I spent my first four days of 2026 at Top Forks Hut in the mountains. And it was glorious.
This blog post is a bit different from my other trip reports, partly because I’d registered Top Forks Hut for the Love Our Huts campaign by the Federated Mountain Clubs of New Zealand (FMC). And partly because we flew in, so I can’t give you the low-down on the tracks to the hut.
But what I CAN give you are some epic day trips in a beautiful area, as well as a mouth-watering food menu (listed at the bottom of this blog post).
Important note: this trip involved off-track travel in the backcountry and river crossings.
Please assess your own skills and the conditions before attempting this yourself.
What is Love Our Huts?
Love Our Huts is a campaign in its second season (2025/2026) run by the FMC. It’s a way for trampers to give back to the huts that give us shelter. You choose one of the available huts on the FMC Love Our Huts website. Then you visit it to give it a spring clean and a health check, plus some quick data collection.
We spent our time at Top Forks Hut washing all available surfaces, sweeping the floor, washing windows, packing our rubbish, checking the fireplace, cleaning the long drop, and leaving useful things behind like matches, fire starters, cleaning supplies and a year’s worth of Wilderness magazines.
Where is Top Forks Hut?
Top Forks Hut is in the upper Wilkin Valley, near Makarora / Wānaka. If you’ve visited Lake Crucible or Gillespie Pass then you’ll know the area. Sandfly territory that is vigorously defended, but gorgeous.
My friend Simone had heard about the area from a pilot while flying into Siberia Hut. He said it was one of the most beautiful places he’d ever visited. Simone stored this knowledge away for a few years before she convinced my husband and I to make the trip with her.
There are a few different ways to access Top Forks Hut:
- Flying: We cheated and flew most of the way via fixed wing with Southern Alps Air (piloted by the son of Simone’s original pilot). This meant 1.5 hours of valley walking and river crossing, before we joined the track right before the hut. It was a very short but stunning flight in. I would highly recommend if you have an extra few hundred burning a hole in your pocket. There’s also the option of the (more expensive) helicopter.
- Jetboat + walk: Most people choose to jetboat up the Wilkin River with Wilkin River Jets, then walk the 6-8 hours from Kerin Forks Hut to Top Forks Hut.
- Tramping the whole way: But if you were really a sucker for punishment, it’s possible to walk the whole way. This would take two days from Makarora including crossing the (normally) large flowing Makarora River.
Trips from Top Forks Hut
Amongst our duties of cleaning everything we could get our hands on, we managed two side trips from Top Forks Hut.
Waterfall Face on Rabbit Pass
Our first full day at Top Forks Hut was spent climbing up to the Waterfall Face – a notoriously steep section on the already notoriously steep Rabbit Pass. In Top Forks Hut there were several photos detailing the route up the face. It looked impossible. We wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
A few of our hutmates were attempting the trip over Rabbit Pass, including a group from the Canterbury Tramping Club. They took ropes and crampons – not for glacier travel or rock climbing, but to make it up the vertical snow grass …
The track itself that we took to reach the Waterfall Face was no joke. I couldn’t find any blogs on this track – mostly I guess because if you’re going over Rabbit Pass then this section probably feels very simple. But we found it trickier than expected.
The sidle through the forest was steep with quite a few tree-fall sections. Once above the bushline the track became rather overgrown, which made it difficult to see our feet and where exactly the steep drop-off to the river was.
But we made it to the waterfall face (or to within visual distance of it at least). It got a “no thanks” from Simone, a “hell no” from Matt and a “maybe” from me. It did look incredibly steep. And one of our hut mates messaged me after they’d gone over Rabbit Pass and said the other side was even worse. So maybe not!
We retraced our steps and around 9 hours after leaving the hut, it came back into sight again. My knees were absolutely done, so I was very happy to indulge in a delicious dinner (our menu is at the bottom of the page).
Lucidus Lake
This is the most spectacular place in New Zealand that I’ve been able to see with my own eyes.
Lucidus is a half-day hike from Top Forks Hut. Although relatively short, the river crossings on this track shouldn’t be underestimated. We started by crossing the Wilkin River right next to the hut. Where I crossed was up to mid-thigh, but the flow was manageable. Simone and Matt tried crossing higher up where it was shallower, but the speed was almost too much.
There are a few other small stream crossings, and then one last decent river crossing before we started climbing to Lake Lucidus. We linked arms to cross this last one – it was thigh-high and very fast flowing. I was happy that I’d completed a river crossing course a year ago. I don’t think I would have had the confidence to lead us across this one without it.
There is a short but steep climb in the bush to reach the disappearing tarn and Lake Diana. Then a flat walk through tussocks (partly boardwalk) before reaching Lucidus.
I don’t think my photos quite capture just how beautiful Lucidus Lake really is. Think the gorgeous aqua colour of Lake Crucible meets the waterfalls and hanging glaciers of Earnslaw Burn. Absolutely incredible.
