The mysterious Victor of Victor's Hut

[Meyer Landsman]

In 2009 a post was made on this forum as to the whereabouts of the burnt ruins of Victor's Hut, an original dwelling that was built in the 70s by the enigmatic Victor in Wellington Park, Hobart. Thanks to the aforementioned post as well as some great assistance from others I have set my plans in motion and, through my curiosity and opportunism, have since frequented the remains of the hut several times in the last three months in the hope of learning more about the place and the man who once resided here. The hut itself it now non-existent due to decades of fire that have ravaged the mountain . All that remains of the hut itself are various scatterings of tin sheeting and some lonely brick work surrounding a pretty awesome cast iron oven. Be that as it may, what is of particular interest to me is the stone wall that surrounds that encircles the area of the hut as well as the five or six terraces from within the perimeter, one of which would have accommodated Victor's Hut. From the primary and secondary evidence I have been given about the place, the outstanding workmanship and attention to detail that has been given to the wall and terrace suggests that both these features pre-date Victor's abode and were perhaps (according to an article that ran in 1998 edition of The Tasmanian Tramp) an offshoot development from a saw mill expedition in the 19th century (maybe even early 20th century).

Needless to say apart from the 98' article that vaguely describes the experiences that the author had with the place and the occasional descriptive sentence on the layout of Victor's abode in the late 70s/early 80s plus an Wellington Park audit (2005) of Victor's Hut I (also known as The Temple and Xanadu) and Victor's Hut II (this was the hut built by Victor after the first hut was destroyed by vandals), there is virtually no documented information on the dwellings and its history of being occupied.

Subsequently, my attention and interest in both the huts, the original terrace and stone wall, and most intriguingly of the mysterious individual known as Victor, the research I have undertaken has grown from an nagging interest to an inarguable fixation.


This is where you come in!


I am in need of answers.

1. Do you have any background information on when the first and second huts were built?
2. The history of the terraces and wall?
3. Who was Victor? His age? life story? Why did he build the huts? Where was he from (I have reason to believe he immigrated to Tasmania from the Ukraine in the 60s/early 70s)? What were your interactions with the man? Is he still alive (the audit states that he returned to the Ukraine and became an orthodox priest after the fall of the Soviet Union)
4. Stories that you have of the hut(s)?
5. What was the layout of the hut?

Plus I need photos. I only have a single grainy shot of the 'two story' hut from the 1998 article.


Let's start piecing together the dots to the hut and most importantly the life that this elusive individual lived or may still be living.

[stepbystep]

Have you contacted the HWC directly?

There are still many members or past members still alive that were walking in the 70's.

I'm sure they'd be happy to provide you with some contacts.

Good luck!

[Strider]

Is Victors Hut the one over near Thark Ridge?

[Swifty]

1. Do you have any background information on when the first and second huts were built?
2. The history of the terraces and wall?
3. Who was Victor? His age? life story? Why did he build the huts? Where was he from (I have reason to believe he immigrated to Tasmania from the Ukraine in the 60s/early 70s)? What were your interactions with the man? Is he still alive (the audit states that he returned to the Ukraine and became an orthodox priest after the fall of the Soviet Union)
4. Stories that you have of the hut(s)?
5. What was the layout of the hut?

We first saw the refelction off the roof of the hut on the lower slopes of Mt Arthur in 1978. This prompted us to wag school and investigate. We couldn't find a way through the trail bike network at the top of Tolosa Street and eventually found it by direct descent from the Lost World. (If my memory is not mistaken). We made several trips there over the next year or two, meeting Victor on one or two occasions. At that time I guess he was in his thirties or forties, hard to recall, plus he was bearded so difficult to guess his age.
The fencework surrounded a series of terraced garden beds with the main building in the upper southwest corner. It was a double story cabin, living and dining downstairs with a carpeted "retreat" upstairs. The religious theme in the retreat would change sometimes between trips, ranging from Christian to Hindu to Buddhist or other mystic cults. We were just kids so we were stoked to meet such a cool character, Victor was friendly. He did not pass on details of his background however, so I can't comment on that. As far as I know, Victor did the whole lot with regard to construction, but I may be wrong there.

The purpose of the hut was I think primarily as a sort of hermitage for Victor. The man was an aesthetic.



Hope that helps, I will have to refer to memories of my other friends for more details.

[Strider]

An amazing story there Swifty. I have heard of Victors Gardens now you've jogged my memory. Last I heard they were essentially lost to the elements and barely recognizable

[Swifty]

Yeah Strider, I don't think I will ever go there again now that it's destroyed. I'll follow up with my mate who has a better memory than me!
I guess it hadn't been there (or at least the tin roof) much before we spotted it. We spent a lot of time on the mountain starting in 1977, we would have noticed the reflection almost immediately after the roof was put on. In fact we had started chasing the locations of all the known (and unknown!) huts between Collins Cap and Fern Tree in '77. I've forgotten where most of them were by now!
We referred to the place simply as "Victor's".

[Meyer Landsman]

Have you contacted the HWC directly?

There are still many members or past members still alive that were walking in the 70's.

I'm sure they'd be happy to provide you with some contacts.

Good luck!

I have sent an email directly to the HWC and am awaiting a reply.

