Rimutaka and Wairarapa

On Wednesday, Uncle John and I took a road trip over Rimutaka Hill to the Wairarapa region, which houses (among many other things) Martinborough, which is a major wine-producing region.

Uncle John on the swinging Bridge

Tall tree

Clear water under the swinging bridge

Rimutaka must mean “And-by-‘hill’-we-mean-‘mountain’-as-we-Kiwis-are-prone-to-understatement” . Rimutaka Hill is ridiculously high for a hill. The roads wind up to the summit and down to Wairarapa, unless you want to take the train, which goes straight through the hill.

Near the summit of Rimutaka Hill

We first stopped in Featherston, where we stopped at a heritage museum which told us all about the former railway line (which ran from the mid/late 1800s until 1955). The railway needed a number of locomotives to climb the mountain, due to its steep descent, and a safe way to climb down the mountain, due to its sharp decline, so they built a “fell” system in which an additional rail was built between the two normal rails, and a special break system would clutch onto the middle rail in order to help drag the cars up, and decrease momentum on the way down. Once the tunnel was forged in the 50s, the railway line was taken out of commission, and the former railway track turned into a hiking trail that many use to this day.

Once we left Featherston, we headed to Greytown, which still has many of the old buildings from the 1800s in full use. It’s a pretty little town that almost looks like a movie set, it’s so darn cute.

a Greytown shop

We then headed to Carterton, which has a Paua shop and factory. Got my mom a belated something for her birthday (Hi Mom! It’s on its way!), and then went on to Martinborough.

Martinborough is a sweet little town that houses many vineyards. Thanks to the patriotism of the founders, the main center of town is laid out like the Union Jack, with criss-crossing streets to mimic the stripes of the flag.

We had a glass of wine (duh) at a café in Martinborough, then headed back to Lower Hutt around 3:30.

Last night I also had the privilege of watching young Lauren McGuinness in a water polo match. She plays for her school, and this was the first game of the season…and very cool to watch, I must say. But, goodness gracious, does it look exhausting.

Looking at a flat this weekend. Keep your fingers crossed.

And I’m a little lonely right now, guys, as I’ve officially passed the two week mark without you. Please email me and let me know what you’re up to and how you’re all doing.

Much love,

Claire