UKC

I am off on a trip to Mount Aspiring in a month or so's time.  Trying to work out what clothing/sleeping bag to pack.  Just wondering if anyone has an idea how warm it is in the hut?  Is it similar to most popular alpine huts - i.e. fairly toasty?  Or is it very cold/draughty?

In reply to RuthW:

I was in there for a couple of trips in the spring.  If the weather's good and the hut's full then it can get pretty toasty - enough to want the window & door open at night.  But if you get a southerly and there's nobody else around it'll feel pretty chilly.  The hut's not really draughty unless you have the floor vents open on a windy day.   I normally find that a summer-weight sleeping bag is fine in any of the NZ huts until well into March but it depends a bit on how well you handle the cold.

There are plenty of keas around so watch your stuff if you leave it out to dry!

If you want conditions info nearer the time then drop me a line.

In reply to RuthW:

I concur with Adrian. I was there in a particularly snowy and stormy December several years ago, with my partner and six other people in the hut for a few days.

It's pretty warm when everyone is up and about and cooking, but overnight you do want an actual light sleeping bag, as opposed to just a couple of blankets like you might have in an Alpine hut etc.

Bear in mind that, assuming you walk out, if not in as well, you don't want to have to carry too much, that there is a good chance you will be in the rain at some time and your stuff may well get wet.

In reply to RuthW:

Great place. Concur with what the others have said - it's basically just one big room as I recall. The toilet a short walk away with definitely be chilly  

In reply to RuthW:

I'll be attempting the north west ridge in February (between 14th and 19th), so I guess I'll be at the Colin Todd Hut within that time window.

What dates will you be there ?

 

In reply to Raymondo:

Not until 7th March!

In reply to RuthW: I'd go light bag for Colin Todd - its a warm hut and can get pretty stuffy. If its looking like a colder spell you can always bring some extra layers. .

 

In reply to RuthW:

We had sh*te weather the while time, save for half day where we climbed rolling pin at the last day before walk out.

The hut was chilly, as it rained every day for three days solid, with high wind too. There were five of us, felt cold and damp, especially durring coking.

However, the summer bag sufficed, albeit with the body warmer used as an eiderdown inside the bag. Low weight will be useful for the walkout.

Now sitting in a wet wanaka waiting for ex tropical cyclone gita to hit town.

Hope you have better weather than I did !

In reply to Raymondo:

Ex-tropical cyclone Gita dropping 20cm of snow/day today and tomorrow down at Cardrona - wouldn't want to be in Colin Todd hut currently (although a better option than being outside Colin Todd hut, for sure!)

b

In reply to ben b:

Too right, I would not like to be holed up at CT hut with gita coming through. Bevan ridge had enough wind to blow you over on our descent, even a few days before gita.

The upside is that I now sit in queenstown with the remarkables looking quite remarkable, with a nice sprinkling of snow, and the via ferrata booked for this arvo.

In reply to Raymondo:

Sounds like you escaped in the nick of time! Good trip?

b

 

In reply to Raymondo:

Sounds like you escaped in the nick of time! Good trip?

b

 

In reply to ben b:

No, not really, rolling pin was a good climb but only a half day, we left the hut at 2pm and were down by 6pm. the rest of the time  (5 days) was hut bound.

 

In reply to Raymondo:

Ouch. Long walk to look at the inside of the hut for five days... the joys of kiwi alpinism!

b

In reply to ben b:

Indeed.