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10<br />
NOVEMBER <strong>2016</strong><br />
WAIMATE MUSEUM CHARMING HERITAGE<br />
The Waimate Museum is a complex<br />
of several buildings – seven of<br />
which are open to visitors. The<br />
main building is the magnificent<br />
Courthouse built in 1879. Inside you<br />
will find a clock room, military room,<br />
telephone display, photographs and<br />
much more. The courtroom itself<br />
houses temporary displays like the<br />
upcoming Underworld exhibition.<br />
Visitors enjoy reliving their<br />
schooldays in the Douglas School<br />
and our younger visitors especially<br />
like to experience being locked in a<br />
jail cell in the old lock-up.<br />
The story of how the people of<br />
Waihao lived in pre-European times<br />
is told through a video and a display<br />
of traditionally built shelters in the<br />
rammed- earth Lilian Marshall building.<br />
This building also houses the<br />
comprehensive moa display<br />
showcasing moa bones found at the<br />
local Kapua swamp. The geology<br />
display is also in this building and<br />
traces the Earth’s history through<br />
rocks and examples of fossils from<br />
different geological eras.<br />
More recent human history can be<br />
seen in the tiny Bremner’s cottage<br />
from the Bushtown days of the late<br />
1800’s and the horse-drawn vehicles<br />
and recreated<br />
street of shops in the Pavilion.<br />
Waimate Museum is a unique<br />
and interesting place to visit.<br />
For more information, visit www.<br />
waimatemuseumandarchives.org.<br />
WAIMATE<br />
Waimate's Wallabies<br />
While visiting Waimate, you must<br />
visit the town’s famous wallabies<br />
at EnkleDooVery Korna Wallaby<br />
Park. Visitors can wander at their<br />
leisure among 60 tame wallabies,<br />
all in their family groups within over<br />
20 enclosures. Special pellets are<br />
provided to help you participate in<br />
the feeding experience.<br />
Gwen, the “Wallaby Lady” has<br />
been hand rearing baby wallabies<br />
since 1977, but only opened the<br />
park to the public in 1999. From<br />
<strong>October</strong> to April, Gwen hand<br />
rears baby wallabies brought to<br />
her by hunters. This requires much<br />
commitment as they need constant<br />
warmth and food. But they really<br />
are cute and love to be cuddled<br />
by visiting children and adults! There<br />
are also other animals to see at the<br />
park including bantams, possums<br />
and rare breed sheep, as well as an<br />
old time Trapper’s Hut.<br />
The park is located off Highway<br />
82 on Bathgates Road close<br />
to Waimate. Watch out for the<br />
Wallaby Park sign and don’t forget<br />
your camera. Open daily from 20<br />
September to 10 June from 10am-<br />
5pm or off season 11 June to 19<br />
September 10am-4pm (weather<br />
dependent), by appointment or<br />
simply by chance.<br />
Phone 03 689 7197 or visit www.<br />
waimatedc.govt.nz/tamewallabies.<br />
A THRIVING RURAL TOWN<br />
Nestled at the foot of the Hunter Hills,<br />
8km off State Highway 1, Waimate<br />
is a thriving rural town providing the<br />
visitor with many reasons to stop and<br />
explore.<br />
Characterised by wide spacious<br />
streets, a valued collection of<br />
Edwardian buildings, historic<br />
churches, parks and beautiful<br />
gardens, Waimate offers a relaxed,<br />
friendly environment for both residents<br />
and visitors.<br />
Specialist shops and cafes and<br />
the Vines Restaurant, incorporating<br />
Point Bush Vineyard, provide the<br />
opportunity to relax or enjoy a little<br />
local flavour at the Saturday morning<br />
market stocked with local produce.<br />
The town is the heart of a district<br />
blessed with rivers and lakes that offer<br />
an extensive range of outdoor pursuits<br />
such as world renowned salmon and<br />
trout fishing, deer hunting, boating,<br />
yachting, bird watching and family<br />
camping on the lake shores.<br />
Waimate has not forgotten its<br />
heritage and those people and<br />
animals that helped mould it. The<br />
White Horse Monument is a tribute<br />
to Clydesdale horses and the stands<br />
majestically on the Hunters Hills,<br />
visible for miles and accessed via the<br />
Waimate walkway or by car.<br />
The Waimate district is one of the<br />
few places in NZ where wallabies<br />
have taken up residence. Introduced<br />
from Australia, you can see them<br />
at the town’s EnkleDooVery Korna<br />
Wallaby Park where Gwen, “the<br />
Wallaby Lady” has been rearing baby<br />
wallabies since 1977.<br />
Waimate is also famous for its<br />
strawberries, which have been grown<br />
in the region since the late 1880’s. At<br />
any of the strawberry fields, growers<br />
will sell you a punnet of their finest<br />
berries, real berry fruit ice cream or<br />
pick your own straight from the field.<br />
You can’t get much fresher than that!<br />
Outstanding forest, mountain and<br />
alpine tracks encourage walking or<br />
mountain biking with the new bike<br />
trails nearing completion. The White<br />
Horse Walkway offers a two hour<br />
return 3km trail, rewarding the walker<br />
with magnificent views, while the<br />
Studholme Bush Walkway comprises<br />
five individual walks of 20 minutes or<br />
a combination of all five tracks over<br />
three hours.<br />
Tourism contributes to Waimate's<br />
economy with many independent<br />
travellers visiting the area to enjoy<br />
its attractions and annual events,<br />
such as Waimate Rodeo (Saturday<br />
3rd December) , Strawberry Fare<br />
(Saturday 10th December) The March<br />
Hare Motor Cycle Rally in March and<br />
Waimate 50 at Labour Weekend.<br />
Waimate also offers an alternative<br />
route to Queenstown via the<br />
spectacular scenery of the Waitaki<br />
Lakes. For further information on<br />
Waimate, including maps, brochures<br />
etc call into the Waimate Information<br />
Centre or view www.waimate.org.nz.<br />
Travel thirty minutes south of<br />
Timaru to discover a valued<br />
collection of Edwardian<br />
buildings and historic<br />
churches, beautiful parks<br />
and gardens, an abundance<br />
of recreational opportunities<br />
including walks and mountain<br />
biking, shops, cafes and in<br />
season, THE best strawberries.<br />
Waimate is also home to NZ’s<br />
largest wallabies!<br />
For walks, wine and<br />
wallabies ... Waimate, turn<br />
in at the yellow barn!<br />
VISIT<br />
WAIMATE<br />
DISTRICT<br />
WAIMATE INFORMATION CENTRE<br />
Tel: 03 689 7771<br />
Em: info@waimatedc.govt.nz<br />
www.waimate.org.nz<br />
HOP TO THE<br />
WALLABY PARK<br />
EnkleDooVery<br />
Korna Waimate<br />
Affordable Hands-on<br />
Adventure<br />
• WALK AMONGST • TOUCH<br />
• CUDDLE • FEED• PHOTOGRAPH<br />
• OUR FAMOUS WALLABIES<br />
no eftpos or credit card facilities<br />
60 tame wallabies • Open 7 days 10am-5pm<br />
• 20 September through to 10 June<br />
• During the off season, June 11th to September<br />
19th, will be open by appointment, weatherdependent<br />
or by chance, 10am to 4pm<br />
Located North End of State Highway 82<br />
on Bathgates Rd, Waimate<br />
Your host: Gwen Dempster-Schouten 03 689 7197<br />
c/- email: jenny_dempster@hotmail.com<br />
www.waimatedc.govt.nz/tamewallabies
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