Roaring Stag Lodge

Paul and I on Friday evening drove to Putara road for a walk into Roaring Stag Lodge or Hut? We stopped in Carterton for Cafe Istanbul and saw Jessie there with a tramping club group who where heading in the same general direction. Also new a VUWTC trip was also heading there.

03/10/2014 Friday
A walk in the dark to Roaring Stag and quite a bit of rain on the way in, wet. Fire, beer, dram, and sleep, no one else here. Mackinlay was the malt.

04/10/2014 Saturday
Went for a walk upstream for a bit to get a photo of the hut.

Then up the hill to check on Cattle Ridge Hut, saw a deer about ten minutes after crossing the river. Got to Cattle Ridge hut during a good hail down and it was even snowing a bit. No sign of the hut being improved or demolished.

Cattle Ridge Hut

Small tarn near the hut

Back to Roaring Stag hut and it was full, about sixteen people there for the night; including Tariga with the VUWTC. A warm hut and a relaxed evening with a few drams, after cooking my meal outside due to a full hut.

05/10/2014 Sunday
Nice sunny day for an easy walk out. Spent a few hours relaxing in the sunny spots along the river.

Lunch stop on the way out

More creek

Roaring Stag Lodge or Roaring Stag Hut

The sign on the hut says Roaring Stag Lodge, the latest map says Roaring Stag Hut, so I have decided to have a dig and see if the original (Roaring Stag Lodge built 1961) was Lodge and the new became hut.  One of the first checks I made was to the official DOC site where its called Roaring Stag Hut, however the reference map uses Roaring Stag Lodge. Looked through a collection of Tararua maps and noted the following are the names on each of them:

• 1972 Edition 6 Tararua Mountain System - Roaring Stag Lodge
• 1978 Edition 2 NZMS 274 Tararura Forest Park - Roaring Stag Lodge
• 1984 Edition 1 NZMS 260 Sheet 25 Levin - Roaring Stag Lodge
• 1988 Edition 5 Parkmap Tararua Infomap 274-02 - Roaring Stag Lodge
• 2006 Edition 3 Terralink Tararua Recreation Area - Roaring Stag Lodge
• 2009 Edition 1 NZ Topo50 BN34 Shannon - Roaring Stag Hut

When did the hut get replaced? Was it 2005? More digging required.

Roaring Stag Lodge or Hut?

Trip Times
03/10/2014
2020 Left car at Putara Road end
2231 Roaring Stag hut
05/10/2014
1122 Left Roaring Stag hut
1238 At the Herapai junction
1420 At Putara Road end

Map

View Larger Topographic Map
Density
There was one in Cattle Ridge hut, put there 15/09/2013, previously it had been in South Ohau hut 02/02/2013. I passed thru South Ohau 10/02/2013 and did a density recovery, looks like this is one that I previously returned. I wonder where I see it next.