Backcountry huts like John Tait Hut provide shelter from the storm and a chance to connect with other trampers. Photo: Mark Watson

The sanctuary of a hut

Everyday wonders, Features

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Mark Watson

Mark is Wilderness’s gear editor and a dedicated storyteller, documenting his adventures in both words and photos.

By Mark Watson

They come in all sorts, shapes and sizes. They can be smelled before being seen, and they're part of what makes the New Zealand backcountry so wonderful.

It took until I tramped Te Araroa Trail for me to appreciate the diverse collection of huts dotted along New Zealand’s public tramping network. The tremendously varied geography of New Zealand is undoubtedly Te Araroa’s highlight, but the trail also invites trampers to experience modern DOC huts, prospectors’ dwellings, former farmhouses, musterers’ huts, New Zealand […]

About the author

Mark Watson

Wilderness gear editor Mark Watson divides his workdays between graphic design, writing and photography. His passion for tramping, climbing, cycling and storytelling has taken him all over Aotearoa and the world in search of great trails, perfect moves and epic light. He has published four books and his photographs have featured in numerous publications. Especially motivated by long distance travel, he has tramped Te Araroa and cycled from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego.