Zekes Hut Track
Alerts
Check the DOC website for current alerts and conditions before you go. This site gets current alert info from DOC, but is not an official source of information.
An ideal day hike or easy overnight tramp to a newly replaced hut nestled within Hihitahi Forest Sanctuary north of Taihape.
Elevation
Cover mapped summer 2023/24.
Sampled from the national 8m elevation model. No LiDAR survey covers this route yet.
Description
From the carpark the track heads across farmland, skirting around a swampy piece and jumping a small stream on the way. It climbs up to reach a stile over a fence marking the forest boundary.
Enter the sanctuary and enjoy a short flat section before doing the main climb on the track. A steep piece in the middle needs a little more effort. Towards the top it begins to flatten out and passes Hihitahi Trig with fantastic views to the central North Island mountains.
The track continues on then heads down a grassy slip before sidling around and down into the valley to the old hut site. The new one is 200 m further on past this.
Getting there
Zekes Hut is in the Hihitahi Forest Sanctuary which lies between Taihape and Waiouru. Travelling north, access to the track is off SH1 on the right beginning at a DOC sign about 17 km north of Taihape.
Nearby
Weather
Forecast at the start of the track