waiapehu hut northern tararuas

Trains Hut in the Waitotara forrest. A badly designed hut with sleeping for 6 to 8 and cooking room for 2.   four and a half hours walk along a graded road from the road end. It does have a small pot belly stove and a water tank.


Tahupo Hut in the Waitotara forrests. A newer hut in first class condition. About 9.5 hours tramp in from the road end. It has a good wood fire, 6 bunks with good matresses, S/S work bench and a water tank. The 5 hour tramp in from Trains Hut is along a razerback ridge for the whole distance and the hut is perched on the razorback also. This is about the best designed bush hut I have seen.
Note DOC have removed most of the huts in southern Waitotara and these 2 huts are all that remain, also DOC have a sign at the road end saying they will do no maintanance in southern Waitotara. That would explain why the tracks are in such poor condition, overgrown to head hight with manuka in places and a bit tricky to follow in other parts due to no markers.

The OLD Trains hut... now removed. The new hut is in the first clearing so you get to listen to the thundering waterfall all night when its raining
A good link if you are interested in the Waitotara area and its recent history.
http://www.waitotara.co.nz

Anyone know who wrote the poem about Makino??

Kiwi Saddle Hut in the Kaweka Ranges was built in 1987 by the Heretaunga Tramping Club after the original 1947 beech pole and malthoid hut had rotted away. At 1170 metres, the hut is positioned on a saddle site tucked into the protecting beech forest. It has sleeping for 8. From the Lakes car park the track climbs up to Mt Kuripapango at 1250 metres, then continues North West along the Smith-Russell Track to reach a high point of 1359 metres, then a bit of up and down until the Kiwi Saddle Hut is reached at the foot of an exposed ridge. There is some great slip hunting on the way.



The surrounding countryside was substantially modified by fire in the late 1800s for sheep grazing. Overgrazing, poor soils and the harsh climate led to large scale erosion and sheep farming was abandoned here by the early 1900s. The area can see extremes in weather so hunters must go prepared.




Castle Camp Shelter is made from PVC stretched over a timber frame and strengthened with chicken wire. On a warm spring day it gets pretty hot inside but in cold weather there is no insulation. An alpine glass house? Originally built as a hunters camp it is now used by all who pass by and need shelter.  A water tank means there’s no need to drop down into the gullies in search of water. A good place to be based as there is a huge amount of country to hunt.  From Kiwi Saddle Hut it is an easy walk along the undulating tops to get to Castle Camp.



The Studholme Bivvy is the oldest in the park, built in 1958 by the NZ Forest Service. It sits at 1240 metres. The biviouac is a few minutes’ walk from the Studholme Saddle Hut which was built in 1969.  The bivvy is currently in excellent condition, a great example of the classic NZFS 2 man hunters shelter. A feature of the area is wilding pines that were originally planted on slips by the NZFS to control erosion. Unfortunately they are spreading over the open alpine areas and are very difficult to eradicate as once cut down or poisoned, new seedlings pop up. DOC has put a lot of effort into trying to stop the spread but its a big battle. From the bivvy you can get back to the Lakes car park via several tracks, both of which are very steep on the downhill sections or head out over Kaweka J, the highest point in the park at 1724m on drop down to Makahu car park.

Very impressed with the way the older huts in the Kawekas have been upgraded while maintaining their character. The wood stoves, interior lining and skylights have made them very pleasant to stay in. Looks like volunteer groups are doing a fair bit of the maintenance too.
Real long drop toilets too, rather than those horrible Norskis.