Lodging · Mount Aspiring National Park
A six-bunk alpine shelter high above the Rees Valley.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Mount Aspiring Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Mount Aspiring National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Mount Aspiring audio tourMore stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Esquilant Bivvy Hut is a tiny six-bunk alpine shelter on a high col below Mt Earnslaw/Pikirakatahi, well above the Rees Valley. It suits people heading into the Earnslaw mountains as an overnight stop; getting here is serious alpine travel, not a roadside detour.
The surrounding slopes have avalanche paths that can cross the track, usually from May through November. Check current local route and avalanche advice before setting out; snow, weather and exposed terrain make this a demanding trip.
The hut has six bunks, first come, first served, with no booking required. Backcountry Hut Passes and tickets are not accepted. Bring your own food. Toilet and potable-water details are not settled, so carry water and confirm what facilities you can rely on before setting out.
The present bivvy replaced an earlier shelter in 1989. One visitor singled out the sunset behind Pluto Peak over the Dart Valley; the hut's high position is part of the experience as well as the challenge.
Wildlife
60 sightingsKeaMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
112 sightingsRockwrenMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
26 sightingsYellowheadMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
13 sightingsTūīMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
27 sightingsBellbirdMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
35 sightingsRiflemanMost seen around 8 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Mount Aspiring. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
Lodging · 3.3 km awayEarnslaw HutA weathered four-bunk stop on the long Kea Basin climb.
Sight · 4.1 km awayLennox FallsA multi-tier waterfall on a long, boggy Rees Valley walk.
Lodging · 7.9 km awayDaleys Flat HutA 20-bunk overnight stop deep in Dart Valley.
Campground · 7.9 km awayDaleys Flat CampsiteA grassy tent pitch outside the hut, deep in Rees Valley.Parkwolf’s Mount Aspiring ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
