Ivory Lake Hut

(Ivory Lake Hut: Mark Watson/ www.highlux.co.nz 2008)

Maintenance Status

Ivory Hut is designated as fully maintain. DOC consider it to be useful for Tahr control purposes due to its location around the animal's purported northern limit. Outdoor groups also lobbied strongly for Ivory's maintenance in the 2004 high-country review, possibly further influencing the decision.

Location

Waitaha catchment: Grid Ref: E1430255/ N5222095. Map BW18. 1375m altitude. Ivory Lake is located in a stunning, remote alpine setting in the headwaters of the Waitaha River. The Hut is perched on an ice-smoothed rock lip at the northern end of Lake next to the outlet creek. The creek cascades from the lip of the cirque down a vertical face into Stag Creek. Ivory Glacier at the southern end of the Lake has shrunk over the past 30 years to such an extent that it is little more than patch of dead ice clinging to the rock faces. In summer flotillas of small icebergs migrate to and fro across the Lake with the daily wind cycles. Ivory Lake is enclosed on three sides by the peaks of the Lange Range with views from the Hut of Seddon Col and Park Dome.

The Hut was built in the 1960's by the Meteorological Service as a base to measure climate, precipitation and glacial flows. It was sturdily constructed and lined for the purpose.

Access

Getting up the Waitaha valley to Ivory Lake has always been somewhat of a challenge. The valley tracks had deteriorated steadily during DOC's tenure from the mid 1980's onward, with a decision to formally ceasing maintenance above Kiwi Flat (the first Hut in the valley) coming out of their 2004 Review. In August 2007 a group of Permolat volunteers recut and marked the track from Kiwi Flat to Chainman Creek in the upper Waitaha. The particularly severe winter storms of 2008 have apparently dne a fair bit of damage and it is likely to still take two long days for a fit experienced party to make the journey to Ivory from the Waitaha roadend. Most of the hard yakka occurs below the Top Waitaha basin. From the Basin to Ivory Lake is a reasonably pleasant amble through open tussock country.

From Top Waitaha Hut continue upriver to the confluence of Reid and Stag creeks. Climb straight up here onto a flat tussock bench on the true left of Stag Creek. The bench has numerous small tarns, is reasonably pleasant travel, and tapers out as Stag Creek rises in altitude. At this point you need to drop into the Creek and boulderhop. The Hut is located on a flat rock bench at the top of some rock faces just upstream from the Ivory Lake outlet creek on the true right of Stag Creek (the Hut is not visible from below). To access the Hut continue up Stag Creek 100m past the outlet creek and pick a route up through a series of sloping ledges onto the southern lip of the Lake. You may need iceaxes and crampons for this bit in Winter. A less exposed route can be found a bit further up Stag Creek at a very small creek draining the face at the eastern end of the Lake. Head up this creek on its true left to the level of the Hut and sidle across to the eastern edge of the Lake. Travel time to Ivory Hut from Top Waitaha Hut is around two hours.

In winter the snow can get very deep around the Hut, with often just the roof visible. If travelling to Ivory at this time of year it may be advisable to carry a snow shovel to dig the door out.

Type

Ivory lake is a six-bunk hut with a shed/ workshop along the South wall full of all sorts of fascinating junk, gear, and tools from the research days. The Hut has a double burner primus in a cooking alcove. Vistors need to bring their own kerosine and the primus needs meths to pre-heat it. There is no toilet here, which has the potential to be a problem given the dearth of vegetation and topsoil in the area.

Condition

Ivory Hut is soundly contructed and has withstood the numerous alpine storms pretty well over the years. It was repainted in 2001 by DOC volunteers and glass and perspex windows (some broken) were replaced by tougher polycarbonate. Additional repairs were made in 2003 and new tie-downs fitted. At last report Ivory was in good condition. A leak around the "chimney" area appears to have been sorted out.

