Child friendly rating: 3 stars

Distance: Approx 4.5km via Sunrise Track or 3km via river

Signposted time: 2-3 hours

Bookings Required? No

Suitable in Winter? Yes

Camping Available? A small amount

4wd required? No

Parking:

This depends which way you come from - either way you'll be parking on North Block Road. If wanting to come in via the river, park at the end of the road. If wanting to come via Sunrise Track, park at the Sunrise Track carpark.

The Track:

 You've got two options for getting to this hut. The difficulty level is fairly similar between the two. The main difference being whether you'd prefer to do several river crossings, or climb up and over a hill so that you've only got 1 river crossing.

Personally I feel coming the river crossing way is easier. It's much shorter, no big drop offs, and none of the river crossings are deeper than below your knees in normal flows.

If it's the middle of winter or you've got several kids to carry over each crossing, you may wish to avoid the river.

Following the Sunrise Hut track gives a wide, gentle uphill track as far as the Waipawa Track junction.

Then from the Waipawa Track junction, the track becomes extremely narrow with a steep drop off on one side almost the whole way. There are a couple of creek crossings before you get down to the river.

The gradient is however gentle, but the thin track and drop-offs mean there isn't many locations along the way where you can have a break and take your pack off. It's also not the safest option for walking toddlers. Better to have them in a child carrier, or avoid. 5yo+ will be fine if capable, but don't load their packs up too much to help with balance.

There are also some overgrown sections coming this way, so kids will have to push their way through on the very thin track - not great for kids with sensory issues.

Once you come to the main Waipawa River, you'll likely have to carry smaller kids over. My 8yo crossed fine on her own, but if you're looking to keep kids warm, you may want to carry them over to avoid wet boots. DO NOT take boots off for the crossing. You will get cold shock, plus the large rocks can crush your feet. Ensure you keep boots on, and rather carry kids over that need it. The river is deep enough that kids under 6 will almost definitely need carrying over.

Then head downstream till you see the large orange marker which indicates where the track to the hut on the other side of the river is.

It took me carrying a 1yo with a 4+8yo walking 2 hrs 45 min to the Sunrise / Waipawa junction, and then a further 1 hour past the junction (We're much faster downhill than up)

If following the river, you'll have to cross this several times. It does mean no uphill and downhill, but being very careful at several river crossings instead. Carrying the kids over will also slow you down significantly as you have to navigate crossing over back and forth carrying kiddos one at a time.

It is a shorter track, but much more care is needed. Expect it to take you at least 3 hours with kids. If carrying kids over the crossings, you will be able to keep their feet dry.

The river route is not marked, and you'll have to just follow the river upstream finding the best crossing points possible till you get to the marker on the left hand side indicating the track to the hut. It's best if you've got a GPS to keep an eye on things. If you get to an orange marker indicating a track on the right hand side, you've gone too far.

And obviously, either route is impassable after heavy rain - even a day of steady rain can be too much.

If you walk the track as a loop, you've got 1.5km of road walking to join up the two track-ends.

Hut:

The hut is the exact same design as the nearby Triplex Hut - a lounge with two bunkrooms on either side which only have exterior access. Not the best design for visiting with kids, especially in colder weather where you need the fireplace to keep the bunkroom warm. We fitted 3 mattresses into the lounge when we had the place to ourselves to stay warmer in late autumn.

The grass outside the hut is nice and sunny, and there is kind of enough space for a small tent. The ground just isn't very flat. Great space for playing though.

Recommendations:

Neither access is suitable for toddlers unless you're planning on carrying them. This is definitely a better hut to visit with school age kids or older. The river route can be great for staying cool in summer, and with capable kids you can even get to the hut in under 2 hours. I'd recommend this once you've done a few hikes already, have some experience yourself as the parent, and are ready to take things up a notch with the kids. And obviously only when no rain is forecast - also watch out for wind as this can funnel through the valley if takign the river route.