Northern Kosciuszko Huts and Rain on a Tin Roof. By Kirsten.

Sometimes when life feels overwhelming you just need to pack a bag and head to a hut. And that is exactly what we did!

A few weeks back we decided we needed some time in the bush, so we planned a night out at Wheelers Hut in Kosciusko National Park. Wide eyed and bushy tailed we loaded the car and made our way to the Tooma Dam trail head with a quick stop in Cooma to caffeinate. The drive wound its way through beautiful wildflowers which were in full bloom at the time. A stark contrast to the still recovering bushland following the 2020 fires.

With plenty of snacks and chats to be had we started out and after only a few kilometres we stumbled across Patons Hut and decided we had already earnt a break. Patons Hut is a beautiful little hut that was rebuilt in 2007 after it burnt down in the 2003 bushfires – thankfully untouched in the most recent ones. After some snacking and resting we went onwards and upwards. The walk between Patons Hut and Wheelers Hut is a lovely hike on undulating fire trail with only the walk down into Tooma River and out the other side being particularly steep. We were lucky enough to be out there during prime wildflower bloom so the scenery was spectacular.

A storm was sitting over Mount Jagungal so it made for incredibly humid hiking. The humidity had us dreaming about the river and we had even pre-planned some river shenanigans by carrying out an old camping mat that we had intentions of sledding down river on. Unfortunately, when we got to the river it was both flowing heavily and ‘take your breath away’ cold – neither being conducive to fun river sledding adventures. So, we had a quick refill of water bottles and made our way uphill to the hut.

Wheelers hut is, in my opinion, one of the most idyllic huts I’ve ever visited. It appears as if from nowhere through the snowgums and with its quaint little veranda complete with bathtub, it's got some serious old world charm. Not long after arriving the storm that had been brewing hit and we had the delight of sitting on the veranda reading books, drinking hot drinks, and listening to the rain fall on the tin roof. Absolute bliss. The rain was also a welcome end to the unrelenting march flies.

With the rain continuing to pitter patter, we decided to pitch just the inner of our Moondance 2 tent on the veranda. That way we would get to smell and watch the rain from inside the tent. We woke the next morning to thick fog blanketing the valley but otherwise cool air and blue skies – perfect hiking weather. Walking out the same way we went in, we were back at the car by lunch time and headed back for civilisation feeling reenergised and rested. What a difference a night near a hut can make!

Kirsten - Mont Staff Member