Distance: 5.7 km (5.0 DOC hours) - Unmarked route, clear - Moderate terrain
Altitude: 466m to 787m. Gain: 23m. Loss: 338m . Gradient: 4 deg (Moderate)
Skills: Occasional scrambles (3/7) - Prolonged rivers (4/6)

Unmarked route, clear (7/9)
Unmarked route, follows obvious geography (river, spur, trail, etc)

Secondary, unmapped (4/5)
Route not on maps, an alternative recognised access to hut or along range / catchment

Moderate (difficulty: 3/5)
Occasional moderate climbs

Moderate (difficulty: 3/5)
Low scrub in open or bush / river rocks

Occasional scrambles (difficulty: 3/7)
Tramp with some scrambles and exposure to falls

Prolonged rivers (difficulty: 4/6)
Frequent river travel - impassible after rain, risk of getting trapped

Unknown (difficulty: 0/7)
Not specified

No description

Note: Described in the reverse direction to your journey

From Princhester Base Hut head out of the trees and the cross to the fence near the hut and follow it around the base of the hill, crossing through a gate near a shed and the "Airstrip" that is shown on the map. Cut across the paddock to reach the creek.

From here the route heads upriver following the creek bank, crossing as required for the best travel. Initially through farm land, then in the bush. In February 2020 there was a marked route (coloured tape) on the true left of the creek for quite a way upstream. The markers ended after a couple of kilometres at a beech tree seed sampling site. Continue following the creek up to just below the 800m contour where a large cairn and a fairly over grown orange marker indicates the point to climb away from the creek to Upper Princhester Hut, hidden away in the trees well above the stream. The hut is damp, poorly located, and a mile away from the nearest water.