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New $1000 tramping scholarship announced
PLUS: Visit this a little gem of a hut located on the Toaroha Range.
Photo: Shaun Barnett/Black Robin Photography
Wilderness is proud to announce the inaugural Shaun Barnett Memorial Scholarship as a tribute to leading tramping author and photographer Shaun Barnett. Open to aspiring photojournalists of all ages, the annual scholarship offers up to $1000 to the successful applicant in support of their backcountry adventures and creative development.
PLUS: In this week’s The World Outdoors, Forest and Bird challenges kids to swap screen time for green time, South Korean man jailed following DOC undercover gecko-smuggling sting and more.
Missed yesterday’s feature? Pack like an outdoor pro with this gear list.
Top reads
Take a look at this week's most read articles at wildernessmag.co.nz.
Current Issue - Jan/Feb 202650 Great walks for kids, Walk1200km in 2026 (with free progress tracker!), new tramping scholarship, the six best trips in Arthur’s Pass, plus, trip reports, gear guides and dozens more articles! |
Hut of the week 🏡
Crystal Biv looking over to the Diedrich Range: Photo Paulette Birchfield 2023
Crystal Biv, Kokatahi River - Whitcombe River area
by Andrew Buglass
Crystal Biv is a little gem of a hut located on the Toaroha Range in Westland. Perched on a tussock knoll next to a picturesque tarn at 1070m, it is one of three community-maintained structures in the Toaroha valley and a great example of an effective working relationship between DOC and highcountry user groups. The department looks after the main valley huts and routes while the outdoor community keeps an eye on the lower-use facilities. Crystal Biv is an NZFS B55 two-person design built in 1960. It has a single window, a small cooking bench and two mattresses.
When the biv was designated for minimal maintenance by DOC in 2004 it had significant structural issues. The Permolat group took an interest in it around this time and in 2009 began by reinstating an unmaintained access track from the valley floor. In 2019 Rob Brown used a Backcountry Trust grant to do a major overhaul. The biv is now in excellent condition and getting over 20 visits a year. The route to it is moderately difficult and can be done in 8–9 hours from the Toaroha road end by a fit party, either via the main valley track or over the tops from nearby Yeats Hut.
The Toaroha is a small catchment and well endowed with huts and bivouacs. Tops travel is relatively easy and there are some beautiful alpine basins that can be traversed under the main range, as well as numerous options to visit other remote huts in the area.
 | Featured BookFeathers of Aotearoa In this illustrated nature journal, Niels Meyer-Westfeld explores the feathers of Aotearoa’s native birds. Subscribers get a 10% discount. |
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