Top Crawford Hut
(Top Crawford Hut looking up to the Main Divide: Photo DOC 2011: Double click to get larger image)
Maintenance status
Top Crawford Hut and the access tracks and routes to it are fully maintained by DOC.
Location
Kokatahi
catchment. Map BV19. Grid Ref: E1459493/ N5244946.
Altitude 835m. Top Crawford Hut was relocated to the head of the Crawford River in 2011 from a site further down the valley.
It replaced Top Crawford Biv which had occupied the top basin since the late 1950's. The relocated Hut
is the TL bank of the upper TL branch of the Crawford River, 200m upstream from the lip of the basin.
Top Crawford was
dismantled in the move and reassembled (essentially a rebuild)
at the new site.
Crawford Biv was flown downnvalley to replace Pinnacle Biv in the lower Kokatahi.
Top Crawford basin is a beautiful location, open tussock and alpine scrub glades ringed by the peaks
of the Main Divide and Browning Range. The Hut is on the Lathrop Saddle - Zit
Saddle circuit, a reasonably
popular wilderness route of moderate difficulty.
The tracks on the circuit are being recut in February 2012. The alpine sections are marked with snow poles.
Access
The most direct, best maintained access to Top Crawford Hut is from the Styx roadend
via Lathrop Saddle, which normally takes 1.5-2 days.
A cut track leads from Browning Biv
on the Styx side of the Saddle up a steep ridge through the alpine scrub to the tussock.
Snow poles lead from here up a steep tussock face to the Saddle, which is
a U-shaped corridor strewn with large, shattered boulders and amethyst
tarns. It's a beautiful crossing when sunny, and quite eerie and silent when misty.
The route down on the
Crawford side is snow-poled and
sidles intitially in a SW direction across
some steep faces to avoid a band of bluffs directly below the Saddle.
This section
is usually snow covered in winter and spring and sometimes icy.
It is recommended that ice axes be carried
at these times.
The snowpoles lead across the face to a broad spur at around E1458920/ N5245773,
and drop down this towards the basin.
The poles veer sharply to the right at the top of a band of scrub
covered bluffs and drop down off the spur
into the creek catchment below. From here the route
follows a gut running parallel
to the creek into the basin. Allow 3-5 hours from Browning Biv to
Top Crawford Hut.
Access to Top Crawford Hut from the Kokatahi end is straightforward.
Allow at least three days in good conditions for the journey from the Toaroha roadend via Zit Saddle and the upper Kokatahi.
The route up from Crawford Junction Hut follows the riverbed intially, to just past the Crawford swingbridge.
From near here a short section of track leads
through a nice patch of rata forest to
Farquharson
Creek. This is a big, unbridged creek which can be impassable during or after heavy rain. A short distance above the
Farquharson the track leaves the River and climbs quite steeply up the montane faces of the valley, then
levels and sidles reasonably high above the Crawford through the montane and subalpine
zones to the top
basin.
There is a 20 minute section of river travel just before the basin opens out. The track is in good condition currently and
it should take 4-5 hours from Crawford Junction to Top Crawford Hut.
Access to Top Crawford from the lower Kokatahi valley is a more
challenging affair. The tracks between Boo Boo Hut and
Crawford Junction are not officially maintained. The section between Boo Boo and Twins
three-wire was recut by volunteers in 2005, but fresh slips, washouts, windthrow and regrowth have made
travel increasingly difficult again. In January 2012 Andrew Barker recut the bit from Boo Boo to where the
track drops directly down to
Pinnacle Creek (about the 400 metre contour, Ref. E1453517/N5244218). From here to Twins three-wire is
still uncut. Travel from Twins three-wire up to Crawford Junction
on the TR of the River is mostly
river travel with the odd detour through the scrub and around bluffs and boulders. A ford of the Crawford
opposite Crawford Junction Hut is required (the Crawford swingbridge was removed in 2012), making it essentially
a fine-weather route.
The track from the Kokatahi roadend to Boo Boo Hut is
officially maintained, but overgrown currently, and won't be recut until 2012-13.
Getting the whole distance to Top Crawford up the Kokatahi valley could theoretically be done in two days
by a fit, experienced party.
Type
The original Top Crawford Hut was a standard NZFS 4-bunk design built in 1959.
It was pretty much rebuilt
in the relocation process with only a semblance of the original structure remaining.
The good news is that it has been strenghtened and well insulated. Double glazed windows and a woodburner have been added.
It has a toilet, and water is from the River, a short distance from the Hut.
Condition
The Hut should be in excellent condition currently.
Routes
There is a high-level crossing from Top Crawford basin over into the Harman River
via the col just South of point 1618m between Mts. Lathrop and McDonald.
Access to the tops is up
the TL branch of the creek draining this col onto a flat area at the 1530m contour. From here head NW to
the col itself (there is a conspicuous needle shaped rock on the left of the col if looking up at it from
the Harman River). A steep scree leads from the col down into a rocky gut and from there into
the Harman River Basin. Ice axes and crampons
may be necessary in winter and spring on this section. Once down in the Harman River it
is easy travel down to where a side creek comes in through a grove of mountain ribbonwood on the TL, around E1462586/ N5246622.
The Harman becomes gorgy and impassable her, going over two waterfalls before passing under the Harman swingbridge.
From the mouth of the side creek climb diagonally 50 vertical metres, through the alpine
scrub, onto the terrace above the gorge. Make your way from here through scattered scrub and patches of tussock
onto the low rocky ridge that looks down on Harman Hut. Allow around four hours
from Top Crawford Hut to Harman Hut.
A traverse of the Browning Range and down Whitehorn
Ridge to Crawford Junction is also possible from Top Crawford Hut. To get up onto
the Range head up the big side creek
just opposite the Hut, climbing out at the 1400m mark
onto a large flat bench with tarns on the TL. Access to the crest of the Range
is via the obvious low point at E1458390/ N5246493. Whitehorn Spur Biv was
removed in 2006 and the
old tops track down from it to Crawford Junction is very overgrown, petering out
completely on the
lower faces. Allow
a full day and fine weather for this route.
It is also possible to drop off the
Browning Range from point 1858m just West of Cairn Peak to Mid Styx Hut.
An old tops track from Mid Styx
up onto the Browning Range was
recut by Permolat volunteers in 2009.
From point 1858m drop due North down a broad face on the TR of the basin of the large
unnamed side creek. Connect with a more well-defined spur at the 1400m mark, dropping down its NW
forks at around 1280m. You should be able to pick the track up in the alpine scrub belt.
Allow 5-6 hours from Top Crawford Hut to Mid Styx Hut.
There is a
high-level route from the head of the Crawford over into Hall Creek and Browning Pass.
Head straight up the screes (or snow slopes depending on the time of year) onto the Main Divide
between Mts.
Beals and Learmont. Descend down the scree (or snow) slopes to the upper basin of Hall Creek.
This is the esiest way to get to Hall Col or Farquharson Saddle as
the ridge down from Mt. Learmont has some
vertical rock pitches and gendarmes.
Repairs
None currently.
Provisions on
site
Unknown currently.
