Wairau Valley

The Wairau Valley is on State Highway 63, and it’s one of those “blink and you’ll miss it” kinds of settlements. I grew up in Blenheim, but I always wanted to live in the country. My husband was born in the Wairau Valley, but his family moved to Blenheim in the late seventies. There used to be a bit of an attitude about Wairau Valley – I remember my mum saying, “Oh, who’d want to live there?” But Tony always wanted to move back. He brought me up here several times, and I started getting to know the place and I liked it. Initially we lived in an old villa on a two-and-a-half-hectare block, then about seven years ago we moved to our new place, which is just down the same road.

About half the new property – around two hectares – is wetland, which we’re restoring. It had cows running through it for many years, and was in a bit of a state. There was just one cabbage tree left, which the cows couldn’t get to. We’ve planted all sorts of flaxes, and kahikatea and mānuka, and it’s just wonderful seeing them grow. The kids have left home now, so it’s just Tony and me, plus Tommy the cat and Chief the dog, a few sheep, and we recently got some chooks. It’s a nice place to write from but, having a lifestyle property, there are always things to do, or something to distract you. You’re in the middle of a paragraph and oh, crikey – the sheep have got out and have started eating something they shouldn’t, or the dog’s barking at bunny rabbits or something.

When we first moved here, there were lots of big farming families. With the onset of the grapes, that has changed. But we’re not all vineyards – we’ve got all sorts. There’s a lot of families where one partner goes to town and works, and the other person stays at home. There are also a few little businesses. I work part-time at Jeymar Soap & Body, which is just down the road. It was started by a local family around twenty years ago. We used to have a nudist camp, but that’s gone.

The Wairau Valley Tavern is a gathering place for our community. The original building was built in the 1850s, but later burnt down in a fire. It was rebuilt around 1888. It gained its licence in 1856, and I think it’s been in continuous operation as a hotel since then, so it’s been a centre of the community for a long time.

The Wairau Valley Peace Memorial Hall also has quite an important place in our hearts. Built in 1919, it’s unusual, as it is not a war memorial, but a peace memorial. The Hillersden Hall was also built in 1919 – there was actually a competition between the builders of the halls to see which hall would be completed first. It was moved next to the memorial hall in 1995, so it’s now quite a big complex. We’ve recently restarted a regular local market – it’s held there on the first Sunday of every month. Last year we held a village fair for the first time. We had stalls, food trucks, bouncy castles, axe throwing and wood chopping displays – all sorts of things. We got over a thousand people there, which was phenomenal for the Valley.

I was part of a group that fought to keep another historic building in the community. The Wantwood Room, also built in 1919, was originally a school for the nearby community of Wantwood. In 1949 it was moved to the Wairau Valley School and used as a classroom for many years, then as the library. When the school no longer needed it, there was a proposal to relocate it to Blenheim, but we were determined to keep it in the Valley. In 2015, the Wantwood Room was moved to the site of the old tennis court alongside the school and now belongs to the community. It has a digital collection of over 800 historic photos, and it’s a cosy place for small groups to meet.

A while back we were thinking about what we could do as a community to mark Christmas. We talked about decorating houses, but many aren’t visible from the road. Then I thought, “If everyone decorated their letterbox, that would be a fun way to make things bright and glittery and cheerful.” There is a main prize for the best-decorated, but everyone gets a little something, like a box of chocolates. We usually end up with forty or so bright, colourful letterboxes all up and down the highway.

Glossary. Kahikatea, a coniferous tree usually found in wet areas. Mānuka, tea tree, a common native scrub bush.