Child friendly rating: 5 stars
Distance: n/a
Signposted time: n/a
Bookings Required? Yes
Suitable in Winter? Yes
Camping Available? Limited.
Maybe space for a small tent in the bush, no grassy clearing for large family size tent. 4wd required? No
Parking: The best access for this hut is via water taxi. Park at the Lake Rotoroa jetty.
The Track: While there is a track here from the jetty, it is considered impassable. There have been fallen trees and slips which have not been cleared and I wouldn't recommend attempting with kids at all.
If you want to take a walk past the hut (for example get dropped off by the water taxi at Sabine Hut and picked up from D'Urville). The last section of the track between Sabine and D'Urville has steep drop-offs and would not be recommended for young kids at all. The first section past the hut is fine if you're just looking for a short wander with young kids.
Hut: The hut is a nice large modern hut with 2 seperate bunkrooms. They are quite large and the hut can get quite busy as it's a popular stop on the way to Mt Misery or Blue Lake and it's also on the Travers-Sabine loop track.
Recommendations: With younger kids, this is a fun alternative to walking to a hut - catching the water taxi and spending time relaxing at the hut, swimming in summer and doing some short walks.
With older capable and experienced kids, you can look into getting dropped off at Sabine Hut by the water taxi and picked up from D’urville hut. As long as you are prepared for the drop-off section of track which can be very dodgy.
If you'd like to skip the water taxi, you can also walk here from the Mt Robert carpark via Speargrass Hut, however that's a full day walk at adult pace.
If you’d like a quieter hut, stay at the nearby D’urville Hut instead.