your transfer returns you to Queenstown after a slow final morning. Come for the riding, and leave with the mountains still somewhere in your heart!
