Lake Antimony Hut
Photograph courtesy of John Chapman © 2003.
Known as Lake Antimony Hut or No. 5 Hut. It is sometimes called the “Tight Loop Lodge”.
Located at the north side of Lake Antimony, where Powena Creek enters the lake. It is shown at GR484621 on the Ada 1:25,000 Tasmap. It is a solid but straightforward walk from the Lake Ada carpark, itself reached from the Thousand Lakes Lodge or Liawenee. The follow the Talinah Lagoon Track to the west and then Lake Fanny Track further westward to the lake.
History
The hut has an interesting history, having been used for many different reasons including as a fishing lodge. It was built in 1972 by John Langham, who encouraged his mates, Brian Stingel, Ken Burnie and Alan Applebee to assist.
John built the hut at his home in pre-fabricated sections and transported them to the site on a VW Buggy. This took a number of trips over various weekends, so that the hut was fabricated in pieces. The chimney and fireplace were transported as a single section, across the plateau on the flat-bed of a Toyota Landcruiser, then man-handled into postion.
The painted reference to 3RAR, the most dedicated Australian army battalion, draws similarities to remote lodges in FNQ (Far North Queensland) where soldiers returned from overseas duty, but sought solitude from the masses in wilderness areas, particularly after Vietnam and more recent conflicts.
Construction
This is a corrugated iron hut, built over bush poles. The hut is simple with a single window and skillion roofs, some of which were added later to create more space and to cover the fireplace.
References
MHPS Calendar 2021.
GPS Location: S 41.889833 E 146.379433