Back country huts: source of pride and shelter
One of the unique things you will encounter on the Te Araroa Trail are the DOC huts which are such a feature of outdoor life here. We have 900+ back country huts scattered around the country which can be used for a very minimal charge. You will probably stay in huts for the section through the Tararua's as well as for almost all of the South Island. That is a lot of hut life!
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| Pahautea Hut, Pirongia FP...probably the first/last DOC hut on the Te Araroa |
I am sure you will find the huts are one of the highlights of your visit to New Zealand.
A breakdown of DOC hut amenities
I thought it might be interesting to look at some of the amenities DOC huts contain as well as discussing some of the rules of good hut etiquette before you start your trek.
Living Space
Most of the larger huts will have some sort of living area, what this entails varies from hut to hut. Generally this will consist of a table of some description with wooden benches, a cooking bench (see below), heating source (see below) and possibly some shelving space.
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| Living/Cooking space, Te Matawai Hut |
If we look at a specific hut, Boyle Flat Hut on the St Arnaud-Boyle section we can see what the hut contains. This is one of my favorite huts, I have been here 5 times now and I have always enjoyed my stay.
As you can see below there are several tables with bench seating, there is also a very nice bench seat under the window. There are a series of drying wires across the living space for trampers to dry their gear on.
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| Living area in Boyle Flat Hut |
In this photo we can see the integrated gun rack that has been built for this hut, there is a book shelf with some reading material and some information panels on the walls.
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| River side of Boyle Flat Hut, St James Conservation Area |
The other side of the room has a cooking bench along the wall, with shelf units above and below it. The sleeping area at Boyle Flat consists of two separate 10 bunk rooms. This hut was built by the Walkways Commission back in the early 1980's so it has a much higher level of amenity than your more typical 4 or 6 bunk hut.
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| Other side of Boyle Flat Hut living area |
Compare this to Hackett Hut in Mt Richmond FP, this is a classic NZFS 6 bunk hut. It has the same amenities but in a much more compact form. Generally these smaller huts are an open room design, they will not have a table but will still have a cooking bench, heating and shelving.
Sleeping areas
Many of the DOC huts were built as overnight shelter for NZFS forestry workers, deer cullers and musterer's so of course they needed sleep facilities.
Some of the older huts still have the original canvas/burlap sacking bunks which was the standard format up till the late 1960's. This consists of a piece of canvas stretched over poles to make a hammock like bunk. If you never have the doubtful pleasure of sleeping in one just let me say...they are damn uncomfortable!
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| Canvas sacking bunks, West Harper Hut |
Far more common are huts with mattresses and bunks/sleeping platforms. A sleeping platform in one large expanse of wood or concrete which you top with the supplied mattresses. This is the most economical use of space as 10 people can fit on a sleeping platform that will only hold 6 individual bunks.
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| Sleeping platform at Boyle Flat Hut |
Bunks are individual spaces, just big enough for the standard DOC foam mattresses to fit on and are more common with huts built after the mid 1970's. All DOC huts can be partially characterised by the number of bunks supplied: for example Anne Hut is a 24 bunk hut, whereas tiny Harpers Pass Bivy is a 2 bunk.
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| Lagoon Saddle Shelter, confined sleeping space |
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| Individual bunks in Anti Crow Hut |
When you leave in the morning please stack the mattresses on their sides in an orderly fashion, this protects them from dust, vermin and mildew.
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| Nicely stacked mattresses in Christopher Hut |
A note concerning bunk reservations...
There are zero huts on the main TA route where you can reserve a bunk, it is first come first served. If you are hiking with a group and arrive piecemeal, good hut etiquette dictates that you cannot reserve a bunk for your mate....they need to be there in person.
Hut floors, decks and verandas make great back ups if the bunks are all taken and this perfectly allowable (I have slept on a hut table a couple of times before...). You can sleep in your tent and only use the hut for cooking, socialising etc. if that proves necessary.
Share the hut: if there are 6 of you in a 6 bunk hut and a
group of 8 arrive move over, make room for them and welcome them in.
This is the Kiwi way.....behave like we would while you are in Kiwi-land!
Verandas/Decks
There is a trend in the newer huts to include both verandas and decks to maximise the usable space.
Decks are a welcome addition to huts, as they provide space to sit in the sun, dry out gear and generally stop mud from entering the hut itself. There is nothing finer of an afternoon than sitting on a sunny sand fly free deck supping a hot brew.
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| Anne Hut, the wrap around deck look |
Verandas are often built onto existing huts to provide a place for hanging wet gear out of the rain as well as providing storage areas for firewood. They range in size from small alcoves right through to fully enclosed secondary rooms.
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| Boyle Flat Hut, veranda and deck |
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| Inside the Lakehead Hut veranda, Nelson Lakes NP |
Water sources
With some exceptions every DOC hut will have one of two types of water source: a rainwater tank or a nearby stream or river.
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| Your source of water, a nearby river |
The vast majority of huts will still get their water from a nearby stream or river but this is changing. With climate change, drier weather and more people visiting back country areas these water sources either disappear or become vectors for sickness. The solution is rain water tanks.
