New Zealand Huts – How Many and What Kinds?
(Note: this is part of the larger work New Zealand Huts: Notes towards a Country Study
A Tally and Taxonomy
This is an attempt by an outsider to convey to other outsiders a quick visual, numeric and organizational overview of the wild and wonderful range of New Zealand huts. Most, but not all, are available for recreational tramping.
The count, or “Tally”, attempts to enumerate “huts” (broadly construed) in categories corresponding to how they are discussed by hut folks in NZ. The description, or “Taxonomy”, briefly defines these same categories and illustrates them with some examples that give a sense of the variety of hut designs.
This home-made descriptive approach is the best way I can figure to give an outsider a really quick overview that begins to hint at the remarkable scope, complexity and variety of NZ huts. Of course all this information, and much, much more is available in the rich literature on NZ huts. What follows is simply an introductory thumbnail sketch of a complex and sprawling world of huts.
While I got advice and assistance from various folks, the inevitable errors, omissions, and lack of clarity are all mine.
How Many Huts?
It is not my purpose to definitively count and categorize the number of huts in New Zealand; that seems an impossible and not very interesting undertaking. However, the more I have tried to understand the scope of NZ huts, the more I have longed for a simple (even if simplistic) numerical overview. And as I sat down to write up for an American audience a summary of what I’ve learned, I found myself still just naive enough to try to create my own synoptic tally. My goal is to present an educated guess that help newcomers to NZ huts to see the big picture.
Using data already available for many categories of huts (in particular DoC-related huts), along with some informed estimates and the advice of helpful hut folks, it soon seemed possible to extrapolate a tally. Based on invaluable assistance from Brian Dobbie, NZ Department of Conservation (DoC), and with good advice from Shaun Barnett and others, following is an amateur’s attempt to present an estimated tally. See “Notes/caveats on counting New Zealand Huts“ in End Notes below.
What Kinds? An Informal Taxonomy or Description
Perusing this section will give the reader a quick sense of the variety of NZ huts. The categories used below to briefly characterize huts are the same as those used in the Tally above. See my caveats in End Notes below about the arbitrariness of some of the categories and of my assignments of specific huts to specific categories.
The examples used in each category aim to provide a sense of the range of types. The specific huts selected were based largely on huts I actually visited; admittedly they may not be the best exemplars of their category, but I am familiar with them. Unless otherwise indicated, the photos are mine. Hut fees are quoted in NZ$; conversion rate is .71 for US$.
DoC Huts (Total = 962)
Great Walks Huts (n=33; this number does not include shelters and campsites)
These are the huts on the 10 Great Walks: Lake Waikaremoana (n=5), Tongariro N. Circuit (n=3), Whanganui Journey (n=2), Abel Tasman (n=4), Heaphy (n=7), Routeburn Track (n=4), Kepler Track (n=3), Milford Track (n=3), and Rakirura Track (n=2);
Not included here are huts on the Paparoa Track and Pike 29 Memorial Track, which will open in the next year or so; there will be 2 huts on this Track classified as Great Walks Huts, and a third (Ces Clark Memorial Hut) will remain as a Serviced hut.
Great Walks Huts offer mattresses, water supply, hand washing, toilets and heating with fuel. They may have solar lighting, cooking facilities with fuel (but no cooking utensils) and a warden. Fees vary, see Doc website.
Examples:
McKay Hut on Heaphy Track is a 28-bunk hut. Requires booking. $32 for adults; age 17 and under free, but booking still required.
Gouland Downs Hut on Heaphy Track is an 8-bunk hut. Requires booking. $32 for adults; age 17 and under free, but booking still required.
Serviced Huts (Subtotal = 95)
Serviced huts have bunks or sleeping platforms with mattresses, water supply, heating (and fuel during peak season), toilet and hand washing facilities. They may have cooking facilities and often have a warden living on site during the high season. $15 per night for adults, youth $7.50 per night.
