A Probus Day out

 Recently Dot and I went on a bus trip organised by our Probus Club.  The day was cold and wet and we waited in the cold car park wrapped up in our rain jackets and scarves, together with the rest of the group  for the bus to arrive.  Once onboard, we were soon on our way.

Our bus for the day

One of the highlights  of the trip for me was to travel across the newly opened "Te Ahu a Turanga", the new 11.5km piece of State Highway 3, between Ashhurst and Woodville.  This replaces the old Manawatu Gorge Road which closed in 2017 after slips.  I used to hate driving on the Manawatu Gorge road, narrow and winding, with heavy netting doing it's best to keep the rocks from falling onto the road.  And on the other side of the gorge we could see the single track railway line clinging on as it wound around this corner and that.   Only freight trains and excursion trains now travel through the gorge, not any scheduled passenger services.  And far below the Manawatu River flowed on.   A train fell into the river back in 1946, with two engineers losing their lives.  And two trucks have crashed into the gorge in 2010 and 2016 with loss of lives.  No wonder I always felt apprehensive traveling this dangerous stretch of road.

The new highway took us across the Parahaki Bridge, then over the Eco-Viaduct which crosses an ecologically sensitive wetland.  Our poor old bus struggled on the climb up the Ruahine Range, making us wonder if it would really make it.  "Of course I can, of course I can"  the wheels told us and we were soon up the top by the wind turbines.  There was a path off top the side for walkers and cyclists and it was lovely to see so many native plants alongside the road.  A staggering 1.8million trees, shrubs and flaxes have been planted in this project.

The new road, up amongst the wind turbines

Our first stop was at the Woodville Organ Museum, which has a collection of over 150 reed organs.  Some huge, some quite small, and all very interesting.  We wandered around, checking them out, there were so many we had to squeeze around to see them.  It was interesting to hear other Probus members saying that their parents and/or grandparents used to have an organ at home.  

Then we had a recital of church hymns, with the owner and her daughter playing several different organs to show the variation in the sounds.  Hymn books had been handed around and many joined in with the singing.

Lunch was at Masterton Club, which started life as an exclusive club for men in 1877 as a Gentlemen's Club, but now admits women members.  The club rooms certainly have that exclusive men only feel, with large leather sofas in the reading room, several pool tables and mounted stag heads in the timber framed and  paneled pool/billiards room.  Very masculine indeed.  

We enjoyed a delicious buffet roast meal, with roast beef and hot roast ham, followed by dessert.   The bar was open for those who wanted a drink, but sadly, tea or coffee was not part of the meal.  That was a shame. as I'm sure many of us would happily have paid for a nice hot coffee.

Lunch is ready to be served

Fully replete, we all climbed back in the bus and headed out to visit Stonehenge Aotearoa.  Their brochure says "Stonehenge Aotearoa, like the ancient stone circles around the world, is a complete and working structure designed for it's precise location on the Earth.  It is a window into the past"  When we arrived the weather was awful, so we were happy to go into the theatrette and sit down for the slide show.  This was very interesting and told about the history, and the reasoning and precise location of the structure.  Our guide for the day was very enthusiastic and then invited us outside.  But it was freezing cold and raining so no one wanted to linger too long.

This plaque was in the centre

Stonehenge Aotearoa

Yes, it was interesting enough, but I have to say nothing like the ancient stone circles.  Robin and I have seen Stonehenge and Avebury stone circles in England and they really have an atmosphere of wonder, mystery and ancient secrets.

Our group was happy to climb back onboard to get out of the freezing weather and start our journey back home.  We drove south down the Wairarapa, over the Remutaka Hill, then back up the motorway to Levin.  I'm sure a few of the group nodded off as the bus trundled back to Levin.  It was great to have my first ride over that part of the new motorway, and I had not been to the Organ Museum before.  Yes, I had been to Stonehenge Aotearoa quite some years ago, on a brilliantly sunny Wairarapa day, and had a leisurely look around back then.    It had been a long day out, but very interesting indeed.