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| Boyle Flat Hut, stream fed water tank |
Increasingly DOC huts are provided with a rainwater tank, these take rainwater from the hut gutters and store it in large capacity tanks. This is especially prevalent in low precipitation areas like the Richmond Range and at those huts atop ridge lines or on drier east facing hills.
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| Magdalen Hut, rain water tank to left |
All new huts are built to this standard and more and more older ones are having them added as maintenance is done on the huts. Eventually all of the maintained huts will get the majority of their water from rain.
Water is a precious resource please conserve it: take only what you need and make sure any tap you use is firmly shut.
Cooking spaces
Cooking mishaps are the number two reason huts burn down so DOC have provided us with metal cooking benches for your stove. Please use these, as cooking on one of the wooden tables or the floor of a hut can easily cause a fire.
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| Magdalen Hut, Lake Sumner FP: the cooking bench |
In the newer huts these benches will be stainless steel, generally with a metal backsplash on the nearby walls. There will be a window for ventilation and candle holders or solar lighting panels to illuminate the area.
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| Lakehead Hut cooking area, table and bench |
In the older huts the bench will be made of zinc covered wood but they provide the same protection for the hut. Some popular huts may have pots, pans, utensils etc. but don't count on this, bring your own.
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| Classic NZFS zinc covered cooking bench, Mid Robinson Hut |
Many of the established DOC campgrounds will have a covered shelter where you can cook and hang out. Generally these are set up like a hut: steel/zinc covered bench, picnic table with seating or benches and water supply from tank or stream. If the bugs aren't too bad these are excellent places to mingle with other TA hikers and trampers in general.
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| Cooking shelter, Bay of Many Coves, Queen Charlotte Track |
Fire places/stoves
Most DOC huts in will have a fireplace, gas heater or wood burner in them. These are to provide heating as well as a place to cook. What you wont always get is wood- only the Great Walk and serviced huts will have a fuel supply- otherwise it is up to you to provide.
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| Firewood waiting to go into the wood shed |
All huts with wood heating will have either an axe (usually chained to the wood shed) or a bow saw for cutting firewood. Please return them to their spot so other trampers can use them in the future
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| Wood burner in Magdalen Hut |
Hut etiquette note:
Please do not cut up the furniture, decks, doors etc. and burn it (yes people have done this), not only is it ridiculous it also the number one way to get off side with a Kiwi Tramper. If I turn up at a hut and I see you shoving the last piece of the table into the fire rest assured I will tear you a new one....
Please do not cut down the 200 year old tree next to the hut....go find some standing dry in the forest and cut it up with the axe or saw provided. Don't use all the wood, replace the dry wood you use so the next visitors have some.
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| Nothing like a blazing fire... |
Make sure the fireplace is cleared or at least fully out before you leave. More huts burn down because of careless ash handling than any other cause. Dowse them or put them in the ash barrel if there is one. As a last resort leave the cooling ashes in the fireplace with the door firmly shut, at least they wont burn down the hut if they are contained.
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| Ash barrel at Lakehead Hut, Nelson Lakes NP |
Finally, if it is a sweltering 30 degree summer day don't light the fire, it is not necessary. You are just wasting firewood and pissing off your hut mates.
Cheers!
Toilet facilities
Ah... a subject dear to the heart of all trampers....toilets!
Almost all of the 900+ DOC huts will have toilet facilities of one sort or another, the quality will depend on popularity of the hut, its age, location and users.
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| Were there be people there be long drop.... |
The toilets will range from very basic long drops right through to palatial toilet mansions with flushing toilets, sinks, fresh water and even a supply of paper in some cases.
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| Basic: "Bog" standard DOC long drop toilet |
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| Better: Slightly more up market facilities |
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| Oh yeah: High quality DOC Campground toilet block |
Two things to consider:
1. Bring your own paper as 98% of the DOC facilities will not have any.
2. USE THE TOILETS! There was a lot of hate for TA thru hikers in the media earlier this year as tales of sordid toilet habits were made public. It seems that people were "doing their business" outside hut doors and on tracks rather than using the toilets provided.
It may not have been TA walkers but that is who got blamed.
Don't be that guy or gal... if there is a toilet available then bloody well use it!
If you must "s - - t in the woods" do it right and bury your waste at least 100 meters away from water/tracks/huts.
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| Martins Hut, Longwood Forest...the first/last hut on the Te Araroa Trail |
Miscellaneous Hut Gear
Stuff you will commonly find in a DOC Hut:
- Broom (Hint: You use it to sweep the floor...)
- Ash bucket for the fire
- Axe and/ or saw for cutting firewood
- Half brush and shovel
- A green DOC hut visitors book
Stuff you might find in a hut but don't rely on it:
- Buckets/bowls/pots/pans
- Reading matter
- Paper/matches/lighter for starting a fire
- Pack of Cards
- Spare tramping food
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| Standard DOC hut visitors book |
