Mackenzie Country Weather NZ

24/05/2026

🟢 Latest Update following the serious crash on Sunday evening between Pukaki and Tekapo - 2am

SH8 along the route between Lake Pukaki to Lake Tekapo has now reopened.

- Jordan

24/05/2026

⛔️ Due to a crash, State Highway 8 is closed between Lake Pukaki and Tekapo. Please delay your journey or consider alternate route.

- Jordan

19/05/2026

🥶 ⚠️ Widespread big frosts across the Mackenzie and fog continues for Twizel on day 5!

Good morning everyone.

Twizel continues to be stuck in the miserable foggy days, but don’t worry that’s about to come to an end with some warming to come with a chance of some showers and rain to move in tomorrow, especially closer to the alps.

NW winds for Thursday will see an increase in temperatures across the Mackenzie with some gusty winds possible in exposed areas.

🥶 Our coldest place this morning goes to Mount Cook Village of dipping below -7 degrees in the month of May!!
Coldest morning in recent years for the village.

Burkes Pass and Tekapo both dipped below -5 degrees and Tekapo a little more warmer of -3

⚠️ Please drive to the conditions this morning and take care, avoid travel early if you’re able to until at least afternoon.

18/05/2026

✅ SH8 Twizel to Tekapo update, (SH8 Pukaki Canal Bridge) 10:30am:

Road has now reopened, continue to drive with care in winter like conditions, with foggy conditions likely to continue throughout the day with the odd chance of fine breaks in the afternoon in pockets, other wise fog will remain.

18/05/2026

⚠️ Freezing fog and black ice on SH8 between Twizel to Tekapo and south of Twizel.

⛔️ Crash has been reported on the Pukaki Canal bridge on SH8 which has closed the road, from what we have heard it’s no good at all.

🥶 Today will be another day of fog throughout the day, so please remain vigilant

18/05/2026

🥶 Fog and more fog continues for the Mackenzie Basin in and around Twizel over these few days and with temperatures sitting around 1.3 degrees at the airport at 12:45pm!

📸 If you have any pics, please feel free to send them to us.

🥶 We expect that tonight will continue to freeze for the Basin with fog to linger into Tuesday, all a possibility.

❄️ Winter is truely here now and we are beginning early for this type of set up.

⚠️ Please make sure you drive to the winter driving conditions

- Jordan

16/05/2026

🥶 Cold temperatures and fog for Twizel!

Winter is approaching and we are starting to see the beginnings of a classic set up for Twizel for this time of year.

High pressure in tacked over the South Island which will allow cold days and nights to continue and hardly any breeze to push the fog away!

Twizel reached a maximum of 4 degrees this afternoon at the airport and we expect hard frosts overnight tonight with fog to linger and increase in places.

🥶 Expect temperatures to drop below -3 to -5 degrees overnight for the Mackenzie Basin with the risk of a hoar frost development.

But in saying that we are about a few weeks too early for hoar frosts which they typically happens in early or mid June for the best first chances of those events with the right conditions.

- Jordan

09/05/2026

Important information as we head closer to winter

Roadworkers are gearing up to apply grit and anti-ice chemicals to the roads. Here's how to drive on treated roads:

In winter you may come across roadworkers in trucks applying grit. Grit is a layer of fine gravel that helps give you more grip in snowy or icy conditions.

Roadworkers may also use a range of anti-ice chemicals which they’ll spread or spray onto roads to help reduce ice on the road. We mostly use CMA (calcium magnesium acetate), which is non-corrosive and biodegradable. It works by preventing frozen water from bonding together on the road, so the likelihood of ice and frost forming is massively reduced.

Grit and anti-ice treatments will help you travel more easily and safely but they won’t totally eliminate snow and ice. You still need to adjust your speed to suit the conditions and increase your following distance.

If you come across roadworkers applying grit or anti-ice treatments to a road, be careful as you pass them. Pass slowly and keep as safe a distance as possible. The road immediately behind the roadworkers will still be slippery, and the roadworkers won’t’ve treated the road ahead of them yet, so take extra care.

We’re constantly monitoring how winter weather is affecting travel on the state highways, but conditions can change quickly in winter and the speed at which snow and ice can appear means there’ll be times we haven’t yet been able to spread grit or the anti-ice treatments.

Intense periods of weather such as snow, ice, and severe rain can make it unsafe to travel which means we may have to temporarily close state highways. Always check our page to see if state highways are affected before you travel.

04/05/2026

❄️ Make this the winter you don’t just talk about, you live it!

⛷️ EarlyBird Sale is on now! so secure your season pass and experience everything Mt Dobson has to offer, from wide-open terrain to breathtaking alpine views.

To know more about their sales, check out their website ⬇️

Our rental shop hires out skis, poles, boards and boots as well as jackets and over pants. Reserve your gear and buy your pass online to skip the queues!

21/04/2026

❄️ We have heard reports of some snow flurries around Tekapo off and on during the day.

We don’t expect it to come to really anything but flurries can occur at times for the rest of the day