Historic Takaka hut restored

Riordan's Hut near Takaka, 57km northwest of Motueka, has been restored by the Department of Conversation to its former humble glory.

The hut, reached by the arduous zig-zag Killdevil Spur pack track, is one of the few cedar slab back-country huts still in existence in the Nelson area - many huts having been built from less durable beech.

Back-country dweller and former Forest Service ranger Max Polglase and Takaka DoC worker John Taylor spent 36 days rebuilding the hut, which was built for musterers in 1926 by farming brothers Laurie and Fred Riordan.

Mr Polglase, who restored Kings Hut on Wangapeka Track and Asbestos Cottage in the Cobb persuaded DoC to restore the hut.

As a ranger in the Cobb, he had passed by there many times and was captivated by the building.

"It's been hard yakka," Mr Taylor said, "but thoroughly worth it."

Mr Taylor said huts such as Riordan's were "an endangered species", with a character and feel that could not be duplicated in a contemporary hut.