Knitting on a Caravan Trip

What sort of handwork to take on our caravan trips  was the question.  With no stitchery project on the go at the moment, it had to be knitting.  I usually have a pair of socks on the go, so they were packed.  This pair is going to be for my daughter, she requested a fine 4ply pair this time, and selected the sock yarn from my stash.  I often knit socks on car journeys, nice easy knitting once I'm past those tricky heels.  I knit my socks flat, two at a time, then stitch up the side seam.

Socks for my daughter

My other knitting project is a cardigan for baby Jack, our niece's new baby.  This is a completely new pattern for me, as the garment is knitted in one piece, starting at the back.  I've knitted the back, one and a half sleeves, and now I'm continuing down one of the fronts.

A new baby pattern for me to try

On our travels we called in to the historic village of Ongaonga, named for the Maori word of the native stinging nettle.  The village was founded in 1872 when Henry Hamilton Bridge subdivided his farm.  The general store and tea rooms opened in 1899 and is still in business.

Historic village of Ongaonga

The village is full of interesting old buildings, and the wind was blowing a gale and buffeting us around as we wandered around.  There was an old bush settlers hut, and a tiny jail.

Bush settlers hut from days gone  by

Tiny jail

But the most interesting building, in my view was the old Coles Brothers building, recently repainted.  Not only did they work as builders, joiners, ironmongers, painters and plumbers, they were also undertakers as required.  Obviously the Coles Brothers were a  very talented family indeed.

Coles Brother's building

And look........ the Easter Bunny found us in our caravan at Napier and delivered two lovely Lindt Gold Bunnies for us to enjoy!

Happy Easter

Mountains, Lakes, and a Sheep Rustler

There is plenty to see on our South Island trip, and we are slowly moving on.  The scenery down here in the South Island can only be described as majestic, with the Southern Alps thrusting up like a backbone, down the length of this island.  So what have we been doing?  We spent a couple of  days in Fairlie, home to the famous Fairlie pies.  Yes I know, our holiday does seem to focus a lot on food.  But that’s half the fun of being on holiday, isn’t it.

We knew the pies were popular but I couldn't believe my eyes.  Here it was, mid afternoon on a Sunday, and queues of people went waiting to get into this shop and buy their pies.   Peeping inside the door and there must have been another 30 queuing inside the shop.  Opening  as a tiny family business in 2010, this business has grown to be one of the best known and most awarded pie-shops in the country – Fairlie Bakehouse.  After years of working in high-end hospitality, trained chef and owner Franz Lieber set out to create a retirement job for himself. He never imagined he’d be producing around 2,500 pies a day and end up working with a team of fifty.  We bought four pies to take away the following morning, one each for lunch, and two to freeze for a future meal.

The famous Fairlie Pies

Fairlie is part of the Mackenzie District, named after Scotsman James Mackenzie, who came to New Zealand seeking a better life in the 1850. After working as a shepherd, he took up a lease of land in Southland, and the lease required him to stock the land with sheep.  James Mackenzie used his knowledge of a mountain pass known only to the local Maoris to spirit away 1000 sheep in the dead of night from a station near Timaru.  Soon caught, he managed to escape and his theft took on a degree of notoriety because he had stolen the sheep from one of the wealthiest settler families in Canterbury.  He was finally caught, convicted and sentenced, recommended for a pardon, and sailed away from New Zealand shores.  His ability with his dogs was highly admired and the statue in town pays tribute to James Mackenzie and his dogs who pulled off the daring sheep rustling over the mountain pass.  Most view him as a folk hero, rather than a dastardly sheep thief.

James Mackenzie and his sheepdog

The following day our first stop on the journey was the quaint little settlement of Burkes Pass, named after Michael John Burke, who discovered the passageway leading into the Mackenzie Country in 1855. This was an alternative route to the Mackenzie Pass which  James Mackenzie, had used to take his sheep into the Otago goldfields.

The historic village of Burkes Pass is home to Three Creeks Shop, an eclectic collection of old buildings, old cars, memorabilia everywhere, and a tiny coffee cart.   Everyone seems to break their journey here, and its easy to seem why.  The place looks so fascinating, just like stepping back in time.  We had a good look around at the interesting old buildings,  inside the general store, and bought a coffee each to go. 

Interesting old shops at Burkes Pass

Lake Tekapo was our stop for the next two nights, in a camp surrounded by pine trees and on the edge of the lake.  A very pretty place indeed.

Staying at Lake Tekapo

Gemma was very interested in the duck family waddling around outside.  Why oh why isn't she allowed outside to chase them, she is wondering?

Look at those big birdies, Mum

There is nothing prettier than the historic Church of the Good Shepherd on the lake side, built of stone and oak in 1935.  Sadly the church is not now open to visitors, which is a shame, but the grounds are open.  There was a wedding taking place, such a picturesque place to get married.

Church of the Good Shepherd

This is a lovely view from the lake shore by the church, looking out to Mt Cook.  When visitors were allowed inside the church, this is the view which would be framed by the church window, making such a pretty picture.

Mt Cook, view over Lake Tekapo

With all this moving around, and sightseeing, I haven't been doing too much handwork.. A little on my stitchery project, but not enough for a photo.  My navy knitting is slowly growing I’m pleased to say. Not too bad, as I had to undo it all recently.  With hot days, and such beautiful scenery out of the car windows as we drive along, I haven't been doing a lot of knitting in the car.   Every little bit helps, doesn't it.

It’s growing slowly

Back in the Old Days

It was all about nostalgia when we visited the Pioneer Village in Stratford.  Set in 10 acres of grounds, there are streets of relocated buildings, cottages, a forge, printing works, library, post office, dentist, doctor, and maybe even a candle-maker was tucked in there somewhere.  Various shops of all kinds and a church. It certainly was interesting seeing how people lived in earlier years.  I loved looking through the cute little cottages, seeing the old textiles, the rag rugs, the kitchen utensils, and how they tackled the laundry. Pretty little Goodwin Cottage was built about 1890.

Lovely old cottage

I trekked up the rise to see some more buildings and was thrilled to discover “Madame de Launay”.  Selling gowns, gloves, and all sorts of interesting haberdashery, it was such a delight to gaze at all those lovely items.

Treasures galore inside Madame de Launay’s shop

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More old buildings

Most of us are big kids when it comes to train rides, and we personally are no exception.  Climbing aboard the dinky little train we squeezed into those rather hard seats, and were taken twice around the circuit.  This gave us a good overview of the village, all 10 acres of it.

We enjoyed our train ride

We drove down to Stratford along the aptly named Opunake-Stratford Road, one we hadn’t traveled along before.   It was certainly a little narrow in places, and those pesky wind gusts were a challenge at times.  This road took us up close and personal alongside by Mt Taranaki, also known as Mt Egmont to those of us with long memories.  No snow cap at this time of the year, this is a symmetrical brooding bare volcanic mountain looking down on us, majestic and strong.

Mt Taranaki

Our stay here in Stratford is at the Wharehuia Community Centre, formerly the Stanley Street School, which closed in 2004.  It is great to see these buildings and grounds put to good use, and bring in some cash to keep it funded.  There are magnificent trees in the grounds, native rimu and totara, as well as exotics such as oak and magnolia.  We have the use of the buildings to meet in during the evenings, or as required, if the days turn wet and cold.

Staying at the old school