Lake Camp In Hakatere Conservation Park

Get information about Lake Camp in mid-Canterbury on the South Island, see photos, and learn when it is the best time to visit this small but scenic lake.

What And Where Is Lake Camp?

Lake Camp is one of several lakes in the Hakatere Conservation Park.

Hakatere Conservation Park is located in the Ashburton District in mid-Canterbury on the South Island of New Zealand.

The closest town of entry into the Hakatere Conservation Park is Mount Somers.

Lake Camp is a relatively small lake compared to other lakes in Hakatere Conservation Park, but nonetheless very scenic.

How To Get To Lake Camp

The quickest way to get to Hakatere Conservation Park is to drive from Christchurch to Mount Somers, which is about 112 km (70 mi) and should take around 1.5 hours.

After you reach Mount Somers, follow the Ashurton Gorge Road until you reach a junction where you can go straight on a dirt road (Hakatere Potts Road) to visit Lake Emma, Lake Roundabout, Lake Camp, and Lake Clearwater; or go right on another dirt road (Hakatere Heron Road) to visit Maori Lakes and Lake Heron.

If you choose to drive further on to Lake Clearwater after you reach Lake Camp, you could continue driving to a Lord of the Rings location (Edoras and Mount Sunday).

Why Visit Lake Camp?

Lake Camp is a popular lake for water skiing, fishing, or just to sit down and enjoy the scenery. I generally visit it for photography.

Lake Camp can be visited in any season, but is at its most scenic in either autumn or winter in New Zealand.

In autumn, Lake Camp is dotted with yellow trees, so you can visit it then to see fall foliage. And in winter, the surrounding mountains should be either snow-capped or snow-covered.

But to see a much more scenic lake in winter with snow on surrounding mountains, follow the Hakatere Heron Road at the junction and drive to Lake Heron.

Lake Heron should also be good to visit in early spring when temperatures are still good enough for snow on the mountains.

Lake Camp is one of my favourite locations for landscape photography, so I highly recommend it, that is, if you are able to get to this somewhat remote yet scenic region around Hakatere. The mountains and lakes around there are simply gorgeous!

And if you do visit, please help keep the place beautiful by not littering.

More Information About Lake Camp

For more information about Lake Camp, visit the Hakatere Conservation Park page on the Department of Conservation website and download the brochure that they have made available.

The brochure will tell you a little bit about the history of the area and give you a list of activities you can do in the park, including walks with their lengths, walking times, and small maps to help you find your bearings.