Westies Hut is a small, five-bunk shelter built into the mouth of a sea cave at Prices Harbour, on the wild eastern end of the South Coast Track. It has become one of the most photographed stops on the whole route — and it is easy to see why.
The hut sits about 2 km past Big River, roughly a day's walk beyond Waitutu Hut and around 63 km from the Rarakau trailhead. It's a serious multi-day undertaking to reach, but for trampers who make it, waking up inside a cave with the tide rolling in outside the door is unforgettable.
Rarakau Lodge sits at the western end of the same track, right where most South Coast Track trips begin and end — see our South Coast Track page for the full route.
The Hut
Long used as a fishing and whitebaiting shack, Westies is now maintained to Basic Hut standard by the Department of Conservation. It's unstaffed and free, with no booking required — trampers on the South Coast Track simply turn up.
What makes it unusual is the setting: a huge sea cave arching over a small timber and corrugated-iron building, with the tide reaching almost to the door at Prices Harbour.