Holiday near home: you may discover a pigroot paradise
This column last week swore off international travel, citing the terrors of dealing with the United States border officials who Make America Grate Again.
A swag of readers' stories followed, each more horrendous than the last. The column had advised that staying home was the best option but, even so, we all need a bit of a break from time to time.
Air New Zealand, busy fussing about cabin crew uniforms no-one has the slightest interest in, have seen fit to charge fares to Otago travellers which make it cheaper to make a couple of trips to Sydney than a single one to Auckland.
Happily, no-one really wants to go to Auckland so something closer to home will save you money, immigration hassles and the nuisance of sleeping overnight on the floor of the airport when things turn to custard.
From Maniototo there are no doubt pleasant breaks to be had around Otago and Southland, carefully avoiding Queenstown, and seeking something a bit different from the tourist-infested holiday spots of the rich and famous, but little did I imagine I'd discover Paradise on the Pigroot.
Officially SH85 from Ranfurly to Palmerston, the road is one I travel many times and it's a pleasant drive, especially when it becomes a familiar old friend and you've learned to spot the signs of its gold rush days as a major road to the riches of Central Otago.
The road to Macraes joins the Pigroot and it was this turn-off I was advised to take.
"Not far along you'll find a gate. Go through the gate and follow the track. That's where you'll find what you need," was the advice. Already it was high enough to give views of the Razorback Range across Shag Valley and even a glimpse of the sea beyond Puketapu at Palmerston.
Just ahead of me was what might be a musterer's hut. No wonder musterers love their time on the hills. Cosseted by superb scenery on every side and no other human beings doing their "only man is vile" routine.
A drive of a few minutes and I was there. But this was no musterers' hut. It was luxury accommodation standing alone 400m above sea level. Alone, that is, apart from a dozen sheep in the adjoining paddock and they seemed a pretty likeable bunch.
What I had discovered, less than an hour from home, was a tourism venture which gives a taste of the high country with all the comforts of home. In fact, with more comforts than home. A welcoming complimentary block of New Zealand-made chocolate and an outdoor hot tub ready for a plunge just never happens at my home.
I learned that there's more than 200 of these high-country hideaways around the country, including some in Maniototo, a mere 10-minute drive from home.
The paradise on the Macraes road is on the farm of Rob Hewett and Helena Robinson. Rob's family have farmed there for generations and Helena is a doctor plying her skills in Palmerston and Oamaru as well as looking after two youngsters with a third on the way.
About five years ago the couple looked at diversifying and built this luxury accommodation in what some would call the middle of nowhere. In fact, it is really somewhere. Free of traffic, smog, city noise and other people, it must make tourists from, say, Singapore, wonder if they really want to go back home at all.
Solar power, filtered water from a nearby farm dam and Rob's endless supply of firewood for the wood burner and the hot tub means all the bases are covered. Of course, you bring your own food, and guests are reminded that the nearest shops are in Palmerston, 20 minutes away.
The booklet in the hut suggests trips to Moeraki, Oamaru, Waikouaiti and the nearby Stanley's Hotel at Macraes but I suspect once you're in your hilltop eerie you stay put.
Does it work for Rob and Helene? Well, there's no time in the year when it's not busy. An even more luxurious bolt hole has been built just down the road and a third may be in the offing.
Wallowing naked in a hot tub at 400m under a night sky peppered with stars and other attractions could well be your answer to travelling without tears. No agonising over air bookings or ferry cancellations.
Just grab a pleasant companion, a pile of books (no television set besmirches this haven) and you'll be there before you've had time to realise you've left home.
— Jim Sullivan is a Patearoa writer.
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