Example: Welcome Flat Hut, 31 Bunk hut on Copland Track in Glaciers Area, with nearby natural warm springs. This hut also has a unique feature: former hut wardens quarters, the Sierra Room, that can be booked in advance.
3. Example: Upper Travers Hut in Nelson Lakes National Park is one of the huts on the 4-7 day Travers Sabine Circuit. With 24 bunks, the hut does not require bookings.
Serviced Huts – Alpine (Subtotal = 15)
Serviced Alpine are the same as Serviced Huts, except for heating. They generally do not provide a heat source. Other details same as above for Serviced Huts.
Example: Mueller Hut, Aoraki/ Mount Cook National Park. 28 bunk beds, cooking, lighting and mattresses.
Mueller Hut, Photo Courtesy DoC
Standard Huts (Subtotal = 433)
This largest category of huts is quite various in size and design. Examples below illustrate important hut genres, including: several historic huts, a mustering hut, a memorial hut, and a scientific hut. [Note: The distinctions between Standard and Basic huts are sometimes ambiguous.]
Standard huts have bunks or sleeping platforms with mattresses, a toilet and water supply. Wood burning heaters are provided at huts below the bush line (dead wood is collected by hut users). $5 per night for adults, $2.50 for youth.
Example 1: Hopeless Creek Hut, 6 bunk, climbers hut located in a spectacular setting.
Example 2: Meg Hut , 8 bunk, sheep musters hut.
4. Example 3 & 4: Makahu Saddle Hut is a four bunk hut near a car park/trail head in Kaweka Forest Park. Cupola Hut is a good example of a scientific hut. It was built in early 1960’s as a base and observation site for study of chamois. Built on the standard six bunk NZFS plan, it was modified to accommodate scientific equipment by reducing it to four bunks and adding a large entry-way for storage. It was later converted into a hut for trampers.
6. Examples 5 & 6: Kime Hut and Field Hut on the Southern Tararua Crossing in Tararua Forest Park. Built by the Tararua Tramping Club in 1924, Field Hut is NZ’s oldest surviving club hut built for tramping. It sleeps 20 and was lovingly restored by the club in recent years. Kime Hut, a memorial hut for a tramper who died of exposure on the Crossing, sleeps 20. Despite being in an exposed area (high winds and cold, rainy weather), it has not heat source and provides cold but much-needed shelter.
Bivouac/Basic Huts (Subtotal = 386)
A very large subset of DoC huts, many of these are small, older and more remote. Basic huts an bivvies provide very basic shelter with limited facilities and are free. No bookings are taken.
Example 1:
Asbestos Cottage, a restored historic hut with an improbable romantic history of the love affair of Henry and Annie Chaffey. Four bunks, first come first served.
3. Example 2: Cone Hut, an historic hut in Tararua Mountains. Built by Taurarua Tramping Club, NZ,s first tramping club. Sleeps 6; bookings not required.
4. Example 3: Toka Bivvy is a classic 2 person bivouac located deep in the Ruahine Forest Park.
5. Examples 4 & 5: Cobb Valley Tent Camp, originally built 1973, was perhaps the last remaining deerstalkers tent camp. In 2014 it was lovingly restored by NZ Deerstalkers and DoC. Sleeps 2. Chaffey Hut is named for Henry and Annie Chaffey, who lived in nearby Asbestos Cottage for 36 years. The three bunk slab-sided Chaffey Hut was carefully restored in 2012 by the Golden Bay Deerstalkers in cooperation with DoC ranger and master hut restorer John Taylor.
DoC Concession Huts (Total = 75)
Huts built by on public conservation land by private entities (mainly commercial concessionaires and tramping and ski clubs) that operate through formal agreements with DoC.
