Daily Photo – Waipiata (1)

I left Ranfurly deciding to take a backcountry gravel road to my destination of Waipiata – a short trip of only 10 kilometres, pretty much having the road to myself, apart from the occasional farmer who would pass, creating a dramatic dust storm and a wave of gravel that would rattle against the windscreen. After the onslaught had dissipated, this off course would leave me peering through a film of muck so thick it took a four-step process to clean. Step one (while driving) was to spray the windscreen and flick the wipers, which only turned the dust into a thick brown sludge that would be smeared across the windscreen – briefly leaving me driving blind. Step two was to repeat step one which was required to clean-up the mess created by step one – which helped a little. Step three was another repeat, finally restoring visibility to approximately 80%, and step four bringing things back to clear. At least until the next farmer appeared right on cue in a perfectly choreographed arrival.

It was getting late by the time I arrived in Waipiata, a tiny settlement in the Maniototo. Once a bustling railway stop but now a sleepy village with a pub, a scattering of houses, and the wide open sky for company. The sun and light were starting to fade and an evening chill whistled in from somewhere out on the plains. I went for a short drive around the town, stopping at the local domain which peered out across the plains to the snowcapped peaks on the horizon. I followed a track through the tussock for several minutes that seemed to go nowhere. I stood for a few minutes and listened to the silence, the land stretching away rising gently to meet the blue-grey mountains where the last of winter’s snow clung to the ridges. It had been a long day, but I was pleased I was here. I turned, returned to my car and went in search of some accommodation – The Waipiata Country Hotel, a place I’d chosen specifically for the food.