Great Cairn Hut Maintenance - 2017

Editor's note: The Alpine Club of Canada maintains 26 backcountry huts – plus another 6 that are maintained by local sections – which range from family-friendly cabins set in alpine meadows to backcountry powder paradises and remote climbers’ refuges. ACC huts provide basic, rustic shelter for backcountry travellers, offering protection from the elements, and communal cooking and sleeping areas. All of this requires year-round maintenance to keep the wood stocked, the outhouse barrels fresh, and everything in between, including clearing the trail to Fairy Meadow Hut. Remote maintenance poses its own challenges, as described in the story below.

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The ACC team spent five days this summer doing repairs and maintenance at the Great Cairn hut in the northern Selkirks. Both the hut and outhouse were in need of some love. Construction projects in the alpine often require our team to use creative problem solving, and we had plenty of challenges on our hands with this one.

You like bugs? We've got bugs.

Sean installing new trim.

The floor was a "little" bit rotten.

The backcountry garage sale begins.

High altitude garage sale in full swing.

Getting down to business on the floor. What a mess.

Team ACC making a plan.

Hand cutting a new outhouse toilet lid. Made with love.

Teamwork gets the job done.

And it's all put back together like magic! How good does that look?