There is a long history of private huts built for tourism, climbers and skiers. The first two categories below are contentious among many Kiwi trampers — who much prefer simple, low-amenity huts. This is expressed in Shelter from the Storm p. 111: “The existence of private tourism huts on public conservation land remains a vexed issue, and they are barely tolerated rather than openly embraced – particularly as the few that are allowed on places like the Milford, Hollyford and Routeburn Tracks seem to now owe more to urban hotel design that any backcountry heritage.”
Great Walks (5 private lodges)
These are privately operated huts (lodges) on DoC lands. These existed on the Milford Track for years, first as part of privately operated guided walks, then, from 1901 the huts were operated by the NZ Department of Tourist and Health Resorts, and then in 1955 by the publicly owned The Tourist Hotel Corporation. Today the 3 private lodges on the Milford, the 2 on the Routeburn Track, and the 2 on the Hollyford Track (not a Great Walk) are operated by Ultimate Hikes, a private concessionaire who offers guided walks. These private lodges offer amenities akin to those in full-service European huts, including heat and lights, bedding, a range of food service options, and sale of beer and wine. [Note: None of the DoC huts on the Great Walks, or anywhere in New Zealand, offer these higher-level amenities.] These are offered as part of guided walks and are considerably more expensive than staying at the neighboring DoC huts on the same tracks. $22-$70 per night (see DoC site for details).
Example: Routeburn Falls Lodge, on the Routeburn Track is operated by Ultimate Hikes, Inc. One of two full service lodges on the Routeburn, it is quite expensive and includes guides accompanying walkers on each of the two daily walks.
Club Ski Huts built on public lands (50)
The 50 club huts at Iwikau Village on Mt. Rapehu, Tongariro is the largest grouping of ski huts. Open to members through non-commercial concession agreements with DoC.
2. Example: Puketoi Lodge, Mt. Whakapapa Ski Field. Operated and booked by the Puketoi Mountain Club.
Other club huts (20)
Many tramping and outdoor clubs have built and maintain huts in various forms of cooperation with DoC. Most of these are listed above under the category “DoC huts”. It is estimated by DoC that there are about 20 club huts operating without agreements with DoC. These include other club ski huts such as Caroline Hut near Ball Pass and Kea Hut (Mt. Robert Snow Sports Trust) in Nelson Lakes National Park.
Kea Hut, Nelson Lakes National Park, Courtesy Nelson Lakes Shuttle
Example: Kea hut has 10 bunks. It was built by the Nelson Lakes Ski Club, then renovated by a later iteration of the club called the Mt. Robert Snow Sport Trust. It is locked and available for use by application to the club.
Huts on Private Walks (Estimated total = 60)
I have only walked two of the private walks: Hump Ridge (which is in a category of its own, technically not a private “walk”, due to the fact part of the track is maintained by DoC and part is privately maintained) and Banks Peninsula. I am compiling a list of those currently in existence and will update hut estimates accordingly.
This estimate is based on the assumption that there are approximately 30 private walks in NZ, with an average of 2 huts per Private Walk.
These are quite various in style and range from “backpacker” type hostels to cabins to huts and shacks of various shapes and sizes.
Example: Banks Peninsula Track, the oldest private walk in NZ, has accommodations at farms at the beginning of the Track and at two places along the way. Bookings are made on the website. The two day trip costs $195 per person and the three day costs $260 pp. Guests bring their own food; kitchens and linens provided.
4. Example: Hump Ridge, Tuatapere, South Coast, operated by a trust, has two lodges with a range of accommodation options, full kitchens, bring your own food, and a lodge “store”. Booking through their website. A three day, two night walk. Cost varies; basic package $195 per person.
