# headin' out in the cold... From the sunny north to the wild south, NZ is overflowing with breathtaking backdrops, heavenly harvests and a whole lot of fabulous foodies. So jump on board with us as we hang out with the locals, wrangle some wildlife and feast our way around this magnificent country. Come on, Toppy. We got people to meet and food to eat. Yee-hah! # Nga iwi e. # Copyright Able 2018 This week, we zip along the upper Waitemata Harbour to discover New Zealand's oldest riverside tavern. Then we get way more adventurous down south on the mighty Clutha... ...with a man who knows and loves this river like the back of his hand. But first up, we're on one of the best trout-fishing rivers in the world. We're here on the Tongariro with Sherrie Feickert and Peter Carty, who share an amazing love story. You see, Sherrie introduced Casting For Recovery to New Zealand, an international breast cancer retreat program. Peter? Well, he's one of the world's most famous fly tyers, and he lost his mum to breast cancer, so one thing led to another, and the only thing Peter's never caught and released is Sherrie. Today, we're all hanging out in Turangi, the trout capital of New Zealand. Hi, Sherrie! Hey! Morning, Jools! Good to see you! Good to see you too! (LAUGHS) I'm very privileged to be able to learn from you, cos we're both survivors. We are. Casting For Recovery is the coolest thing out, cos it take women who have got breast cancer fishing, isn't it? Yes, yes. So this action opens up the chest, it helps lymphatic drainage, and apart from that, look at the environment. You're in a nice environment. And it's something you can do alone or in a group. Yeah. Well, you know, when I had finished my surgery, I was out rasping horses' hooves, and that's the same sort of thing. It is. You're opening up your arms and driving and pushing and all that sort of stuff, and this is the same thing, but, yeah. Lynda told me I had to wear my hat. She said I've got to have my glasses on, in case I whip myself with a bit of nylon. That's right. Righty-oh, here we go. OK, so I'm just going to show you a couple of casts. So pretend you're on the phone. 'Hello. Goodbye.' BOTH: 'Hello. Goodbye.' I can do that. Righty-oh, here we go. Hello. Goodbye. Hello. Goodbye. Try and keep that wrist a bit stiffer. Hello. Goodbye. Yeah, ooh! That's great! You're doing it. Hello. Goodbye. No, tha` (LAUGHS) Hello. Hello disaster. (BOTH LAUGH) Hello, Mr Carty! (BOTH LAUGH) Gidday, mate! How are you, buddy? Ah, the world famous fly tyer is at it. What the hell is that thing? It started out as a brooch. A brooch? That I tied for the ladies at Casting For Recovery. Look at that thing. Yeah? Look at that. A little black, a little pink in there, some silver, some flash. Yeah, I've tied weird shit for a long time. (LAUGHS) Weird shit. I know there's some weird shit here, buddy. Look at that. That could be an earring. Oh, yeah. Yeah, it probably will end up like that with some bad casting. (LAUGHS) Casting For Recovery. How did it all start? Well, I was at your Recovery tour in 2007. Yeah. Our fault, is it? Yes, it is! Yes, it is. (LAUGHS) And I was sitting in the audience, and you did a bio, and I just sat there and I thought, 'I've got to bring this to New Zealand.' Yeah. And your beautiful sister; it was like that film Field of Dreams. Yeah. She said, 'You put it on, Sherrie. I'll be there' Yeah. And, true to the word, she was. And I was lucky enough to be one of the casting instructors on that first Casting For Recovery in Rotorua. And that was very emotional and very exciting for all of us to be part of that, cos sometimes there are tears, aren't there? Oh, yeah. From the chaps too. Yeah. (BOTH CHUCKLE) And... yeah. No, we all go away very, very touched by the whole thing. You know, cos everyone's got a story. And, you know, the thing about it is that you met Peter through this. Yes, I did. I did. He's your man. He's my man, and I love him. Yeah. I met him, and I just thought, 'You are the cutest man.' (LAUGHS) Just, those twinkly eyes and that smile. I mean, what's not to love, Jools? You're an artist, Mr. Carty. Look at that. Thank you, Lynda. You're unbelievable. Let's have a look at that one. Look at that, it's twins! You have a matching pair! It's twins right there. That seems appropriate. Yes, it does, doesn't it? Shall we use some of your art to go fishing? Let's go. Outta here. (CHUCKLES) You know, Sherrie, this is the first time that I've ever had a trout. How's that? Amazing, considering the sister that you share. Yes. OK, you tell me what to do. Right, so I want you to slice those limes, and I'm going to slice this red onion very finely, and we're going to make a nest for the fillets. Is that his nickname? 'Carty?' They often drop the 'Peter' and call him 'Carty.' Ah, OK. And if Carty's got a nickname, what's your nickname? They call me 'Lady Kitchener.' 