1. Do you have any background information on when the first and second huts were built?
2. The history of the terraces and wall?
3. Who was Victor? His age? life story? Why did he build the huts? Where was he from (I have reason to believe he immigrated to Tasmania from the Ukraine in the 60s/early 70s)? What were your interactions with the man? Is he still alive (the audit states that he returned to the Ukraine and became an orthodox priest after the fall of the Soviet Union)
4. Stories that you have of the hut(s)?
5. What was the layout of the hut?

We first saw the refelction off the roof of the hut on the lower slopes of Mt Arthur in 1978. This prompted us to wag school and investigate. We couldn't find a way through the trail bike network at the top of Tolosa Street and eventually found it by direct descent from the Lost World. (If my memory is not mistaken). We made several trips there over the next year or two, meeting Victor on one or two occasions. At that time I guess he was in his thirties or forties, hard to recall, plus he was bearded so difficult to guess his age.
The fencework surrounded a series of terraced garden beds with the main building in the upper southwest corner. It was a double story cabin, living and dining downstairs with a carpeted "retreat" upstairs. The religious theme in the retreat would change sometimes between trips, ranging from Christian to Hindu to Buddhist or other mystic cults. We were just kids so we were stoked to meet such a cool character, Victor was friendly. He did not pass on details of his background however, so I can't comment on that. As far as I know, Victor did the whole lot with regard to construction, but I may be wrong there.

The purpose of the hut was I think primarily as a sort of hermitage for Victor. The man was an aesthetic.



Hope that helps, I will have to refer to memories of my other friends for more details.

Impressive anecdote, thank-you for sharing.

The hut was certainly built for its utilitarian design and that is something that has intrigued during my research. Were you aware that during his stays at the hut, Victor slept in a tree house that was located on the fifth and highest terrace just behind the major dwelling itself? This was because of the precariousness of a particular giant gum that was perched directly above the hut and was seen by Victor as notable danger when sleeping, particularly during heavy winds and storms.

It's hard not to romanticise about the individual known as Victor, regardless of his history or disposition. He had a unwavering yearning for the wilderness and the inherent pleasure that comes with building and maintaining a home (illegal or not). I think this is what has evoked in my research and discoveries of the hut a man made from experience, or as you said Swifty[b][/b] an aesthetic. While he clearly devoted his time to religion and mysticism, it is indicative from the hut's various modifications in religious totems and insignias that Victor was not tied down a single belief system (e.g. Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam). His faith, it seems, was diversity and the ability to apply certain branches of each faith to his own lifestyle and to the hut itself.


“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived”

- Henry David Thoreau


If you have more information, I'd love to hear it from you.

[PeterJ]

I remember climbing the stairs to a little room on top. On one occasion it had one of those three pronged candle holders and other religious items. Never saw anyone there, but do recall a pot of cooked rice left behind. As if someone left in a hurry.


Peter

[Meyer Landsman]

I see that a geocache has been made for the whereabouts of Victor's Garden.

http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC4R ... en-wsss-09

[Harry_Tas]

Hey Meyer, I have also recently visited the site and fascinated. Did you glean any further information about the site than listed above? Some great stories listed in this thread. Harry

[Strider]

It seems the coordinates are no longer visible on that link. Can anyone pm them to me?

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

[grantd]

Hi Meyer. This conversation may be dead now, and perhaps you have discovered all you wanted, but I've only just stumbled onto it. For info, I visited Victor's Hut a couple of times in the mid 1970s with some then-school friends (we initially stumbled onto it unknowingly). Victor was present on at least one occasion and was friendly and hospitable. My recollection of the layout of the place is much as described by Swifty, including the walled, terraced gardens and the elevated area or building (where we were received I think). I recall his name was Victor Shenchenko (or something like that), and that he was Ukranian, and perhaps an orthodox (lay) priest (not sure whether I got this from Victor himself or the sort-of logbook that he kept there). I certainly remember the religious iconography; sort of both interesting and haunting to teenage boys. At the time, I think Victor lived in West Hobart, in Hill St near what is now the "Hill Street" store (but back then was a Greek family run corner store).

[Joerrey]

I knew Victor and visited his little temple on the mountain many times during the 60’s and 70’s. It was his hideaway accessed by a track off the Lenah Valley track. He worked as a forklift driver for the Hydro. His usual abode, if I remember correctly, was at the back of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Newtown or Lenah Valley. I think he was caretaker. I saw him do some very vigorous Cossack dancing in the church hall with a mutual friend one time. He was into the Theosophical Society which embraced all religions from my understanding. There was a Sanskrit “OM” sign the front door of his mountain retreat. He’d do a reverential chant “Omani part me hum” which I can still hear when I think of it. It was too esoteric to understand though. He was very welcoming and hospitable and grew vegetables on the terraced garden below his temple which was a challenge with the naughty possums. There was also a tree house. I remember a spinach type dish he made. I did my overseas trip in the late 60s and 70s but did receive a letter from Kuranda, Qld where he went after Tassie. I heard that he moved there for health reasons as he was too effected by the cold here. Lost contact after that. The Ukrainian Orthodox community might have more info about this part of his life.

I have a photo of the temple but don’t know how to uploading