Queens Gardens Loop
Nelson · Nelson-Tasman · Loop
This walk was suggested by the community and checked against the authority quoted above before it was published. The route line comes from official track data. Nelson City Council’s own wording: “Nelson City Council Dog Control Policy 2020, Schedule Two ("Dogs are Permitted but must be Kept on a Leash"), item 3: "Horticultural Parks. These are: Miyazu Japanese Gardens, Anzac Memorial Park, Church Hill, Melrose Gardens, Queens Gardens, Broadgreen Gardens and Isel Park. The exception to the on leash requirement is the less cultivated part of Isel Park which begins at Main Road Stoke and extends to the Isel Park entrance gate, as well as the area south of the access road beyond the Isel Park entrance gate." The one exception in that clause is Isel Park, not this one, so the lead stays on for the whole loop”. Evidence: the rule-setter’s own published wording. How we check dog rules.
Good to know
Dogs are allowed here. Keep them on the lead, watch for ground-nesting birds and stock, and read the signs at the gate.
About Queens Gardens Loop
Queens Gardens Loop covers 0.5 km, near Nelson in Nelson-Tasman, walked as a loop.
Nelson’s formal Victorian gardens, laid out in 1892 and now a Heritage New Zealand Category 2 historic place, tucked between Bridge Street and the Maitai just east of the city centre. The loop drawn here is the full circuit of the sealed paths inside the gardens, a bit over half a kilometre on the flat, which is a few minutes at a walk and rather longer if your dog is the sniffing kind. There is no climb, no gate and no stile anywhere on it. It is a small place that packs a lot in. The path rings the ornamental pond and its fountain, past clipped flowerbeds, mown lawn and something close to seventy mature specimen trees, with benches most of the way round, two picnic spots, a shelter, drinking water and public toilets at the edge. The Nelson South African War Memorial stands near the middle, there are a couple of sculptures along the way, and the ornamental bridge over the pond is the reason half of Nelson has a photo of their dog here. Albion Square and the Huangshi garden adjoin it, so the walk extends easily if half a kilometre is not enough. The lead stays on, and that is the council’s rule rather than ours: Nelson City Council lists Queens Gardens as a Horticultural Park in Schedule Two of its dog policy, where dogs are permitted but must be kept on a leash. It suits the place. The paths are narrow, the beds are planted right up to them, and there are ducks on the pond. Worth knowing that Albion Square next door is a Department of Conservation historic reserve rather than council land, so the council rule you are reading does not carry across that boundary. Best as an easy leg stretch rather than a day out: park on Bridge Street or Hardy Street, do the circuit, and carry on along the Maitai River path if the dog wants more. Flat, sealed and shaded, so it is a kind option on a hot afternoon and for older dogs, sore hips and pram wheels.
Expect easy, near-level going, and takes about 6 min to walk.
Dogs are allowed here, on the lead. This walk is on the map because Inge & Pip suggested it, and we checked it against the source above.
