Maree’s musings

It’s an … ILL WIND

There’s a whisper in the wind … Martinborough is superseding its suburb over the hill with a reputation for excessive air movements. ‘Windy Wellington’ is all very well; just don’t send it winding [?geddit] its way over the Rimutakas. We’ve got plenty, thanks!
Put simply, wind is merely air particles moving about. One can’t see it: probably because your eyes are full of dust and gritty bits or your spectacles have blown away. Scientists know the cause, but it’s the effects we dislike. … Continue Reading

Ranui Lavender

It all started 8 years ago when Tracy and husband Eric had just completed a property development when they found a 10-acre block nestled on the out skirts of Martinborough in amongst farmlands and wineries.
Both born from the Wairarapa knew they needed to find another attraction other than wine and olives. Following some research and talking to the local farmers Richard and Dinah from ‘Hauiti Lavender’ they decided to plant their hillside with a variety of lavender including ‘Pacific Blue’ and ‘Grosso’. … Continue Reading

Regional Council notes

New Zealand is bursting at the seams with tourists even with the lack of summery weather this season. While it’s a bit hard to find out exactly how this is affecting the Wairarapa it’s reasonable to expect that visitor numbers here are up too. After all, this is a lovely rural district just an hour from the capital city and its largely unspoilt rugged coastline is a magnet to tourists keen to see some ‘real New Zealand’.

It’s also obvious that Wairarapa is a popular destination for campervans as they are now a very common sight on both town and country roads. So far there seems to be enough room for them all at existing camping grounds and with Wairarapa’s reasonably liberal Freedom Camping bylaws but what if the numbers doubled or even trebled? Where would they go and what pressure would that put on our reserves and infrastructure? … Continue Reading

Over The Hill Tournament 2017

Martinborough Lawn Tennis Club hosted the 23nd “ “Over The Hill” tennis tournament over the weekend. The annual lawn tennis tournament, attracts players largely from out of the region to attend the popular country club.
This year had a strong mens draw with current interclub players squaring off against former regional representatives from Wairarapa, Wellington, Auckland and Christchurch.
The volunteer run committee worked hard to attract players and drew up 30 mens pairs and 12 womens pairs on Saturday and 34 combined pairs for Sunday’s play.
There was an upset in the women’s draw with both top seeds knocked out in the first round relegating them to the plate draw. Leonie Campbell (Lower Hutt/Kapiti Mana Vets) and Judi Williams (Lower Hutt/Kapiti Man Vets) were victorious over sisters Felicity Steel (Vogelmorn Club) and Jo Steel (Elmwood Club, Christchurch) in the Plate Final. The Womens Championship Final was won by Vicky Wutzler (Karori Lawn/Kapiti Mana) and Maree Horne (Upper Hutt), defeating Diana Maunder (Kilbirnie Club) and Michelle McKibbon (Stokes Valley). … Continue Reading