Child friendly rating: 4 stars

Distance: 2.8km

Signposted time: 45 minutes

Bookings Required? No

Suitable in Winter? Yes but river crossing will be freezing

Camping Available? Yes - plenty

4wd required? No

Parking:

Drive along Craigieburn Road as far as possible. You will pass through many gates which you have to open and shut. Make sure you leave gates as you found them.

Park at the locked gate.

The Track:

The rest of the walk to the hut is along a 4WD track that can get muddy and wet - you used to be able to drive this with a 4WD, though now not possible with the locked gate.

The track can get muddy & slippery, and while it is a 4WD road, there are some sections you would struggle with a pram on, though it is possible.

Just before the hut you need to cross Broken River. Even in low summer flows this is actually quite swift. (See pict). This river crossing is the only thing that takes a star away from making this a 5 star accessible hut.

My favourite way to check the Waimakariri River flow levels is using the below link:

https://www.ecan.govt.nz/data/riverflow/sitedetails/66442

Broken River goes into the Waimakariri, so this isn't always 100% related, but is a close enough estimate. In low summer flows this can be around 40-50. After a huge storm it's been over 1,000 in the past. Personally I feel anything over 70-80 would be too much to safely cross the river with young kids.

Hut:

This is a historic hut, so can be quite cold. There are individual beds over 3 rooms, but we popped mattresses on the floor next to each other for co-sleeping rather than sleeping on the beds.

The multiple small rooms are great as you can have your own room as a family.

Recommendations:

This hut would make a great first trip for families that are confident in river crossings, or during peak low flow in summer. Carry kids across the river to keep their boots dry. And make sure you check the flow levels before heading out.

The sandflies are intense here, so don't forget repellent.