Wilderness April 2025

WHEN ON MY OE I lived in Oxford, UK, for two years. One day a large parcel from my parents landed on the doorstep. Inside were dozens of freeze-dried food packets from a then fledgling company called Back Country Cuisine. In those far-off days I was a struggling barista, serving coffee to train commuters heading to London. My parents probably intended the meals for my planned European tramps, but what I saw inside that box was a month of free dinners. Each night I was in the garden with my gas stove, boiling water to make my evening meal. Because it was largely a survival exercise I didn’t bother to rate the meals, and I don’t have many fond memories of the food I did eat. But that’s mostly because…

BACKCOUNTRY HUTS March’s editorial about huts being treasures and not money-makers fails, I think, to mention the root cause of DOC’s funding issue. I don’t think anyone at DOC wants to charge people for huts. The people at DOC are, mostly, people like ourselves who love the outdoors. However, DOC is stuck between a rock and a hard place. There is an ever-decreasing budget, despite DOC having a remit to manage a large amount of public land. It’s basically run on the smell of an oily rag and it’s done quite well. Then, there are modern health and safety rules to adhere to. This means that if huts can’t be maintained, DOC finds itself having to remove them. Add to that the increasing popularity of tramping and use of some…

Get your photo published here to receive a meal from Real Meals worth $18. Last Weekend submission criteria can be found at wildernessmag.co.nz. LEARN MORE ABOUT REAL MEALS AT www.realmeals.co.nz.…

Some public areas are only accessible across private land. Earlier this year, Te Herenga ā Nuku, the Land Access Commission, shared a story on how ‘old-fashioned’ values instead of a lawyer can help with this. A hunter wanted to take his vehicle across a high country station, and the commission was able to provide the land owner’s contact details. The station’s manager allowed the hunter to use their private road in return for a box of beer. It was a successful exchange. Commission communications manager Stephen Day said many landowners are happy to share their land with outdoor recreationists, “as long as they ask politely”. In New Zealand there is no ‘right to roam’ across private land to get to public land, unlike in much of Europe. However, this story…

Four trampers have had to climb out a window of a hut in Arthur’s Pass National Park after they were accidentally locked in. Marian Carlton was staying at the Canterbury Mountaineering Club’s Barker Hut over Waitangi weekend. After a cosy night, three other trampers left early next morning on ‘autopilot’, locking the door behind them and effectively imprisoning those still inside. Carlton said when she first entered the hut she thought about the lock and recalled a Wilderness story she had read, ‘Nightmare at Architect Creek Hut’ (September 2017), in which two people were shut inside a hut. “I didn’t think to tell the other trampers about it, though.” The windows at Barker Hut only open about 10cm. Using tools found in the hut, another tramper managed to pop out…

Bookings for the 2025/26 season of Aotearoa’s Great Walks and other huts and campsites will soon open and will be staggered between May 13 to 28. DOC has upgraded the booking system, making it easier to use. There will be a queue system to manage high demand. The Heaphy, Kepler and Rakiura tracks are the first Great Walks to open, on May 15. The ever-popular Milford Track will open last, on May 28. SOME BOOKING TIPS FROM DOC: • Set up your profile before opening day • Use the latest version of your web browser • If you open the booking screen prior to the specified opening time, you will need to refresh the screen when bookings open to see where there are spaces • Have a few dates in…