Private Huts (Estimated total = 307)
This catchall category comprises private huts, some of which are very well known and others long forgotten or well-kept secrets. Some are on public land and some are on private land. Some are huts with which DoC may have varying degrees of involvement, and others which DoC has no involvement whatsoever, past or present. These may include remote huts in the backcountry which DoC has abandoned and does not include in its counts and historic huts which are effectively museum exhibits. Also included are many huts DoC never had anything to do with, such as huts on pastoral lease stations and on private lands. These include huts in current or occasional use by backcountry workers, such as miners, sphagnum moss harvesters, road and raceway inspectors, mustering crews, timber harvesters, etc. Also included are huts owned and operated by schools and by local hunting and fishing clubs. Finally, this category may include abandoned or semi-occupied baches, and huts maintained for use by particular families or friends groups. This category of huts is the most nebulous to me and the selection of examples is made knowing that some of my choices will appear to be misguided. C’est la vie!
NZ Alpine Club Huts (Subtotal =3)
Fourteen of the 17 NZAC huts are included in the DoC count above, as they are located on DoC lands and are booked through DoC (NZAC members get a discount on these). The other 3 NZAC huts are booked exclusively through NZAC, though members of the public can book them: these include Unwin Lodge, Cascade Hut and Homer Hut.
NZAC huts are located on DoC lands but are owned and maintained by the NZAC in partnership with DoC.
Example: Unwin Lodge, the flagship lodge of the NZAC hut network, sleeps up to 48. NZAC members have priority in booking. Member $20/night; Non-member $30/night; Members’ children (5-17yrs) $10/night; Non-members’ children (5-17 yrs) $15/night.
NZAC Unwin Lodge, Aoraki Mount Cook National Park, Courtesy NZAC.
Orongorongo Valley huts and baches (Subtotal = 50)
This is a beloved category of privately built historic structures now incorporated into the Rimutaka Forest Park. Built on public land by families and tramping clubs who paid modest annual license fees, most are now in the conservation estate and will revert to full public ownership under 50-year sunset clauses or upon the death of the license holders, whichever comes first. DoC operates several of them as publicly accessible huts, but most are not yet open to the public. Long term is seems likely more will become publicly accessible front-country huts near the nation’s capital. Example: Boars Inn Hut, 4 bunk, Serviced Hut; bookings required on DoC reservations system.
Boar Inn, Ornongorongo Valley
Rangitoto Island huts/baches (Subtotal = 40)
Bach 78, Rangitoto Island, Courtesy DoC
A bach is essentially a simple cottage, often by the ocean or a river. Part of the Hauraki Marine Reserve, Rangitoto Island near Aukland has about 40 baches which are located on DoC land. There is currently no public access to 38 of these huts, but they are part of the conservation estate. Their future is uncertain, but perhaps they will someday be accessible to trampers.
Other private or public New Zealand huts of all types (Guesstimate = 200)
After DoC huts, this appears to be the largest category of NZ huts. It is also the most various and the least well documented. Among the sub-categories are a group described in Shelter from the Storm, p. 15 as follows: “A surprising number of private huts are also secreted on conservation lands, some known only to those who built them, but others legally sanctioned”. Others are built on private lands. Huts in these categories may include some currently or formerly in use by hunters, fishermen, sheep mustering crews, sphagnum moss harvesters, pot growers, and raceway maintainers. Some portion of these huts, including those that once were but are no longer maintained by DoC, have been identified on the Remote Huts website. Some of the huts in this category are open, to various degrees and in formal and informal ways, for trampers.
Monument Hut, abandoned, located on Banks Peninsula, Canterbury
About this category of huts, Brian Dobbie helpfully commented: “Well, I don’t think you’ll ever be able to get a definitive number as the definitions of what constitutes a hut that the public can use will very widely. It is debatable whether large numbers of huts on South Island farms and pastoral lease lands can really be counted on this list. They are essentially private buildings on private land, although a fair number of farmers are happy to let people stay in them if they ask.”
Example 1: Monument Hut on Banks Peninsula is now abandoned. It holds continuing interest due to it’s fascinating history as a Youth Hostel Association hut and its scenic location at the base of Monument Mountain. Mark Pickering’s Huts: Untold Stories has a great chapter based on this hut. (Note: there is another, actively used hut named Monument Hut in the same area).