Routes

There is route from Ivory Hut to Price Basin Hut in the Whitcombe via the Lange Range which involves climbing up onto spot height 2056m on the Lange Range and descending the ridge leading to Mt. Wylde Brown. There is a section of crumbling rock buttress near the top of this ridge that you can sidle underneath on the South side. The remainder of the route down into Price Basin is easy ridge travel. There is a bit of permanent snow at the very top of this route.

Seddon Col is easy to get to from Ivory Lake side, but the Whitcombe side is vertical at the top with rotten rock and requires ropes and climbing gear. It is probably easier to get down into Seddon Creek and the Wilkinson River via the SE end of the Lange Range. A rock buttress prevents easy access to the Range from Seddon Col, so the best route onto it would be the same one you'd use to get over into Price Basin. It would be possible using this route to drop off Mt Thorndike down its South Ridge into the Wilkinson, or continue right down Pahlow Ridge, and Pahlow Creek into the Whitcombe.

There are good routes over spot height 1870m behind Ivory Glacier to the Tuke, Galena Ridge and the Whitcome valley via Steadman Brow. Spot height 1870m is an easy climb from Ivory Hut up the obvious ridge on the true right of the outlet creek where it exits the Lake.

There are numerous points along the ridge between spot height 1870m and Mt. Beaumont where descents into the Tuke are possible. It takes about 4-5 hours to get from Ivory to Tuke Hut.

Dickie Ridge and Dickie Spur Hut are accessable via Sawtooth Ridge and the Tusk, from spot height 1870m. Sawtooth Ridge, despite the ominous sounding name, is a relatively easy traverse. Further along there is one tricky bit North of the Tusk around spot height 1920m that a few parties have had trouble negotiating. A rope may be a useful back-up for this section.

Healey Spur Hut and the Cropp Basin can be reached by traversing Mt. Beaumont. Healey via Galena Ridge, and Prices Flat Hut in the Whitcombe valley via Steadman Brow and the Cropp Brow tops track. The ridge from spot height 1870m to Beaumont is easy travel. Mt. Beaumont has permanent snow on it's summit, and a very small glacial remnant on its South face, but is an easy traverse. Galena Ridge is pretty good going apart from one steep little notch just North of the col between the Tuke and the Cropp that requires care.

There is a good route down the Cropp Brow trail that connects with a maintained tops track up Steadman Brow. This takes you down to Price Flat in the Whitcombe. DOC finished recutting this track in 2010.

The section of the Lange Range encircling the NW end of Ivory Lake is a razorback, very exposed, and narrow enough in places to dangle your legs in separate catchments, with a drop of several hundred metres on each side. A rope would be essential for a traverse of this section.

A climb of Park Dome from Ivory Hut is highly recommended, reasonably easy, and provides stunning views of Mt. Evans and the Southern Alps. It can be done with just ice axes in high summer, or if conditions permit, at other times. It would be advisable however to have crampons on hand in case they're needed. A rope is optional - there is a small glacier with a few slots in it that can be skirted around if you can see them. To get onto the Dome drop into Stag Creek from the Hut and ascend the face onto the spur that bisects the two main branches of Stag Creek. Climb up and around the true right of the small glacier feeding the South branch of Stag Creek to access the summit.

Repairs

The next vistor could take up some sealant and attend to those leaks. You can also assist DOC by collecting all the bits and pieces of metal and old equipment scattered around the Lake and placing them in the shed. Building a toilet here would be a good idea, although possibly challenging given that a lot of the surrounds are either bare rock or shallow gravel pans. Any increase in the low numbers currently visiting the site is likely to create waste disposal problems.

Provisions on Site

As of October 2004: 1 Working Kero cooker (gravity fuel-feed jar model), 3 billies, 1 tea pot, 1 camp oven, 4 enamel plates, cutlery, kero cooker (in lean-to shed, no Kero), an ornamental fire extinguisher, dining table and two chairs, 1 armchair, 1 good snow shovel (which Warren Chinn jammed in the door handle for the next party to dig out the door..), 1 strange looking leaf shaped snow shovel, a collection of preserved invertebrate specimens from 1972, and a thousand other extraordinary bits and pieces!