Distance: 7.2 km (6.0 DOC hours) - Unmarked route, clear - Moderate terrain
Altitude: 783m to 1760m. Gain: 1200m. Loss: 429m . Gradient: 13 deg (Moderate)
Skills: Occasional scrambles (3/7) - Occasional rivers (3/6)

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

Occasional rivers (difficulty: 3/6)
Occasional rivers - impassible after heavy rain

Unknown (difficulty: 0/7)
Not specified

No description

Note: Described in the reverse direction to your journey

Route courtesy of Dan Clearwater.

From the Shotover Saddle on, you’re on Branches Station, and permission is required: See the ‘planning and permission’ section for more info.

This heads east from the saddle, almost to .1731.

The route then follows the ridge, staying just to the west of the crest.

A the .1690 feature, a line of tussocky bluffs is a crux, but there are several steep ramps to choose from.

If you can’t get through there, its easy to descend to about 1450m then sidle back to the ridge. In spring there can be lots of hard snow fields on this route, so consider that in your planning.

At 1100m, the two routes combine on the spur overlooking the bluffs into Tummell burn. Looking carefully, you’ll stumble accross a ground pad through the waist high scrub, and a few cairns.

Continue down to 1020m contour to a lone waratah (iron pole) as mentioned in Moirs guide.

If you get the next bit right, its about 1hr from here to the hut.

Head west roughly 50m or so through a short bit of thick scrub, until you emerge into a relatively open gully. Descend the gully, which has a few cairns to the bushline. Up till this point, it is reasonably easy to go the right way…..

When the gully meets the bush, you might see a bit of permolat in a tree to your left, but either way, sidle east, aiming for the shallow gully on the east side of the lower Tyndall Creek gorge. There are some serious bluffs around if you get off route, so take it easy.

There are sparse markings through the moderate scrub and forest but expect you’ll be following your nose most of the way, and occasionally stumbling on a marker here and there. A GPS is handy, to help guide you into the shallow gully, which leads through relatively open scrub to the flats by the hut.

See: https://www.packraftingtrips.nz/shotover-river/ for more details