Story: National parks

Lying at the northern end of Nelson Lakes National Park, Lake Rotoiti is one of the lakes that give the park its name. Like nearby Lake Rotoroa, it fills a trough carved by a glacier. Behind the lake is the St Arnaud Range, part of a chain of mountains that are a defining feature of the park. The more rounded landforms (front) were created by gravel washed down by melted glaciers.