Keep Dry Hut
Known as Keep Dry Hut or Stirling Mountain Hut.
Located near Upper Link Trail on Mount Stirling, south-west of the summit.
From Mansfield, follow Mount Buller Road about 30 km to Mirimbah and gravel Stirling Road about 8 km to Telephone Box Junction. Park there and walk up the signed Bluff Spur trail system towards Upper Link Trail, using the resort walking map.
The final off-track approach and total walking distance to this small, partly obscured structure have not been reliably verified. Upper resort roads are seasonally gated, with winter vehicle access ending at Telephone Box Junction.
History
A visitor’s 2003 account attributes construction to local cross-country skiers over a weekend around 1966. The builders need documentary confirmation. A 2019 Bushwalk forum account, describes partial collapse and vegetation obscuring the building, with a spring crossing Stonefly Creek nearby. These are dated visitor reports, not a current condition inspection but indicate that the hut would not provide good shelter today.
Construction
It is a very small timber-framed shelter, clad mainly in corrugated iron. Its form and reported history suggest a ski-touring shelter.
References
VHCHA, Keep Dry Hut and mapped location;
Mount Stirling resort walking map;
An earlier 2003 visitor account and 2019 Bushwalk discussion;
ExplorOz ruin listing for comparison.
Mapping Guidance:
GPS: provisionally 37.13184°S, 146.49441°E.
UTM Zone 55H: 455092 m E, 5890382 m N. Approximate VHCHA mapped position, treated as WGS84. ExplorOz’s explicitly approximate ruin pin is about 210 m north-east; exact location and present condition remain unverified.