CAN WE DRINK THE WATER FROM THE TAP? Yes! Our water is 100% pure rainwater. We encourage you to fill your water bottles and take some with you when you leave. That will save you buying more and less plastic waste.
WHAT SHALL WE DO WITH OUR DISHES AFTER BREAKFAST? If you are only here for 1 night, leave them in your room. Staying 2 or more nights? Bring them downstairs and leave them on the chair by our lounge door for me to wash.
WHAT IS THE WEATHER FORECAST? Check online at www.metservice.com
ARE THERE ANY ROAD CLOSURES/DELAYS ON MY TRAVEL ROUTE? Check online at www.nzta.govt.nz
DO YOUR SOLAR PANELS GENERATE ENOUGH POWER FOR THE WHOLE HOUSE? Yes, all our power comes from the solar panels and is stored in our batteries. We are able to run the household almost the same as a house connected to the grid. However we can't use appliances that have a high drain of power such as a microwave, electric hairdryers of heaters.
CAN WE VISIT THE ANIMALS? Yes, you can go and see all of the animals. You can enter the paddocks but PLEASE close all the gates. Do NOT go into the pen with the turkey and pigs.
WHAT KIND OF ANIMALS DO YOU HAVE? We try to focus on rare breed animals here. We are keen to help preserve the genetics of the rare breed animals and conserve them so they don't become extinct. We have Arapawa sheep (a NZ feral rare breed), Dexter cattle (Irish rare breed), kune kune pigs (NZ rare breed), Muscovy ducks, peacocks, goats and chickens. We produce beef, lamb and pork and if the chickens are feeling generous, eggs ( though they usually treat it as a bit of a retirement village). We raise our animals in an organic way - no drench etc.
WHAT DO YOU GROW ON THE FARM? We have a vegetable garden where we grow things such as; potatoes, tomatoes, zucchini, beans, cabbage, silverbeet, pumpkin, garlic, shallots, corn, lettuce, cucumber, peas and a variety of herbs.
We also have a berry garden with blackcurrants, raspberries, gooseberries and strawberries. We make a lot of jams, pickles, jellies sauces and chutneys throughout the year. We grow apples, lemons and limes as well.
There are beehives here in summer that are cared for by a friend who harvests the honey for us. All the jams and honey used in your breakfast is from our farm. You are welcome to purchase our preserves. There are some for sale in your room or you can ask us.
TELL ME ABOUT YOUR HOUSE.. We started building our home in 2008. We really wanted to build a place that was as eco-friendly and sustainable as we could manage. We had been collecting pieces for the house over a number of years and we designed the house to fit around these. For example, the staircase, all doors and most of the windows were bought from building recyclers years earlier. The wood floors are locally sourced native red beech and the skirting and architraves are recycled rimu sourced from local buildings.
As you have probably noticed, we love vintage and retro items. We would rather source a second hand quality piece and save it from the landfill, than go and buy a new (often inferior) piece.
IS THE BATHROOM SHARED? On rare occasions the bathrooms may be shared with other guests. It doesn't happen often (usually in the busy summer season) and we have never had a problem with guests sharing. Our past guests have all been considerate of each other and left the bathrooms tidy for the next user.
If you want to know more about anything, just ask! Need some advice about the area? Check out our other guides or send us a message.
See you soon!
Your hosts,
Michelle and Garth
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Every day visitors to Hokitika tell me that they wish they had known how much there was to see and do here. "We really wish we had booked to stay more than one night!" I hear this so often I thought it was time to try and create a short guide to give people an idea of what they can do and why one night if definitely not long enough.
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