Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
scription of Fiordland, and it is thought that Cook was observing the Hump Ridge. The first
coastal track was cut by the government in 1868, to provide an alternative to the unreliable
shipping service to the gold-rush towns in Preservation Inlet.
In 1910, John Craig and Daniel Reese of the Marlborough Timber Company walked this
area, assessing the forest for its commercial timber viability. The volumes were staggering,
estimated at more than 152 million cubic metres. The question was, how to get the timber
out? It was decided to build a mill, wharf and tramway system at Mussel Point (Port Craig)
to extract and ship the timber. Despite the drowning of Craig in 1917, the new mill was built
and was in operation three years later. At the time it was the largest in the country. The mill
was closed for the first time in 1929, a result of the Depression, and then permanently
closed in 1932. It was dismantled during WWII, along with the wharf, by the NZ Navy,
which feared a Japanese invasion.
With much of the Waitutu forest still uncut and its logging rights up for grabs, the area
became the object of one of NZ's greatest environmental campaigns. In 1938, the Royal
Forest and Bird Protection Society was the first group to push for the land to be added to the
adjacent Fiordland National Park. In 1972, the Nature Conservation Council was successful
in removing the Waitutu State Forest from a logging proposal for the area, and in 1981 the
former National Parks and Reserves Authority again urged the government to add the forest
to the national park.
After reaching a settlement on compensation for Maori land claims in the area, the
Waitutu State Forest - comprising 460 sq km of virgin forest - was added to NZ's largest
national park in 1998.
8
Planning
WHEN TO TRAMP
This tramp is possible year-round, but operates in three seasonal modes. During shoulder
(early November to mid-December) and high (mid-December to early April) seasons, the
lodges are fully serviced and a manager will be in residence. In winter (mid-April to late
October), the hot water is turned off and the gas cookers are removed.
WHAT TO BRING
Good raingear is a necessity. Gaiters may also prove useful. Along with gas cookers, all
cooking equipment, crockery and cutlery are provided in the huts during the summer season.
Pillows are also provided.
