The AAC(UK) Hut Fund

by Janet Britnell

The ÖAV mountain huts belong to individual sections. Despite many man-hours of work by volunteers and thousands of Euros from central ÖAV funds and Austrian federal and provincial government grants, the sections themselves must find large sums for hut maintenance and modernisation and to meet health and safety and environmental requirements. The difficult access and high altitude of many of the huts add to the cost of the work.

The new Annabergerhaus
photo by Georg Unterberger

Based so far from the Alps, Sektion Britannia/AAC(UK) does not own any huts, nor does it have a 'work area' with responsibility for waymarking and path maintenance. Instead, we have a Hut Fund, to which members have contributed generously over the years. The donations we make to help individual sections with a particular project are much appreciated by those sections.

Voisthaler Hütte

Sektion Britannia / AAC(UK) has been contributing to Austrian huts from its earliest days when members took blankets out to huts. The AAC(UK) Hut Fund itself was founded in the 1960s.

Salzkofelhütte 1987m, Kreuzeckgruppe

In 1964 the botanist Dr Philip Tallantire dedicated the proceeds of his 'Felix Austria' Hut-to-Hut touring guides to founding a 'Hut Fund'. Over several summers he almost single-handedly saved the Hugo-Gerbers Hütte in the Kreuzeck Gruppe, carrying all the materials up from the valley on his back. A grant of €3000 was made to this hut in 2017 towards refurbishing the chimneys.

Kaunergrathütte 2817m Ötztaler Alpen
Photo ÖAV archive

1n 1967 the first donation o£ £125, was made to Sektion Landek for a tin crushing machine at the Steinseehütte. ln 1973 a second donation of £350 was made to Akademische Sektion Graz for the Kaunergrathütte. Then there is a gap in our records until 1983/4 when, according to a plaque in the Steinseehütte, Sektion England contributed to a major renovation of the hut.

Hugo-Gebers-Hütte 2355m Kreuzechgruppe
Photo by Georg Unterberger

From 1986 -2000 grants were made to 7 huts totalling Austrian Schillings 1,450,000. From 2005 -2017 20 huts were supported with grants totalling €377,000.

Kaunergrathütte 2817m Ötztaler Alpen
Photo ÖAV archive

For details please see here. Further grants are being considered for 2018. Many thanks to all those members who have contributed to our Hut Fund over so many years.

Steinseehütte 2016m Lechtaler Alpen
Photo by Georg Unterberger

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