Wānaka Sun

11/06/2026

This week's edition of the Wānaka Sun is out now!

In this edition you can read about 82-year-old cowboy still in action, a Wastebusters employee turning over 20 years of service and Hāwea FreshChoice being named small store of the year at the annual FreshChoice awards.

Also shoutout to all the great volunteers here in Wānaka as we celebrate national volunteer week.

Have a great Friday everyone!

04/06/2026

The Wānaka Sun is out today!

This weeks edition looks at a student run gig to be held at Rippon Hall, a man who was lucky to survive after his vessel capsized on Lake Wanaka and the return of the New Zealand Mountain Film and Book Festival.

Get your copy and have a great Friday! ☀

04/06/2026

Have you ever wondered what causes an inversion layer or why it's so hard to forecast?

Did you know the inversion layer isn't the cloud itself but an invisible layer of warm air that sits above the basin?

Want to find out more?
Read the article on page 10 of the Wānaka Sun out now!

Photo: Thick cloud trapped beneath an inversion layer visible from Wanaka's Treble Cone Access Road.

28/05/2026

The Wānaka Sun is out today!

In this week's edition we've got the inside track on the opening of the new Racers Edge store, coverage of the Wanaka and Hawea fire brigades' exploits at the Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge and we've looked at what causes inversion layers and why they're so hard to forecast.

Pick up your copy from the usual places and have a great weekend!

15/05/2026

The inaugural Aotearoa Stone Skimming Championships take place at Lake Hawea Station tomorrow.

The championships come at an important time for stone skimming, with the sport joining Lance Armstrong and the 2014 Russian Winter Olympics team in sporting infamy when it was rocked by a cheating scandal in September 2025.

Read our hard-hitting investigative piece on the new competition, cheating allegations in the sport, and the importance of fundraising for Melanoma NZ at the link below.

In the days leading up to the Aotearoa Stone Skimming championships, Ruairi O’Shea subjected the event’s organiser to an interview on the integrity...

14/05/2026

The Wānaka Sun is out today.

This week's edition features an exploration of the impacts of the government's new clinical services plan for the Upper Clutha. The government is talking the talk with the new announcement, but health advocates say that whether they will walk the walk remains to be seen.

Also in this week's issue is a preview of the hotly anticipated Aotearoa Stone Skimming Championships. A trip to Scotland is on the line for the best male and female skimmers, but with the stakes so high, so are the chances of skullduggery. We grilled the competition's founder on scandal in the sport and how they will look to prevent cheating, as well as the importance of raising money for Melanoma NZ.

Pick up your copy in all the usual places and have a great weekend!

07/05/2026

The Wānaka Sun is on newsstands today.

In this week's edition, mountaineer Guy Cotter reflects on 30 years since the 1996 Mount Everest disaster. Cotter played a pivotal role in the rescue following the disaster, as documented in Jon Krakauer's bestseller Into Thin Air and the 2015 movie Everest.

Also in this week's edition we have a story about a new lake to plate dining experience in which fishing charter customers can have their catch prepared at a Wānaka restaurant.

Finally, we've got the inside track on Wanaka resident Sam Shaw's record-setting ride on the West Coast last week. Shaw completed the Paparoa Track, the Old Ghost Road and the Heaphy track - and the road sections in between - in 21 hours and 39 minutes.

Read all about it in the Wānaka Sun!

06/05/2026

Affordable, accessible art is at the heart of the Small Works Project, a new exhibition which launched at gallery 33.

The exhibition aims to raise money for an art workshop to be held at Te Kura O Tititea Mount Aspiring College.

Read more about the exhibition which runs until May 30 in the latest edition of the Wanaka Sun.

Pictured: Gallery 33"s director Vanessa George.

30/04/2026

The Wānaka Sun is out today.

This week's edition features good news for community transport, with Community Link Upper Clutha surveying residents on demand for a shuttle service between Wānaka and Hāwea that could launch within weeks.

Other stories include the launch of an affordable art exhibition at Gallery 33, a resilience reminder following last month's earthquake, and WAI Wānaka's efforts to understand the nature of pollution in Lake Wānaka.

Pick up a copy in all the usual places and have a great weekend!

29/04/2026

We’re looking to understand the impact of the fuel crisis on businesses in Wānaka.

If your business is struggling with the cost of fuel, get in touch with us at: [email protected]