Koropuku (Big Tops) Hut

(Koropuku Hut: Photo Stephen Grossi 2008)

Maintenance Status

Koropuku (Big Tops) Hut has been designated as minimal maintenance. The access track to it hasn't been officially maintained for some time, but has been kept open and in relatively good condition by by Frank King and Honora Renwick of Christchurch.

Location

Otehake River. Grid Ref: E1496542/ 5259291N. Map BV21. Altitude 845m. Koropuku Hut is located in the upper basin of Koropuku Creek in Arthurs Pass National Park. The Koropuku flows into the Otehake catchment, which in turn feeds into the Taramakau. There are fine views from the Hut downvalley to the Pfeifer Range and Otehake valley. Korupuku Hut was informally adopted some years back by Frank and Honora and kept maintained and homely (and the the track in good order) during a long period of zero maintenance by DOC. DOC has done some basic maintenance on the Hut from 2002 onward, but volunteer input is still likey to be integral to its preservation and that of the access track. Koropuku Hut has been historically low-use hut, receiving 6-10 visits per year. Traffic there has picked up noticably in recent times, possibly due to to it being profiled on this site, and Frank King's Tramping Blog tramping.typepad.com. Deer and chamois are regularly encountered in the area and on rare occasions Kiwi have been seen or heard near the Hut.

Access

Frank and Honora did some maintenance on the Koropuku track in early 2010. The route starts in the Taramakau valley at Aitkens Corner on state highway 73. From the car park head across the farm paddocks for 500-600m following the markers through small gate to the Otira riverbed. Ford the Otira (usually mid-thigh depth at the wider spots) and head towards a large orange marker on the opposite bank. There is a flood track down the TR of the Otira from the Deception Footbridge further up the Highway. Its condition is poor with windthrow judging from recent reports, and using it would add around two hours to the trip. The emergency shelter at the Taramakau junction has been washed away.

From the large orange marker at the junction, either follow the markers directly up the Taramakau, or stay close to the River on the 4WD track. The routes merge a little further on. Around 100m before the the Pfeifer Creek confluence a large wooden sign indicates the start of the Lake Kaurapataka track. Follow this across and up the TR of Pfeifer Creek for 45min to the Lake. Halfway along the Lake a small cairn in the middle of the track indicates the turn off to a marvelous lakeside camping spot. The track continues along the lake to the Otehake Valley turnoff, and hot pools.

Continue up the Taramakau Valley track, dropping down a steep creek bed into the Otehake. Head up the TL of the Otehake for about 100m and ford or if the river is high, use the swingbridge. DOC are considering removing the bridge due to its low use and the fact that the Otehake is not a difficult ford at normal flows. The track to Korepuku Hut starts downstream of the ford on the TR, and marked by a large orange marker. Behind this is a small clearing where the track enters the bush. It leads to the base of a spur, which it follows up to the tussock line, and is marked with red, or occasionally white permolat. There is no water from the river to the 1150m contour. There are commanding views of Lake Kaurapataka, and Mts. Alexander and Pfeifer from the tops here.

From a dried up tarn marked with a cairn the track heads South along a bench for a short distance. Cairns and a couple of posts lead from here up a series of small terraces to a large tarn at 1495408E/ 5260491N. Continue following the cairns South along the bench to a group of tarns East of point 1259m. A scree just South of the tarns leads down a steep gut into the Koropuku catchment. Follow the TR of the gut until past a large rock outcrop, then continue down the creek to the top of a series of waterfalls. A track enters the bush here on the TL, dropping down a steep dry gut before rejoining the creek. It exits the creek further down and continues through the forest on the TL. Around the 850m contour it turns and begins sidling up TR faces of the Koropuku. It eventually drops onto flatter terrain, passing through a clearing named "The Orchard," which is 150m from the Hut. Allow 7-9 hours to reach Koropuku Hut from Aitkens corner.

APNP policy prohibits commercial helicopter flights into the Koropuku.

Type

Koropuku Hut is a standard NZFS 4-bunk design built in March 1964 by D. Green, W. Johnson, and WRF (probably Ray Forsyth) of the NZFS. It is lined and the water supply is from a small stream nearby, Koropuku Creek is not far if you want a dip. The Hut was painted and a small door porch added in 2002 and in 2004 DOC erected a new long drop toilet, and replaced the clearlight in the roof. There is a nice lush front lawn with room for up to 3 tents and a small fireplace behind the Hut against the side of a large boulder.

Condition

Koropuku Hut is in good condition. The piles appear to be original and untreated, and not concreted, but are sound. The bearers and joists are in excellent condition. The SW corner of the Hut has had some minor repairs, a short section of bearer removed, and two or three floorboards replaced. The floor at base of west wall shows signs of water getting in, but there is no visible damage. There is a small rat hole chewed in bottom of door.

Routes

There is a route to Koropuku over the tops from Townsend Hut via the head of the Koropuku Valley. The upper Creek looks to be relatively easy travel most of the way.

It is possible to follow Koropuku Creek down through the its Gorge into the Otehake, however the creek levels need to be low to do this. There are some waterfalls that must be sidled around and it is pretty slow going in places More detailed route notes can be found on www.tramper.co.nz.

The tops around the head of the Koropuke look fairly benign in terms of potential high-level traverses into the Minchin and Poulter valleys.

Repairs

The floor at the end of the West wall needs a leak check done during rain, and sealing if necessary. The rat hole needs plugging.

Provisions on Site

Three billies, two billy lids, a billy hanger, an aluminum wash basin, two plastic buckets, two bench seats, two seats made from wooden crates and sacking, a small kitchen table, an old first aid kit and manual, a plastic brush and shovel, a hearth brush and shovel, a Forest Service food bin, an axe plus spare handle, a broom plus spare handle, a spade, a slasher, a flat file, a rasping file, a large shovel handle, a makeshift ladder, one spare louvre glass, an assortment of nails, half a roll of malthoid, a handful of white permolat markers, a small handmade food safe, a wall-mounted map of APNP, a few dish cloths, teatowels and scotchbrite pads, a clothes line, a wall mounted can opener, a potato peeler, a plastic coffee mug with lid, a small wall mounted mirror, a four-slice toasting rack for the fire, a cheese grater, an egg beater, a wooden spoon, emergency underpants, a game of tiddlywinks, a small library, and a guitar. Under the Hut there is some spare iron and roof flashings, a sheet of clearlight, five lengths of decking timber, two of 100 x 50 H3, and various offcuts.