counting sheep.

-

Nestled just beyond the Rimutaka Range, less than a 90 minute journey from Wellington City, is the beautiful Wairarapa region.   Instead of going on a grand Christmas adventure this year we decided to traverse unexplored territory in our own backyard.  Just a few short days after Christmas we found ourselves driving up the winding Rimutaka Hill Road, a part of State Highway 2 and main lifeline between the Wairarapa and the Capital.  At the 555 metre-high summit there is a car park and look-out point that allows travellers to enjoy the crisp mountain air as they take in scenic views.

On the other side of the mountain range we found our home-base for the next three days, the quaint country village of Greytown.  Greytown is not by any means a large town, most of the homes and businesses are located right along State Highway 2, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in beautiful architecture.  Many of the original Victorian buildings still remain and some have even been relocated to the Cobblestones Museum for posterity. 

Cobblestones is the first destination on your right as you drive into town.  The museum is home to six Category 2 Heritage Buildings, including a Colonial Cottage and the one-room Mangapakeha School that was used well into the 1960s!  It also features a wealth of historic artefacts from every facet of early colonial life.  Entry is just $7/person and it is easy to spend a good three hours exploring.  Guests are even welcome to bring their own lunch and have a picnic underneath the old oak trees.  






Tip: Take time out to look at the class photos in the school house to see local families through the years. 

Though the actual village has old-world charm, the shops contained within are mostly upscale boutiques catering to people who frankly aren’t us.  It is still incredibly fun to walk around and look at the beautiful buildings though, many of which feature informational placards.  The town has also put together a brochure featuring three Heritage Tree trails that you can walk at your leisure.  At Soldiers Memorial Park you can walk between the 117 lime trees that were planted in remembrance of local men who died in WW1.   



There are plenty of places to stay in Greytown, but we think we really hit the mark with Shy Cottage.  Shy Cottage is located at the back of Rachel Cliffords property, nestled in amongst the garden.  It features a porch, bedroom, spacious bath, and living and dining area.  One could easily make themselves at home for the long-haul.  There is a kitchenette on-site so you can self-cater or request a Full Breakfast Kit for an additional fee.  The best part about the cottage is the proprietors.  Rachel is friendly and willing to give advice on the area, but you are largely left to yourself in order to enjoy your stay in peace.   
Shy Cottage


Tip: Looking for vegan food?  Check out Food Forest Organics, owned by James Cameron.  Yes, that James Cameron.

For the rest of our journey we traveled a further thirty-minutes up State Highway 2 to Masterton.  Home to the Golden Shears, an internationally renown  sheep-shearing competition, Masteron is the best place to go if you want to know more about wool!   They even have a museum about it, The Wool Shed.   
 

The Wool Shed was far larger than we anticipated, it’s comprised of multiple floors and two authentic, restored woolsheds.  There is plenty to touch and explore, we actually still haven’t explored the whole thing!   While visiting Cobblestones the day before we encountered some tools of the trade that we couldn’t quite understand, the Wool Shed helped put it all into perspective.  The Wool Shed curators have been very through in labelling and detailing their displays.  

Across the street from the Shed is the stunning Queen Elizabeth Park (there seem to be a lot of them in this country).   Like most parks bearing the monarch’s name, this one has plenty of historic charm.  There is a miniature train that runs on the weekends, paddle boats, an aviary, and a deer park.  Yes, you read that right, a deer park!  You can’t touch them, but they are beautiful to look at.  Unlike Pennsylvania, in New Zealand you are never in danger of hitting a wild deer driving home from work.  We do have wild deer, but most are bred on farms for food.  It’s quite unique to find deer in a park! 







Even the toilets have style!

On the final day of our little holiday we decided to end with a bang while still keeping to the shearing roots of the region, we visited an alpaca farm!  Alpacas are the more diminutive, and slightly cuter, cousins of my favourite animal, the llama.  Though the llama is largely used as a pack animal, alpacas are bred specifically for their soft wool.   The owners of The Alpaca Place, Liz and Cheryl, are absolutely amazing.  They begin the tour with fun facts about these adorable animals, as well as a health and safety briefing.  After all, this is a working farm, and though cute, alpacas are not pets.  You are then handed a leafy stick and led into the first paddock to meet some of the heard.  The alpacas will come straight up to you to nibble on the tasty leaves.  From there you get to meet the little cria (baby alpacas), before being introduced to the males.  These alpacas are more than happy to be walked and cuddled by humans, making for the perfect photo ops.   


Finally, the tour ends with an explanation of the shearing process.  Alpacas have surprisingly only been bred for wool outside of South America for the past thirty years and New Zealand was the country leading the way.  It was a difficult road for farmer Ian Nelson who convinced the New Zealand government to change the status of alpacas from zoo animal to farm animal by undergoing a lengthy Environmental Impact Assessment.  Once he was finally done battling with the government, Ian found the traditional South American way of shearing on the ground to be too difficult for his back so he invented a shearing table to lift the alpacas up to waist-level.  That’s Kiwi-ingenuity for you! 

The entire tour took a good 90 minutes, and the cuteness quota for the day was certainly exceeded in that time. 

Alpaca wool

Full of smiles, we began our journey home to Wellington, stopping off at the award-winning Clareville Bakery for a quick bite to eat.   When we arrived the cafe was bustling and we were cautioned our meals would take at least 30 minutes, but we found ourselves being served within half that time.  The food was absolutely delicious, in addition to our meals we picked up some stone-baked sourdough bread to take home.  Definitely worth a stop-off.

Bellies full, the only thing left to do was make the winding journey back over the Rimutakas.  With such a short travel time between the regions and much more to explore we will definitely be returning for a day-trip or weekend away!  

Popular posts from this blog

spring flowers.

-
Image
There has been little action in the garden lately.  The seedlings are off to a good start inside, the radishes are chugging along in the garden, and there's not a whole lot that needs done between now and Labour Day.   It's actually rather boring. Happily the spring bulbs are blooming, providing some much needed cheer.
Read more

Coolest Little Zoo

-
Image
We have been living in Wellington for almost a year, but for some reason we never found the time to visit the Wellington Zoo in Newtown. Now that we are both off work for the holidays we planned a visit, made easier by a buy-one-get-one offer from the Absolutely Positively Wellington Advent Calendar. We felt we had pretty high expectations as I grew up with the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium and Seth has visited the San Diego zoo in the past. We can say with absolute certainty that Wellington Zoo is indeed the best little zoo in the world.   The trip was off to a wonderful start with the first animal on display being the little blue penguin. It's hard to compete with penguins, especially ones as cute as a little blue. The zoo only got progressively better as we moved on to the kiwi exhibit. Kiwi's are nocturnal so we weren't really expecting to see much activity in the enclosure which is a part of a mock research crate that features facts about the kiwi a...
Read more

onion update.

-
Image
 Just 7 days from replanting our onion scraps and they have begun to regrow!   I wasn't expecting much from this experiment, so seeing the little bit of green is quite encouraging.  Once the leaves are a bit longer I will return the onion to the main garden and bury the bulb.     In other exciting garden news, after 33 days the courgettes are finally sprouting and in quite a fabulous fashion.  This is my first time growing courgettes and I was surprised at the size of their cotyledons.  It looks as though the pie pumpkin seeds may be preparing to push through the soil soon, too.   Most seeds need warmth, not sunlight, to germinate.  I was originally starting my seeds in the sunroom.  Though sunny, the room does not provide adequate heating unless it's a cloudless day.  I have since moved the seed starting trays to the warmest part of the house.  Once they sprout I move them into the sunroom so they can get enough sun....
Read more