City escape if only for the night
With the curtains tied open and the lawns bathed in fading sunlight, we could just see the private jetty on the pond through the haze of steam billowing out of the tub.
From our spot under the covers, massive pines obscured the view further downstream. A wheelbarrow of chopped wood reminded us to feed the blaze warming our bath for the evening, the only task beckoning. With limited reception and patchy service, nothing could distract from the total relaxation and charm of getting back to nature – albeit in a rather glamorous fashion.
An hour outside of Christchurch, The Shepherd’s Hut at Washpen Falls sits on a high country farm in Windwhistle. A regular visitor to the Canopy Camping website, I spotted dreamy pictures of the hut soon after it opened in January.
On arrival, the self-contained lodge was everything the photographs promised it would be. In keeping with the rustic feel, the indoors were packed with linen furnishings and a wood-burning fire.
After dipping our toes in-and-out of the tub waiting for the blistering hot water to cool down, we bit the bullet and submerged into a pool of steam. In front of us, a view of the pond, with a row-boat nestled on the private jetty. As night settled in, so did the silence.
Host Megan McElrea, and her husband Henry, live in a nearby house but entry to the hut, via a separate driveway, is completely private. The couple’s children are fifth generation on the property, and the mammoth pines shading the clearing were planted by Henry’s grandfather several decades ago, McElrea said. Nowadays, the bush is home to ‘‘one resident possum, and, if you’re lucky, seven or so deer’’.
McElrea said during the summer months, guests were welcome to take the rowboat out on the pond, or go for a dip to escape the heat. Washpen Falls Adventure Walk, an hour long loop to its namesake waterfall, is also on the property, and Darfield and Methven were both about 20 minutes’ drive away.
The writer was hosted by The Shepherd’s Hut.