A ‘once in a lifetime’ North Otago high country holding is for sale.
Settled in 1919, The Dasher Station is a 6300-hectare pastoral lease property at Kauru Hill, Maraeweka, 34 kilometres west of Oamaru on the eastern end of the Kakanui Range: the border between North Otago and Central Otago. Charlotte and Grant McNaughton have held the property since 2012, which Grant says has been a privilege.
“We were married three months after we bought The Dasher. Owning a property like this, farming it and being surrounded by its incredible potential has a unique ability to steal a piece of your heart. Now it’s time for somebody else to enjoy that, and to take their turn growing on what’s been done before.
“We have huge respect for the forebears and the farmers who came before us, who have done the hard work. However, with a property such as The Dasher you also need to think ahead for the next 100 years.
“We’ve worked hard on incremental improvements. We put in around 30 kilometres of fencing, around 60 kilometres of new tracks, and a significant capital fertiliser regime, optimising nutrients on the paddocks, as well as re-grassing and introducing new animal genetics to capture the improvements,” he says.
Improvements made by the McNaughtons have increased productivity from around 7000 stock units wintered when they took over to approximately 13,000 now, comprising 8150 sheep and up to 970 cattle. The property has a 175 hectare deer block. Six kilometres of new deer fencing has been added, meaning a new owner will have the scope to add another 6.5 kilometres of deer fencing, which would effectively increase the deer block to 1000 hectares.
Grant and Charlotte enjoy tracking their progress by looking back at old photos.
“It’s great to see where The Dasher Station is now compared to where it’s come from. As well as increasing the capacity of the farm, we are proud to have taken out all the wilding pines from the back 2000 hectares of the property, and of having one of the cleanest rivers in all of Otago running through the centre of the property, the Kauru River, which is the unique habitat of the lowland longjaw galaxias. This country used to be mountain beech and Totara, and we take plenty of pleasure from retaining and restoring pockets of that around the farm, with large tracts of native bush present on the property.”
He says being such a strong property allows it to be economically viable and has enabled them to do the best by the environment, keeping the farm in balance.
“Farming is a long-term game, and at the end of the day the land is our only resource, so we must look after it and work within its limitations, to keep it viable for our own and the next generations.”
Ranging from 350 metres above sea level, with the homestead at 540 metres and the highest point of the farm at 1425 metres above sea level, on a clear day The Dasher commands spectacular views to Mount Cook, the Remarkables, and the Port of Otago.
Charlotte and Grant have engaged Dan van der Salm of PGG Wrightson Real Estate to offer The Dasher Station to the market. Comprising two blocks, the main 6224-hectare block on a Crown Perpetual Lease is complemented by a 74 hectare freehold block one kilometre away. With rainfall between 800 and 1200 millimetres, The Dasher Station qualifies as summer safe, with a mix of heavy fertile and free draining soils.
When they move on, the views and the mesmerising landscape is what the McNaughtons will miss most about The Dasher.
“We love the place. It’s at the end of the road, and it’s beautiful: an outstanding property that has provided us with a great lifestyle and income. Saying goodbye will be difficult.”
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