We crossed the stream right at the outlet (still up to thigh height), and then climbed the moraine wall to get a better view of the lake and waterfalls. We stayed there for at least an hour, eating our hut-made sushi and just taking it all in. The clouds never fully lifted from the peaks, but that made it even more mysterious and mythic in a way.
There is another lake further along from Lucidus – Lake Castalia. We wanted an easier day after walking to the Waterfall Face the day before, so we stopped at Lucidus and returned to Top Forks Hut after lunch. In the Intentions Book however there were route descriptions of continuing to climb up the moraine wall, walking along it and then climbing across to Lake Castalia. There is also a marked track that climbs up to Lake Castalia, which splits off just before Lucidus Lake.
It was with great reluctance that I turned my back on this view. But we needed to do some more hut cleaning and have dinner. I’ll definitely return however, and hopefully make it to Lake Castalia as well.
Note: I don’t want Lucidus to become the next “it” spot that gets plastered all over social media (although it well deserves that place). This is for two reasons:
- This isn’t an easy place to reach – even if you spend a lot of money to skip two days walking, there are still serious river crossings to contend with that most people won’t have experience with.
- This is an alpine and backcountry environment. It is not set up to manage hundreds of people visiting it each summer.
So if you decide to visit this beautiful area – awesome. But please be mindful of leaving no trace. This obviously means physically not leaving any trace behind, but it also applies to when you get back home – if you post this spot on social media, please do so mindfully. I would urge you to not to geotag the location, or post a pretty photo without any context of what it takes to safely reach this spot (and safely take care of it).
Our menu
Because we flew in and only had to walk 1.5 hours before reaching the hut (where we based ourselves for three nights), we could afford to carry in heavier food. Here is mine and Matt’s menu from the four days:
Breakfasts
Raspberry and chia seed porridge sachets (could have spiced this up with freeze dried fruits, nuts and some nut butter, but alas I didn’t think of this until too late).
Lunches
- Ham and cheese baguette from Pembroke Patisserie in Albertown (delicious)
- Sushi with teriyaki chicken, carrot, capsicum, cucumber and rice that we made at the hut and carried to the lake with soy sauce in a little container (kewpie mayo would have really elevated this dish to 10/10)
We had lunch in town on the first and last day of the trip (both at Pembroke Patisserie – it’s so good!)
Snacks
- Salted caramel doughnut from bakery
- Charcuterie board from a hut-mate (fresh bread, hummus, freshly made salsa!)
- Smores on the fire (which we had to check as part of the Love Our Huts campaign anyway)
- Mojito from Easys with rum
- Hot chocolate and baileys
- Chocolate
- Gels, muesli bars, nuts and fruit
Dinners
- Watties ravioli sachet with gratuitous chunks of cheese
- The Outdoor Gourmet Company (aka Back Country Cuisine) Butter Chicken
- Mi goreng noodles with tinned teriyaki chicken, satay sauce, peanuts, cucumber
Desserts
- Real Meals Chocolate Cake (freeze dried but the GOAT)
- Instant pudding chocolate mousse (almost floated away in the river when we left it to ‘refrigerate’)
- Back Country Cuisine Sticky Date and Custard (freeze dried, but also delicious)
Needless to say we didn’t starve. The ravioli and hut sushi were great hits and ones that I’ll definitely recreate again.
Last day at Top Forks Hut
Our pilot had my Zoleo number, so on our last evening he contacted me asking to bring forward the pickup time the next day. We left the hut early, crossed the frigid Wilkin River, and then made our way to the airstrip near Jumboland to meet him. And just like that, after a 10 minute flight we were back in the bustling metropolis of Makarora – which to be fair still felt like quite a shock after a few days in the backcountry.
I loved staying at the same hut for three days instead of constantly moving on to the next. It gave us the luxury of time to relax and explore around the hut; something that I don’t often get to experience. Lucidus Lake is honestly one of the prettiest places I’ve ever been to. I’ll be back.
Where else would you like to go?
Gillespie Pass and Lake Crucible
Nearby to Top Forks Hut is the Wilkin-Young Circuit and the stunning Lake Crucible.
Brewster Hut
On the opposite side of the Haast Pass from Makarora lies this picturesque red alpine hut and its stunning glacier.
Top Forks Hut – Safety
As always, please stay safe when you’re out exploring. Follow the Outdoor Safety Code:
- Choose the right trip for you (read my article on tramping safety, talk to DOC)
- Understand the weather
- Pack warm clothes and extra food (check out my post here about what gear you need to take)
- Share your plans and take ways to get help (have an emergency beacon on your person)
- Take care of yourself and each other
Top Forks Hut is a remote backcountry hut. Do not underestimate the conditions and stay within your level of experience and comfort. Weather conditions will change your trip drastically, especially the safety of river crossings. Ensure you know the weather forecast and adjust your plans accordingly before setting out.
If you’re not feeling super confident then you can always get in touch with me here on the blog or on my Instagram. Or take a look at my Tramping 101 series which includes this post about how to stay safe in the outdoors.
Also don’t be a dick, check out my guide to New Zealand tramping etiquette.
Stay safe and get outside!