The Mythical Huts of the Tararuas

A curiosity of the Tararua Ranges that I stumbled across in a blog post a number of years ago is the existence of some unofficial, secret huts throughout the range.
It seems that these are like a kind of urban legend amongst trampers, except that they actually exist. There's a whole sub-culture built around these huts - figuring out if they actually exist, finding stories from someone whose been there, and then actually tracking them down - all the while maintaining a tradition of rarely openly publishing detailed route guides or co-ordinates.
All of this adds up to give these huts a certain mystique, a sort-of mythology if you will.

I've not visited any of these hut (I'm more of a lazy, marked track kind of tramper), but have attempted to catalogue (to some degree at least) these huts on this page, so curious internet passers-by such as myself can indulge their curiosity from the comfort of home. A full list of links for further reading is at the bottom of the page.

UPDATE FEB 2026: I've noticed a few of these huts are now marked on the 2025 edition Topo50 maps. Not to mention, I've now found location info readily available on the web that I don't recall being able to find when I first started looking into them.

NOTE: I had previously published a page like this, but seemingly deleted it at some point (although I have no recollection of doing so). I'm slowly reconstructing it here.

• Snowy Hut

It was a blog post about this hut that first introduced me to the wonderful world of the secret Tararua Huts. Located on the southern bank (true left) of the Eastern Waiotauru (Snowy) River. The flats adjacent to the hut, as well as the track leading to it, are apparently readily visible from the river, whilst the hut itself is hidden from view. Mostly visited by hunters of the standard kind, but also hunters of secret huts.

Marked (but unnamed) on 2025 Topo50 - look for the small building marker on the southern bank of the Eastern Waiotauru (Snowy) River

Links:
https://trippytramping.blogspot.com/2012/02/snowy-hut-and-ridge-666-11-12022012.html
https://tramper.nz/7864/snowy-hut-snowy-river-hut/ 

• Joe Gibbs Memorial Hut

Joe Gibbs is a near-mythical figure in-and-of himself. A bushman who first cut many tracks in the Tararuas, and built a number of huts, notable Field Hut - the oldest surviving hut in the Tararuas. He also built the original Tauherenikau Hut, which I recall reading somewhere was were he spent most of his latter years.

Joe Gibbs Memorial Hut (aka Rodgers Stream Biv) is found in the Tauherenikau Valley, apparently up Rodgers Stream, downstream of the present-day Tutuwai Hut. Not marked on Topo50 maps.
Links:
https://trippytramping.blogspot.com/2014/12/joe-gibbs-memorial-hut.html
https://hutbagger.co.nz/huts/joe-gibbs-memorial

• Thornhill's (Possumers) Hut

One of the easier unofficial huts to get to - found just off the track near the 900m contour on Kapakapanui.

Allegedly built buy a Kapiti local and used as a base camp for possum hunting (hence the alternate name). The location is fairly well documented online, below the bushline off the track south of Kapakapanui peak.
Marked on Topo50 2025 edn., look for the unnamed building marker just above the track, southwest of Kapakapnui peak.
Links
https://tramper.nz/8125/thornhills-hut-tararuas/
https://hutbagger.co.nz/huts/thonhills-possumers-hut

• Punga (Miro Valley) Hut

Another hut with a good amount of info available online, located in the northern end of the Tararua range, between North Mangahao Biv and Te Araroa trail.  

Can be accessed from either the west or east, initially via a forestry road or via North Mangahao Biv respectively (more info in links). Couldn't find any info on the huts origins.
Marked and named on Topo50 2025 edn.
Links:
https://trippytramping.blogspot.com/2016/10/punga-hut-or-miro-valley-hut.html
https://tramper.nz/7869/punga-hut-miro-valley-hut

• Waitohu Lodge

• Punga Hut (Atiwhakatu)

I've only seen this mentioned on a couple of websites - no real information beyond that.

• Jacs Biv

A small 2-person biv originally built in the 60s by Noel Fraser, Chris Main or Paul Gush for the NZFS and located next to Cow Creek Hut before being relocated by helicopter to its current site in 1998 for goat control operations. The name "JACS" is taken from initials of people involved with the relocation - Joe Hanson, Andy Guddup, Tim Crum, and Duncan Sutherland.
Marked and named on 2025 edition Topo50, near a large landslide on the Waiohine River between Anderson Memorial Hut and Angle Knob.
Link: https://hutbagger.co.nz/huts/jacs-biv  

• Hut on the Makaretu Stream below Spion Kop

This one is a little confusing - I've seen several mentions of "Makaretu river hut", "west makaretu ridge hut", "hut on the makaretu below Spion Kop" and various permutations thereof. It seems there is two huts in the area - one adjacent to the stream and one further north on the low ridge east of the stream. It's not clear which one is the "below Spion Kop" hut, that descriptor has seemingly been applied to both.
The only evidence I have of this huts existence is a comment giving coordinates on Trippy Tramper's Unofficial Huts page. The same comment also identifies two distinct huts, but confusingly gives the same co-ords for both (presumably a typo).

• West Makaretu Ridge Hut/Te Punga Whare/Spion Kop Hut

Continuing the confusion from the other mystery Makaretu hut, this ones existence is more definite (if they are indeed different): it has a Hutbagger page.

• Pig Flat Hut

Located on Pig Flat on the Gentle Annie Track to Mountain House/Powell Hut/Mt. Holdsworth. Apparently surprisingly close the track, yet there are still plenty of commenters on blog posts and message boards asking for a location so they can finally find it. By all accounts it is derelict and extremely uninviting - the lure is in how a hut can remain so secret while being so close to what is undoubtedly the busiest track in the Tararua FP. Not marked on Topo50 Maps but is listed on Hutbagger, including co-ordinates. 

DOC Biodiversity Huts

All of these are marked on Topo50 2025 edn. maps.

• Island Forks Hut
• Upper Otaki Hut
• Jacks Flat

References/Further Reading 
Trippy Tramper's List of Huts: https://trippytramping.blogspot.com/p/unofficial-ta.html
NZ Tramper Forum discussion: https://tramper.nz/forums/thread/10405
https://tramper.nz/7864/snowy-hut-snowy-river-hut/ 
https://trippytramping.blogspot.com/2014/12/joe-gibbs-memorial-hut.html
https://hutbagger.co.nz/huts/joe-gibbs-memorial
https://tramper.nz/8125/thornhills-hut-tararuas/ 
https://hutbagger.co.nz/huts/thonhills-possumers-hut
https://hutbagger.co.nz/huts/pig-flat