“Have you used a circular saw?” Megan Dimozantos asked.
“No,” I replied.
“An impact driver?”
“No, um, maybe I should just paint.”
“No way, learning is what this is all about.”
Project manager Megan wasn't taking no for an answer when I turned up to join a Backcountry Trust (BCT) allwāhine hut project on a remote Ngaruroro River reach in southern Kaweka Forest Park, and said I'd always wanted to learn about building.
There was a lot of learning with this Komata Hut job. What started as a simple hut relocation grew into essentially a new hut build. There was a kānuka-covered terrace to clear, a steep access track to cut through dense scrub, and there was cyclone devastation that delayed everything for months as slips and tracks were repaired elsewhere.
The wāhine volunteers finally assembled in February to finish the job.
I was partnered with Napier lawyer and volunteer builder Emma Sye. Our job was to put up the outside cladding. Others focused on lining, roofing, painting, window framing, measuring, sawing, problem-solving and trying to ask Megan for help only as a last resort. Saws, drills, impact drivers, a big nail gun
