Polluck Creek Hut
(Polluck Creek Hut: Photo DOC 2003/ 4)
Maintenance status
Polluck Creek Hut is also known as Little Waitaha,
Kakapotahi and Happy Valley Hut. It is designated as
minimal maintenance. DOC aren't officially maintaining
any of the pre-existing NZFS tracks in this catchment.
Location
Kakapotahi
catchment: Grid Ref: E1422742/ N5229773.
Map BV18. Altitude 295m. Polluck Creek is a bit of a rarity in being a low-use
roadend hut. As such it remains relatively undamaged by the hoon activity that
tends to plague such huts in higher use areas.
Polluck Hut is located on a wedge of low river terrace
just up from the Polluck Creek -
Kakapotahi River confluence. It is the only
hut in this small, multi-branched
catchment that drains the Hitchen Range and Dickie Ridge. Most
of its branches are rough and steep, with numerous
waterfalls.
Polluck Hut is a minimal effort overnighter, mostly used by hunters, but also
has potential as a starting point for high-level
trips into the Waitaha and Mikonui valleys.
Access
Access to Polluck Creek is via an old Forestry road
that turns off SH 6 on a rise just South of
the Kakapotahi River bridge. There is a locked gate on this road
4km from the Hut. It is necessary to walk from here to the River, around
15 mintutes from the Hut.
Follow the the river flats from the roadend and ford where convienient to the TR.
This is
not difficult at
normal river flows.
Pollock Hut can also be accessed from the Mikonui
valley from the Dickie Spur track and Turan Pass. The track from Mikonui
Flat was recut in March 2007 and starts
in scattered scrub on the grassy flat 200m SE of
Mikonui Flat Hut. It enters the bush and climbs steeply
over a wedge of terrace into the Tuke River, avoiding a small gorge.
The track
crosses the footbridge at the mouth of the gorge
(E1426960/ N5233523, not 7045/ 3373 as marked on the map)
and continues
upriver on the TL left towards Turan Creek. This section
of the Tuke blew out in a flood some years back and it is quicker at normal river flows to
ford above the bridge and head
straight up the river bed.
There is a bluff on the TL of the Tuke about 100m downstream
from Turan Creek. The track turns uphill and climbing steeply onto the TL terrace
of Turan Creek. It sidles (higher than marked on
the map) around to Turan Pass. The Polluck Creek turn-off is marked on the map as being further
down Pollock Creek than it actually is. The old track down to the Kakapotahi
will be overgrown now, but should be OK to follow, and pretty
much follows Polluck Creek. Allow
2-3 hours from Mikonui Flat Hut To Polluck Hut.
Type
Polluck Hut is a standard six-bunk NZFS design built in the 1960's.
It has an open fire and is lined.
Condition
DOC painted the Hut's interior and exterior, and resealed and did
roof repairs over the Summer of 2003/4.
Routes
Dickie
Spur Hut can be accessed via Polluck Creek and Turan Pass.
The route up Polluck Creek is a mix of overgrown track and open creek travel. It
connects with the maintained track from Mikonui Flat
Hut to Dickie Spur at Turan Pass. From here it is a reasonably steep climb up onto
Dickie Spur. There is a fair bit of windthrow at the bottom of the climb
from the winter storms of 2008 that needs to be skirted. The track connects with a side ridge
of the Dickie Range in the alpine zone and flattens somewhat.
Continue from here up the spur through alpine scrub and open tussock patches to the
turnoff to the Hut around the 1200m mark. A trail
marked with scattered wooden
stakes leads down a side spur to the Hut.
An old tops track
up onto Dickie Ridge behind Polluck Hut has not
been maintained for 30+ years and at last report had vanished in the scrub zone.
There is a route marked on the old NZFS maps onto Mt. Allen and the Hitchen Range
via Slip Creek.
Slip Creek enters
the Kakapotahi at E1449502/ N5233347 and provides access to Swandri Spur and
spot height 1291m. We don't have any recent information on the viability,
of this route.
Some steep exposed sections on the Hitchen Range between
Mt. Allen and Mt. Hitchin can be avoided by dropping East off the col between spot
heights 1385m and 1585m. Head down to the junction of the two upper forks of Isobel Creek
and up the ridge on the TR of the TR upper fork. Continue directly from
here to Ridland Saddle.
It is possible but not particularly easy to drop down Chainman
Creek into the Waitaha. The alternative is to continue along the tops to a saddle
West of Ragged Peak (E1424995/ N5224187) and drop from here into the top Waitaha basin.
Once in the
basin proper it is an easy stroll to
Top Waitaha Hut.
Repairs needed
Unknown.
Provisions on Site:
Unknown.