Child friendly rating: 4 stars

Distance: 7km

Signposted time: 3 hours

Bookings Required? No

Suitable in Winter? Not on foot

Camping Available? Yes

4wd required? No

Parking:

 The best way to get to this hut is via the Snow Farm. You will need to pay the $20 toll for leaving your car and crossing the Snow Farm land here in summer (Outside of the ski season)

In the ski season you can cross country ski to this hut, it is usually groomed right to the hut, but I'd only recommend this if you've cross country skied before as it is quite a distance if you're not sure what you're doing.

The Track:

 Summer:

Follow the orange poled route down to the 4WD track which you will link onto. Do NOT cross the river where the sign says Pisa Conservation Area - you are going to follow along the 4WD road a little further - keep going past Meadow Hut till you get to a junction with another 4WD track. There is a sign marked junction 26, Kirsty Burn.

Then follow this 4WD road which winds around the hill, gradually going uphill till you reach Kirtle Burn Hut.

The walk in not technical in any way, and except for the first part where you need to follow the poled route, you're on the 4WD road the whole way. But it is exposed to wind, sun, and cold.

In summer, with a 3 year old being carried, we walked it in 2.5 hours including breaks. If the 3 year old had walked, I'm estimating it would have taken 4-5 hours with that 3 year old walking.

Winter:

In winter, it's a completely different ball game. You need to buy a pass for using the Snow Farm trails, and you can only access these with snowshoes or skis on. - No regular walking on the trails as it'll ruin the grooming. If you're walking there one day and back the next, you'll need to make sure you get a pass valid for both days. The Snow Farm hires the gear.

In winter, it took us 2.5 hours from Meadow Hut to cross country ski to the hut with me pulling the pulk with the baby in it, and our 3 year old walking on snowshoes 1/3 of the way, and then being carried by me in the carrier the rest of the way. The 7 year old cross country skied herself the whole way. Add an extra 1 hour to get from the Snow Farm base buildings to Meadow Hut if you're quick on the skis.

On the way back, it's all downhill so the ski was super quick - pulling the pulk with the 3 year old on my back in the carrier it took only 1 hour.

Hut:

 The hut is not super old, but it is pretty cold. There is no fireplace, so a winter stay would need a LOT of warm layers and gear.

Recommendations:

 The only reason this hut isn't a 5 star child friendly level in summer is because even in summer the conditions can very quickly change here, and you need to be prepared. You are in an exposed alpine zone, and even in the middle of summer you may end up with a snowstorm. It can get very windy and very cold quickly so be prepared with extra layers, and make sure you have a good forecast.

In winter, if you've done the other huts on the Snow Farm with the kids in previous years, then I'd recommend this one as a next step up if you've got good weather and the kids found the cross country skiing (Or snowshoeing) easy enough.