A Night at Waipara Sleepers
Pippy McCurdy:http://www.unusualstays.com/
http://www.stumbleuponcroatiaslovenia.com/
Waipara is just a little town not too far north of Christchurch - maybe three quarters of an hour as a leisurely drive. Once it was little more than a railway town but the railway died and the life blood was sucked out of Waipara ... that is, until they discovered that the region had an undiscovered talent; - it was very, very good at growing wine. This has been the saviour of the Waipara region, and some very good New Zealand wines now come from this locality.
Another plus with the retrenchment of the railways, was the fact that New Zealand Rail began to have a surplus of rolling stock. Take one enterprising Waipara resident, and in 1990 Waipara Sleepers was born.
Three ex-NZR guard vans are now settled comfortably into the grounds of this small but popular camping ground. (Mid winter it may be at present, but the camping ground was easily half full when I visited.) The three vans still rest on rails but this is just to ensure the vans feel at home. The truth is they are no longer going anywhere any more. Nearby the familiar form of the New Zealand railway station can be seen on its platform. The station too has found an alternate use - it is now the camp kitchen.
The transformation of each guards-van into overnight accommodation has been skilfully and intelligently accomplished. One part of the van is now the sitting room, the second half is the bedroom. With a shiny polished brass double bed for the night, and traditional red leather New Zealand Railways issue seats still in place in the sitting room, the whole conversion has been cleverly managed to achieve maximum usability and comfort.
Add really attractive tree filled grounds to this, and a particularly reasonable price for a bed for the night and all in all Waipara Sleepers adds up to an excellent place to stay.
Websites: http://www.unusualstays.com/
http://www.stumbleuponcroatiaslovenia.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment