Lots of elevation. Views are worth it

This well-marked, almost 16 km track with about 1100 meters of elevation gives great views of the two lakes on its sides. It also gives distant views of Mount Aspiring (and its National Park). We saw lots of sheep, deer, and birds in the first two thirds of the walk. The trailhead is about lake elevation and goes to the peak of Isthmus. Most of the elevation occurs fairly quickly (on steepish grades, not stairs/steps), which could be tiring on the way up (or painful on the knees on the way down). There was one 25 meter section that was a bit difficult to grip. I made it slowly. My partner had to get on all fours for a bit. But if you’re up for the climb, a brief moment of careful stepping, and you want the views, it’s probably worth it. We took it fairly easy on the way up, summiting in 2.75 hours. We descended faster, in about 1.75 hours. (4.5 hours return) If we’d been more leisurely on the way down, it could have been up to 5.25 hours. Others estimate 4-8 hours depending, depending on the publication and one’s level of fitness. The car Park was full when we arrived around 10:30am (in summer). There are auxiliary car parks (or pull offs?) about 100 meters away from the main car park (and closer to the trailhead) for extra cars. (Parking was free). Weather was cold, cloudy, drizzly, and a bit stormy for us, so we did not have an outstandingly positive experience. Had weather been good, this could have been our third or fourth favorite hike of our trip (behind Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Sealy Tarns, and maybe Hooker Valley.) #themeparks#nationalpark#lakes#beaches#infinitypool