Off the beaten track

Wednesday, 28 November 2012
What a stunning day! The tarmac melting from the heat of the sun beating down from the bluest skies since winter departed - a perfect day to get off the highway and check out what's available around Taihape. First stop - Mokai Gravity Canyon. The first signpost after the State Highway turnoff says it's a 15 minute drive but if your a lover of scenery and snapping your holiday pics give yourself about 30 minutes! The road to Gravity Canyon is a good, sealed country road and has some amazing scenic views on the way in. Make sure you allow enough time to spend at Gravity Canyon. As well as the activities that provide the adrenaline rush of a lifetime, for the faint-hearted is the viewing platform offering stunning views of the Rangitikei river and an excellent vantage point to witness the flying fox, bridge swing and bungy in action. The Gravity Canyon complex is clean, tidy and well laid out, offering a fully licensed cafe with good food and refreshments, a place for self-contained motorhomes and recently a walking track down to the river. One of the best things about Gravity Canyon however is the Crew - people always make the place, no matter where you go! Check them out at www.gravitycanyon.co.nz

Leaving Gravity Canyon mid afternoon left plenty of time to travel the unsealed 6kms further down Mokai Road to visit Tarata Lodge. Wow! No amount of pictures taken could do justice to the simply beautiful setting of Tarata Lodge. There are several luxury accommodation options available with various activity options. The scenery is breathtaking, unforgettable. There is something to suit a fisherman wanting to spend a quiet day on the river, a family who have come to fish, raft or just take time out from a busy city lifestyle or a getaway for newlyweds in the secluded River Retreat with a private spa offering fabulous views of the river. Find our more at www.tarata.co.nz

Leaving Tarata Lodge later in the afternoon, the short drive back to the State Highway presented more spectacular scenery including the still snow capped Mt Ruapehu under the clearest blue skies. So take time to see what's around Taihape, this detour is definitely worth the turn off the very beaten track of State Highway 1!

Are You Pinterested Yet

You may have seen our website or Facebook our Blog and Twitter. But to get a really good Look into whats going on in the Rangitikei get onto Pinterest. With our photo pinboards get a better look at what to do, and where to stay, and shop.

http://pinterest.com/rangitikeinz/

http://www.forbes.com/sites/marketshare/2012/05/24/why-online-marketers-better-get-an-interest-in-pinterest-fast/

Hunterville Huntaway Festival 2012

Saturday, 27 October 2012

The weather was perfect, food delish, refreshments flowing and an estimated 2,000 plus festival goers were entertained for the afternoon and into the evening at the annual Hunterville Huntaway Festival.  The main event, aptly named The Shepherd’s Shemozzle, ran for the 14^th year and proved just as exciting as in past years.  The Children’s Shemozzle brought kids from all over the lower North Island to compete and the Miss Huntaway competition was howlingly good.

This year the Festival attracted the attention of a Japanese TV presenter who arrived a few days beforehand, borrowed a local farmer’s dog to train with and run on the day, then with his crew filming from ground and sky, ran the race himself!  If you’ve ever been to see the Shepherd’s Shemozzle you’ll understand that this was no mean feat!  This is one tough and crazy race for both man and dog!  It all starts with the dogs chained up in the main street – what a commotion!

 

The Shepherds' first challenge is to find their own dog among the 60 odd others and unchain it (other dogs are mistakenly freed at times), grab a jerkin (not the height of fashion and a cumbersome piece of clothing at best) and take off with dog in tow for a major hill climb and slippery down slope followed by a challenging obstacle course which leads to the finish line.  Just some of the more testing obstacles in this year’s course included eating tripe or raw onions washed down with a cup of vinegar (either man or dog could do the eating – YUCK!), a tunnel crawl, carrying bulls testicles in ones mouth (this was for the Shepherds - Eeewww), dragging man and dog through a man-made marsh, then bobbing for a dog collar in a pond full of live eels before a wheelbarrow ride for the pooch and a mad dash for the finish line.  A right old Shemozzle, I’m sure you can imagine.

The Children’s race is a lesser version of the Shepherds race, no dog included, but just as grueling for the kids.  Their obstacle course is not quite as nasty as the Shepherd’s but has all the challenges at kid level.  All the children that competed on the day ran a terrific race and did themselves, their families, their schools and their communities proud.

Miss Huntaway is not your usual beauty contest.  Entrants must be “maiden bitches” – in other words, a female huntaway who hasn’t had pups!  Dog and owner take to the stage, where the MC asks the contestant a question to which they must answer 1 bark for yes or 2 for no, any more barking and it’s understood the prospective Miss Huntaway is unsure. Dogs and owners were a sight to behold – just Boot-e-full!

One last shout out has to go to the Shemozzle Coordinating Committee - what an absoutely amazingly, talented bunch of people!  The whole day ran as smoothly as clockwork to the visitor’s eye, everything was well set up, superbly organised (well, as organised as a shemozzle can be) and from what I saw everybody had a fantastic time.  A big thumbs up to the team!

