Seven days in heaven

Seven days in a hut with no electricity or running water surrounded by knee-high snow might sound like a trial to some but, as Alina Suchanski writes, it’s the life of a voluntary hut warden.

When my neighbour, Ken Bradley, asked if I wanted to be a voluntary warden at Luxmore Hut on the Kepler Track, I wasn’t sure what to think. I enjoy tramping and love to walk up Mt Luxmore, but the hut warden idea sounded too much like hard work to me.

"What do I have to do?"

I wanted to know.

"Nothing much," he said reassuringly.

"Just keep the place tidy and make sure everyone has a hut ticket."

That didn’t sound too bad.

Bradley is a Department of Conservation  ranger in charge of organising the army of volunteers engaged by Te Anau Doc office. 

There were a few reasons for  his interest in installing someone at Luxmore Hut.

Doc records show that  Luxmore Hut has always had a lot of off-season use.

Without someone overseeing it on a daily basis, before 2014, the hut was often left messy and the firewood provided by Doc used up too quickly, even if the weather did not justify it.

Hut fee compliance was another motive for having a warden, as some people stayed in the hut without paying for it.

For 26 weeks in winter volunteers are flown in by helicopter to look after Luxmore Hut for a week.

The lodgings are rather spartan, with no running water (to save the pipes bursting in case of frost) or electricity, but with a wood burner, a gas stove and a generator to top up batteries or charge a laptop computer.

Yet Doc had no problem filling the available 26 slots.

So what price did I have to pay for a week at the highest backpacker accommodation in Fiordland with a million-dollar view?

I sure had to work for it.

On my first day it snowed at Luxmore. 

The helicopter dropped me and the 200kg load of firewood at the hut.

My first job was to stack the wood in the storage area under the hut.

If this didn’t warm me up sufficiently, my next job certainly did.

I had to shovel snow off the boardwalks around the hut.

During my week there I had to do this three times, as there were heavy snowfalls at that time.

Each morning the weather report was radioed in, which I had to write down and relay to trampers.

Then, after I’d had breakfast and most people had departed, I would go down to check what state they had left the kitchen and dining area in, and tidy up if necessary.

I was shocked to discover that cleaning and unblocking the toilet was also on my list of duties.

During the winter there is no running water inside the hut and the flushing toilets are closed.

There is only one long-drop toilet inside the building, which blocks frequently.

The first time it happened I radioed for a plumber, but the Doc radio operator laughed and told me to use the stick provided and flush with a bucket of warm water.

I found it revolting at first, but then it became just another chore.

Part of my job was to control the use of the firewood, to ensure that the supplies lasted for the week.

This involved chopping up kindling and taking a load of wood to the hut each night.

Finally, in the evening after all visitors had settled in and finished their dinner, I had to check the hut tickets and sell them to those who didn’t have one.

Bradley said that the system had worked very well.

With 1500 visitors staying at Luxmore during the winter season, Doc made $15,000 extra revenue from sales of hut tickets by voluntary hut rangers.

Also, the saving in firewood usage was considerable.

Last winter 5.2 tonnes was used, compared  with 9-12 tonnes in the past  when no-one was monitoring how quickly it was burned.

In my spare time I read, wrote, talked to the hikers, took loads of photos and walked up Mt Luxmore whenever I could. 

The weather threw everything at me: heavy snow, rain, gale-force wind, sunshine, thunder and lightning.

Sometimes the hut creaked and groaned, battered by the weather, and I wondered if it would hold together.

Later it turned out that what I thought was a particularly vicious gust of wind, was actually an earthquake.

The hut uses solar batteries to power the lights, but I had to use a small generator the size of a vacuum cleaner to charge  my laptop and phone.

One day the generator wheel fell off and I found the screw  next to it. 

After a moment of puzzlement I noticed tell-tale footprints of a bird in the snowdrift on the deck and remembered seeing a kea eyeing the brightly coloured generator.

The highlights for me were the views, watching the keas play on the roof of the hut and walking up Mt Luxmore in knee-high snow. 

It’s amazing how ill-prepared some people embarking on an alpine crossing in winter conditions can be.

I saw tourists trying to waterproof their running shoes by wearing plastic bags over their socks.

Some climb Mt Luxmore wearing tracksuit pants or jeans, many don’t have gloves or a hat.

Their packs are like Christmas trees decorated with mugs, shoes, sleeping bags and other items dangling around as they walk.

By contrast, Kiwis are usually well prepared.

The most memorable walk was with a family of four from Wanaka.

Rach and Dave Cassaidy are both PE teachers at Mt Aspiring College.

Their kids, Aden (11) and Kaia (9) have been tramping with their parents since they could walk.

They look like scaled-down versions of real trampers, complete with gaiters and proper hiking boots.

Aden, a tough little guy, was wearing shorts, as was his mum.

I admire the way Rach and Dave bring up their children: no fuss, matter-of-fact, but with obvious care and affection.

They teach them love and respect for the outdoors.

We walked together all the way to the Forest Burn shelter, where we stopped for a snack and a rest.

Then they continued on to Iris Burn Hut while I turned back to Luxmore.

During my week at Luxmore there were times when I was scared, tired and cold, but never bored, and I was on a natural high for weeks after my seven days in heaven.

The Department of Conservation increasingly relies on volunteers for help with the mundane aspects of looking after the national parks, such as track and hut maintenance, predator control, species protection, habitat restoration and weed control.

Voluntary hut wardens were introduced at Luxmore Hut on the Kepler Track in the winter of 2014 for the off-season between the beginning of May and the end of October.

Because of its success, the idea has been continued and is now in its third season.  

 

Luxmore Hut

Access:  State Highway (SH 94) to Te Anau. The Kepler Track starts at the Doc office in Te Anau. You can save time by driving to the control gates or by taking a water taxi across to Brod Bay.

Grade: Medium 

Distance: 1000 vertical metres

Time to Luxmore Hut: 5-6hrs from Doc office, 4-5hrs from the control gates or 3hrs from Brod Bay

Accommodation: Luxmore Hut (55 bunks)

More information:  www.doc.govt.nz