This is an easy walk, best taken in winter, for the stunning scenery of the Torlesse Range. Worth noting are the many icicles along the river bed and the sluice in the stream beside the hut. This walk was also described in the July Wilderness Mag.
Access
About an hour's drive from Christchurch towards Arthur's Pass,will bring you to the base of Porter's Pass. On the right hand side is an area under some trees that serves as a car park. Call Brookdale Station, they may let you park off the road side.
Route (1-2 hrs to hut)
From the car park, a 4WD track follows the Kowai in a northerly direction for about 100m to a locked gate. Some way past the gate is a boggy patch (skirt around, or better yet, go in winter as it's frozen solid). From here the track drops down to the river bed (look for a small cairn to restart the track in 50m). Over a few small rises will bring you to Foggy Stream. Once across, it is a matter of minutes before the hut is sighted. The 4 bunk hut sits on a small rise above the river (check out the shower).