Now we just have to wait and see what the Japanese television crew put together from their experiences!  I hope they enjoyed themselves as much as the rest of us did.

Read more about The Hunterville Huntaway Festival on the official Shemozzle website.  To find out about more festivals in the Rangitikei visit RANGITIKEI.com

Steam Train Sunday's Heading Back to Taihape

Experience the magic of classic rail travel behind a real steam engine as you take in the exclusive sights, sounds and emotions our classic train has offers on this spectacular outing to Taihape.

Enjoy the wide plains vistas of the Manawatu and the rugged landscapes of the Rangitikei as your journey soars over majestic viaducts and hurries through tunnels on its way to the agribusiness centre that is Taihape township.

Because our veteran locomotive WAB974 is in the sheds on an extensive maintenance programme we will be using the majestic ex-NZGR loco, AB663, kindly loaned to us for these journeys by Mainline Steam Inc of Plimmerton.

AB663, sister to the locos used by NZ’s classic “Kingston Flyer”, will be hauling our fully refurbished train of ex-NZGR mainline passenger carriages and guard’s van on this excursion.

Photo opportunities abound whenever one of the remaining ‘Kings of Steam’ thunders through the countryside, and this excursion will feature its share, as the locomotive is turned on the turntable at Taihape, and at stations and waysides along the route.

A two-hour stop-over means there will be plenty of time to get photos, and take in some of the features that Taihape is famous for, like lunch at one of the many great cafés (Brown Sugar, Café Telephonique, Laura’s and Soul Food come to mind).

Art, clothing and curios provide attractions also, and of course most of the regulars, like Subway, are to be found nearby.

Our timetable sees you back in Feilding in plenty of time to digest and talk about the many great moments, sights and sounds you will experience on your “journey back in time” as you travel our unique Steam Sunday excursion train behind the mighty AB663!

When: Sunday's 18th Nov, 2nd Dec, 16 Dec

Where: Feilding Railway Station

Departs Feilding: 10.45 am

Departs Marton: 11.25am

Departs Hunterville: 11.55am

Departs Ohingati: 12.35am

Arrives Taihape: 12:55pm

Departs Taihape: 2.45pm

Arrives Ohingati: 3.10pm

Arrives Hunterville: 3.50pm

Arrives Marton: 4.15pm

Arrives Feilding: 4.40pm

Adult Fare: Ex Feilding - adult: $75.00

Ex Marton - adult: $60.00

Ex Hunterville - adult: $50.00

Ex Ohingaiti - adult: $15.00

Child Fare: Ex Feilding - child: $40.00

Ex Marton - child: $30.00

Ex Hunterville - child: $30.00

Ex Ohingaiti - child: $10.00

Palmerston North Sales: i-SITE Palmerston North, 06 3501922

Feilding Sales: Feilding Information Centre 06 3233318.



Rangitikei Cycleways Maps and Information Booklet

Open publication - Free publishing - More bike rides

Everything you need to know about the Rangitikei Cycleways.

Rangitikei Farmstay

Matthew from the Marton Information Center went to Rangitikei Farmstay  on Saturday for a "Wild Rhino tour" (this is a Yamaha side by side vehicle). The "Rhino" is one of our new activities on offer, as we have taken back our farm. Here is what Matthew thought.

I found the Buggy Ride rather adventureous and informative, as we covered a fair amount of the farm. I touched base with the sheep shearing shed where they hold all the sheep and can sheer hundreds indoor and out at certain times. The buggy meandered it’s way through mud and treacherous ground as It made it’s way up to the top of the hills where the view exposed a bit of the coast as well as Ruapehu and Taranaki on a nice clear day, From here you can also see some of the farm boundary lines which Andrew Kindly pointed out stated they have around 1500 acres all up. The other side of the farm was also rather muddy and hilly and made it’s way up to picnic table where the view is also very intimidating with hills towering everywhere and pools of water decorating the farm . I also past through where the patch of glow worms live and would love to see them one day perhaps. Overall I highly enjoyed the ride as it took around 30-45 mins to complete or so it felt. Recommended for anyone who loves a bit of rugged terrain and the outdoors as the farm isn’t located the far out Marton only about 10-15 mins yet very different. The driver Andrew was very friendly and informative about the farm itself and the animals they have all over the place which include Angus cows and ordinary, sheep and dogs, he also drove the buggy fast but safe speed through very uneven ground, mud and water.Matthew Patterson

New activities include:

* Wild Rhino Tours ( Side by side 4WD buggy - able to carry 3 passengers)
* Shearing demonstrations
* Mustering demonstrations

www.Rangitikeifarmstay.co.nz

Two Kiwis and Two Frogs Take on Gumboot Throwing

The Kiwis Vs the French in a round of Gumboot throwing In the Countries Gumboot capital Taihape.

As you can see it was a hoot.

Gumboot Throwing, Taihape, New Zealand- LeapFrog Voyage