'Lady Kitchener!' Right, because I've got a wood burner that's called a Lady Kitchener. Sounds perfect. It is. Goes with my crockery. (LAUGHS) Yeah, I spent about seven months looking after my sister as her caregiver. Wow. You've been a caregiver too, for Sherrie, weren't you? I, um... just seemed to be her support person that she contacted. And he became your caregiver? He became my caregiver. On the phone, in person, Wow. and Peter and I became closer, and every two weeks, without fail, flies. I'd just get an envelope, and my favourite colours of purple, lime green and pink would tumble out. And how could you not laugh? Somehow, I think it brings those two people pretty close together. I`I agree completely. Yeah, cos after seven months of looking after Jools, we don't sweat the small stuff no more. We've probably got on better after her having cancer than we ever have in our lives as twins. Wow. Yeah, with the twin thing, it's... I had a bit of an extra thing to look after her. I wanted her to get well. I wanted to keep her, in case I get sick later on, for spare parts. (LAUGHS) I had a beautiful caregiver. I was born with mine. (LAUGHS) I know! I was very happy. And so, it's... he's not just a caregiver any more now, though, is he? He's my fiance! Yeah, it's exciting! And we're going to get married! And where are you gonna get married? Well, she's planning on the Tongariro river. On the river. Yeah. What are you gonna be wearing on your wedding day? Waders. (LAUGHS) Waders. Will there be a rod in your hand? Yeah. I intend to fish until she gets there. (LAUGHS) And how deep out are you gonna go? Oh, I don't wanna get in too deep. No. Getting married, that's deep enough! Well, you're already in too deep, buddy! (BOTH LAUGH) Righty-oh. We're making a bit of a dish for the two. I hope they're catching something nice for us down the river too. We're in a little fishing spot that's very secret, and we can't tell you where it is, cos... that's the way. Ooh! I just had a bite. Oh my God! That was exciting. I gotta... OK, I gotta stop talking and start fishing. Hang on a minute, I gotta cast back out there. Oh my God. What else goes on this? So, we've got... you can sprinkle a bit of lime juice through. We just put a little white wine, some dill and a sprinkle of almonds, and then that's the dish baked in the oven. And my little secret, which is truffle salt. I thought Carty was your little secret. (LAUGHS) Hey, Peter. I had a couple of bites up there, but nothing major. How'd you get on? Look at this little guy. Oh, you caught a fish! Yeah, you know any taxidermists? (BOTH LAUGH) It's a baby rainbow. Look at him. We're gonna put him back in there and make sure he's all nice and strong, and we're gonna release him. There he goes! (LAUGHS) Well done, Peter! I love seeing them swim away. (GENTLE ACOUSTIC GUITAR MUSIC) I'm very excited about this, because it's my first ever trout! I mean, we live in New Zealand; there's trout everywhere. Is it good? Mmm, it's amazing! Beautiful! It's so soft and subtle. You know that we're eating with royalty tonight, Lynda? No? Lady Kitchener, we call her. Lady Kitchener. (ALL LAUGH) A toast... to survivors and caregivers. Had a magic day with you fellas, been brilliant. Hasn't it? There we go. And just remember, when you get married... legally, you'll be the Lord of Lady Kitchener estate! I'll be able to poach my own trout! (ALL LAUGH) Hello, darlings. Welcome back to Topp Country. This week, we're raising money for the Avon River's Old Boys Rowing Club Centennial Regatta. And we'll be serving a smoked salmon and olive martini. I call it 'Up The Creek Without a Paddle.' You know, Roger caught that salmon by tickling it last week. (LAUGHS) Here's another thing that will tickle your fancy. A lovely cocktail, rum and lime. I call it 'Man Overboard.' Drink up, Dill! Have something! Five years ago, Stephen and Paula Pepperell returned from a 10-year sailing trip around the world and took over the Riverhead pub. She's the oldest riverside pub in New Zealand and has been entertaining people for over 150 years. You'll find her just north of Auckland on the banks of the upper Waitemata. This river way has been transporting people, animals and produce for centuries, and today, we're her passengers. It's a gorgeous day for a spin up the river, and an even better day for a birthday! Hip hip... Hooray! Hip hip... Hooray! Thank you! That's the best sounding 'Happy birthday' I've had in a long time! (ALL LAUGH) Righty-oh. Take us up the river. All right! To Riverhead. Let's go. Yeah, hold on. Whoo-hoo! So this is going to the river in style! (ALL LAUGH) Look at that little guy out in his dinghy trying to fish. Yep. He looks like he's got something going already. Yeah. (LAUGHS) Things are only gonna get better from now on in for him. (BOTH LAUGH) So we're gonna head up around the Brigham Creek, and then we switch into the stream, and then we're