If you travel through the heart of New Zealand's South Island, you won't miss Lake Wakatipu which in Maori legend is the "hollow of the giant."
It is a 80-kilometre (50-mile) long, serpentine body of water formed from the melting ice of South Island glaciers. Famously, it is on its banks that Queenstown, the self-described "adventure capital of the world," sits.
Lakeside communities
The town of Glenorchy lies at the lake's northern end, Kingston at its southern end. Other towns on the lake include Fernhill and Cranston west and east, respectively, of Queenstown.
The vintage steamship Earnslaw cruises Lake Wakatipu on a route that takes in Walter Peak Station across the water from Queenstown.
The giant's heartbeat
According to legend, Lake Wakatipu was formed when an evil giant was set on fire by an adventurous youth. The resulting heat melted the snow and ice of surrounding mountains which then filled the long double-dogleg hollow.
The giant's heartbeat is said to cause the rise and fall every five minutes or so of the waters of Lake Wakatipu. A less mythic explanation is an oscillation caused by differences in atmospheric pressure.
