That Wānaka Tree

It began life as a fence post. Sometime before 1939 a length of crack willow was driven into the shallows of Roys Bay, at the southern end of Lake Wānaka, to stop livestock from the neighbouring Wānaka Station wandering along the shore. The fence has long gone; the post took root, sprouted, and grew into a single leaning tree standing a few metres out in the water, alone against the lake and the mountains behind it.

The tree's beauty is almost entirely a matter of setting and season. It is small and slightly crooked, its trunk rising from the lake as if from a mirror, and on still mornings its reflection doubles it exactly. Autumn turns the willow gold against the blue of the water; in winter it stands bare and graphic, with snow on the ranges beyond; at sunrise the lake can go pink and silver while the tree stays a dark silhouette. Photographers speak of it the way others speak of a landscape, and the comparison is fair: it is the one vertical line that gives the whole bay its composition.

For decades it was a local curiosity. Its fame came with a single image: Dennis Radermacher's misty photograph taken in June 2014, which won the New Zealand Geographic photograph of the year, and the hashtag #ThatWanakaTree soon made it one of the most photographed trees in the country. Fame brought pressure. In 2017 a branch broke when visitors climbed it, and in March 2020 someone sawed off several limbs; the willow survived both, although cold lake water slows its regrowth. The kindest way to enjoy it is from the shore, leaving the roots and branches alone.

Getting there

The tree stands in the lake just off the lakefront track west of Wānaka town centre, near Pembroke Park and the marina — about a 15-minute walk from the centre along a level path. Wanaka Airport (WKA) is about 11 km away; the nearest large city, Dunedin, is roughly 170 km to the south-east. The best light is at sunrise and in the golden hour before sunset.