Tops of the Ruahines by vehicle.

First time too the tops of the Ruahines by vehicle.I usually do the hard yards from the eastern side and hunt up towards the tops.Managed to pull the 30/12/19 off just for the trip to the tops.Left the eastern side of the Ruahines by 0600 and over the Saddle Rd and thru the Pohingina Valley before climbing the Range. Saw a fawn,heaps of rabbits,hares and a few pheasants before our 4x4 trip onto the top of the Ruahine Ranges which turned into blizzard conditions.We tried to get into the A Frame but the door was bolted from the inside.We left the vehicle and headed down to the "Cats Paw" but visability was shit.Got back to the A Frame and the resident sooks had departed so we had a feed and coffee in the shelter which was well earnt! I would of been pissed off hiking from the Eastern side and finding the A Frame locked!Few pics from our trip and plan on doing that way again in better weather. Hot barrells stay safe and leave the bloody huts open for all!
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Wow i haven't been up there for more than 20 years. Is there still a fireplace in a-frame? The chimney was blocked with ice when I visited!

I think the fire went some years back.
biggest biddybids I ever seen up by that hut

Bit crap that someone would lock the door. Sounds like they were inside as well.

Can you imagine if you really needed to get inside because you had exposure!

I spoke to a lady last year at the Tamaki West picnic area.
Apparently DOC has signed that hut over to this family who are the Iwi.

The reason for this was because the family visited, I also visited the hut that day and can attest to this, that it was absolutely vandalised.
It is their plan to do the hut back up to its original state and I believe it will be or still is open to the public.

Were there any new signs up? What was the condition of the hut?

The fireplace was stolen from the A frame when I visited but there might be one now

The hut wasn't in great condition when I visited in 1988.

The hut walls are graffetied with DOC abuse and biblical crap.No fire but its definately a shelter that is needed on the tops.
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Is that bloke the resident hermit?


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Last time I was in a blizzard it was snowing !:yaeh am not durnk:

Looks well ventilated with that gap in the iron behind you @Dundee but any port (shelter) in a storm ah!

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Originally Posted by Dundee

The hut walls are graffetied with DOC abuse and biblical crap.No fire but its definately a shelter that is needed on the tops.
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Definitely the same hermit from when I was there in 1996. He has painted the walls and carpeted the floor!

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Originally Posted by Cigar

The hut wasn't in great condition when I visited in 1988.

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save me posting pics,,was up there 2 weeks ago,walked along the top n dropped into the po side way down to shoot a deer,,then three hours back to the vehicle,,my first for my seventieth yr..last time up there was way back in 68,,beat ya by 20 yr my old mate cigar

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Originally Posted by 264 magic

save me posting pics,,was up there 2 weeks ago,walked along the top n dropped into the po side way down to shoot a deer,,then three hours back to the vehicle,,my first for my seventieth yr..last time up there was way back in 68,,beat ya by 20 yr my old mate cigar

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I definitely can’t beat you Les, I wasn’t born until December 69!
I mainly hunted the Forks hut area when I was in Palmy for ‘varsity late 80’s, early 90’s

It was like being in a cattle yard when they put the road in - might have been nearly 50 years ago when I first started hunting it with Bernie - Ted Rout and Bernie Bowater with Ted’s Landrover
Bernie’s family built the log hut many years earlier - slabbed out of local trees - it was further down the road and on the ridge towards Diggers - I recall they had a horse track up there in the early days - we always tent camped beside the road near a Diggers side creek
My wife and Son beside my old Landrover - 28 years ago

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Originally Posted by time out

It was like being in a cattle yard when they put the road in - might have been nearly 50 years ago when I first started hunting it with Bernie - Ted Rout and Bernie Bowater with Ted’s Landrover
Bernie’s family built the log hut many years earlier - slabbed out of local trees - it was further down the road and on the ridge towards Diggers - I recall they had a horse track up there in the early days - we always tent camped beside the road near a Diggers side creek
My wife and Son beside my old Landrover - 28 years ago

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Thought you were referring to the first photo:o

me too haha I was thinking that was a bloody good woman carrying the deer