Mt Nic News

August 2009

Since the last news update, life at Mt Nicholas has been extremely busy, both in the lodge & on the farm.

In March, we hosted Novartis, an international company who chose Mt Nicholas as the destination for the launch of a major new animal drench. This event was 12 months in the planning, involved all of the station staff and on the day we hosted 180 guests as well as a large media contingent.
Three days of fine weather ensured that the event went according to plan & the visitors were able to enjoy the peaceful tranquillity & spectacular scenery, the station has to offer.

One of the highlights of the day was watching the guests depart for Queenstown in helicopters, quite a feat considering the numbers.

This years Fall Muster, also attracted media interest, with Merino NZ spending 2 days on the muster taking a wide range of photo’s that would be used in future marketing of Merino Wool as a high quality garment yarn.
As part of this promotion, Robert & Linda were invited to attend the 225 year anniversary of John Smedley in the UK, a renowned high quality knitwear manufacturer and as part of the celebrations, some of the Mt Nic photo’s were featured , Jack resting easy on the tops & Rochelle looking very fashionable in a Pure Merino Wool knitted dress.

 

The very good growth experienced in summer, certainly helped with winter feeding & overall the stock have come through in good condition. The next big event on the farming calendar, is shearing, which begins in the next few weeks. This is one job that is very weather dependant so a decent spell of fine weather certainly makes it easier.

One of the other recent farm projects, was felling selected trees for milling into timber for use around the station including new weather boards for re cladding the power house. The finished product looks great and its another good example of just how self sustaining, this property is.

In the lodge, we have continued to enjoy the company of some amazing people and had the good fortune to have some guests returning for their third visits.

We have also completed the last of our redecorating with the lounge/dining room getting a makeover in addition to new carpet throughout the main lodge. While the results give a fresh new look, the overall warmth & character of the lodge has been maintained.

With early signs of a good Spring, Adrienne has been busy in the gardens, pruning trees & preparing seed beds for planting. It’s also good to see the wood pigeons returning & the first of the rhododendron’s coming into flower.

With good forward bookings and plenty of ongoing projects, there is plenty to look forward to and life at Mt Nicholas continues to be extremely enjoyable.

January 2009 News Archive

It’s hard to believe we are still in the same place, this time last year, we had virtually no rain from early December until April and as a consequence, grass growth was virtually nil and what grass we did have had burnt off. This year as been the exact opposite, regular rainfall with good sunshine in between and the resulting growth has been phenomenal.

While the rain has been good for growth, the rivers have been affected and there have been quite a few days were fishing hasn’t been possible but the good days have made up for it with very good results.

A few changes have occurred with staff  on the Station,  Kate,  ( Robert & Linda’s ) daughter & her husband Jack, have taken up the role of manager, which has allowed Davey to take time out to further his flying career and Ben has returned  to join Rochelle, our other new shepherd.  In addition to that, Jamarl & Amy have joined the team as handy man & cook.

The prolific flowers around the garden were an attraction to the many native birds we have living around us and I spent a bit of time attempting to get a few photos.

As part of the ongoing management of the Station, the Butson Family recently entered the Otago Environmental Awards as a means of gauging how they were balancing the commercial requirements of the property with the natural environment. This was a very comprehensive process that examined all aspects of the operation and it was very satisfying to be recognised with The Otago Regional Council Sustainable Resource Management Award.

With Global Warming & Carbon Footprints being hot topics, guests at Mt Nicholas can be reassured that this is an environmentally friendly place to be.

As part of this plan, Adrienne has put a lot of work into the large vegetable garden that supplies all of the station and the results have been amazing, not only have we been enjoying a large variety of organically grown vegetables but also strawberry’s, raspberry’s and cherries. The apples, pears, peaches, apricots and plums won’t be far away! When you add the home grown lamb, beef, wild venison & free range eggs, life simply doesn’t get much better than this.

After nearly 2 years here, we are slowly starting to find our way around the property and when time permits we try to explore a different area, this normally involves a 4-5 hour trek and while the views are fantastic, stalking wildlife with a camera is also a great pastime.