Chinese Gold Miners Huts, Arrowtown, Otago
Example 2: Chinese Gold Miners Huts, Arrowtown, Otago. A collection of four or five huts is maintained by DoC as an outdoor museum as part of Arrowtown’s Chinese Settlement tourist park. These are not used by trampers or anyone else, but have been restored and are maintained as part of New Zealand heritage.
Waihohonu Hut, original
Example 3: The original Waihohonu Hut in Tongariro National Park, a short walk from the new Waihohonu Hut, is not used as accommodation. It is essentially an historic site commemorating the first huts built by the NZ Deaprtment of Tourism and Resorts in 1903-04. Many guests arrived by carriage, rather than on foot. Waihohonu hut also played a key role in establishing, in 1913, the oldest outdoor recreation club in NZ, the Ruapehu Ski Club.
By Sam Demas, April 2018
End notes on counting NZ huts
Notes/caveats on counting New Zealand Huts: Again, a definitive count and representation of huts is an impossible task and is not my aim. Similarly, categorizing huts is de facto an imprecise undertaking. Here are some reasons why:
Given the history, variety, and current and past uses of some amazing huts, some of the categories used can be seen as a bit arbitrary. This is particularly true of club huts which have a wide range of operational agreements with DoC. One can lump, split and debate categories endlessly. Similarly, since some categories are overlapping, there are many legitimate questions about which category a hut belongs in. In many cases the same hut could be assigned to multiple categories.
For the record, here are some methodological considerations, data points and estimates encountered in this exercise and that informed my work:
The DoC numbers (Categories 1 & 2) were provided by DoC hut guru Brian Dobbie. However, some hut folks think DoC under-estimates the number of huts.
It is hard to count even the DoC huts because they come into the DoC managed conservation estate with surprising regularity, e.g. as grazing lands come out of long term leases under tenure-review.
Huts have been re-built and/or re-named, sometimes several times. People take different approaches to counting these.
The distinction between huts and shelters can be confusing in a tally. Hut Bagger NZ, for example, recently noted they have 2,000 huts listed on their website; in the same note they indicated they are removing about 50 shelters. Its not clear how they got to the number 2,000 and what is included.
Paul Kilgour has a list of 1,174 huts he has visited.
For his own use, Shuan Barnett has compiled a fascinating hut count organized by location in National Parks, Forest Parks, Conservation Areas, Reserves, etc. This totals 1,047 huts, with 293 (28%) on N. Island and 754 (72%) on S. Island.
Mark Pickering has estimated that there are “1,500 backcountry huts in NZ, 300-odd in the N. Island and 1,200 or more in the South.”
Shelter from the Storm cites this estimate (p. 15) and indicates that 400-500 of these may be huts such as those on pastoral leases).
Caveat: I did not attempt to unpack these estimates and data points, but rather used them as guideposts from which I could extrapolate a reasonable sense of the whole.
Category 4, Private Huts, is clearly a catchall and subject to debate and improvement by those who know more about the subject. The numbers for the first three sub-categories (NZAC Huts, Orongorongo, and Rangitoto) were provided by Brian Dobbie and seem very solid. However, the number 200 used in the last sub-category “Other Private Huts of All Types” is purely my guesstimate. It is arrived at through a rough triangulation based on estimates by Pickering, on Kilgour’s data, and on notes from Barnett, and from Shelter from the Storm.
The numbers in Categories 1 and 2, DoC-related huts, are quite reliable. These two categories combined represent 75% of NZ huts according to this tally. I intend to do more work on Category 3, Huts on Private Walks, as part of a future writeup on this small but interesting subset.
Finally , I simply don’t have the knowledge, expertise, or time to sweat all the details attendant to this exercise. This is the best I can do and I hope it will help my readers get a quick overview of a really big topic. My guess is that the bottom line on this rough tally may be accurate to within 10% plus or minus of the reality. Thats good enough for my limited purposes.