at the pub. So we're less than 10 minutes away. You'd better fang it, then! Can you hold on that long? (ALL LAUGH) Come on, Lynda. We've got work to do. Righty-oh. What about us? What are we doing, Paula? Absolutely nothing. It's my birthday! Yes! (LAUGHS) And what a beautiful place you're gonna have your birthday at! I know! It's amazing, isn't it? It's absolutely gorgeous. But, before this, what were you doing? We were sailing, nine years, around the world. Were you lost(?) (LAUGHS) It wasn't that slow a boat, but, yeah, you know, we just took our time and we went to some places that you just can't go to now. You know, pirates have overtaken it, and we were just really lucky that we got the window that we did. And the only pirates here are the ones hanging around the bar for too long, is it? That's right! So this is the old public bar. Nowadays known as the Portage Bar, it just sort of celebrates the fact that the Maori used to portage their waka through this area. Still got the old pool tables though, eh? Still got the pool tables, yep. That's our local thing. Hey, buddy. What's a good beer you've got here? Uh, the American Pale Ale is my drop of choice. Righty-oh, that sounds good to me. There we go. Not a bad break. Not a bad break at all. What was the place like when you first came in to it? Oh, sorry, buddy, I got you off your shot. That's an old pool player's trick, that is, yeah, I know. (LAUGHS) I'm on to you. I'm on to you. (LAUGHS) So it was pretty rundown, was it? It was very rundown. (LAUGHS) Oh! There you go. This was the old girl as we found her. So, the sign outside, 'Topless Night'. That was when the Topp Twins weren't playing. Yep. (BOTH LAUGH) That's it! There were a few pubs around like that. It was falling apart, essentially. It was pretty scary, to tell the truth. We actually had a builder friend of ours come in, and we told him, 'About three months' work.' He was here for five years. OK. (BOTH LAUGH) And I see you've got a wall up there with all the old heroes, eh? That's our heroes wall. That's one of Paula's creations. We wanted to make Riverhead famous, so we wanted the people of Riverhead to sort of be woven in to the pub. And there they all are, up on the wall. There they are. The big guy on the axe, Danny Hoey, was a world champion axeman. The other end there is the guy in the car, Howard Nattrass, set a speed record on the beach out here at Muriwai. Ernest Ruby, the guy at the end there, he went off to the war, and he also was a world-class boxer. So, yeah. Riverhead's full of interesting and accomplished people. Yes. The Daily Southern Cross. That would have been the local paper, would it? Yeah, that was the local paper. It says 'Seizure of Alleged Smuggled Goods at Riverhead.' 1865. What were they smuggling? Spirits. Gin, mostly, I think in those days, yeah. Would they have been bringing it to this pub? Probably. Probably. Boats have been coming up here for 150 years. This was the main route to the pub, and so, I guess, when people come up on a ferry and visit here, they're going back in time, and that's really great. You've got a bit of a man-cave kitchen here! Yeah, exactly. There's a lot of steel and wood and fire. Yep. That thing there behind us. What's that? That's our pizza oven. Wood-fired pizza oven. It started its life as a boiler in a winery, so it's aptly back in a hospitality place. Yes. Gonna make Paula's favourite dish. It's something we put together on the boat. Very fresh. Got an Indonesian style, sort of, nice Asian flavours. What am I doing? little thin strips for me, while I make a little dressing here. So how did you meet Steve? He was a client of mine. Oh, OK. I'm a graphic artist by trade, and we've been now married 28 years. Wow. We haven't been apart since. This Paula's a bit of a looker, isn't she? I thought so. Still do! When you first met her, did you have a bit of a chemistry going on? I think so. The fact that Paula was very in charge of her life at that stage, and I said to her, 'I really want to sail around the world. If that's not your gig, then maybe we need to relook at it,' and she was in like Flynn, like, 'Let's do it. Let's have a seven-year plan.' And now you've got a new one. Now you've got the pub. But nine years on a boat, did it bring you together, or sometimes did you need to be at either end of the boat and have a little bit of time out? Never. Never? Never. Wow. That's pretty amazing. We just get on really well. Yeah. We had to rely on each other so much. Yep. We make a great team. Paula's not only my best friend, but she's a great sailor. Howdy, girls! Hey! Wow, look at that! A little Indonesian dish for you. This is my favourite! Try that. Try that, Jools. Beautiful. Mmm, that's really fresh. Got a little kick to it. From the round-the-world to the Riverhead. What a beautiful day for a birthday. Happy birthday, girl. Thank you! Happy birthday, darling. Thanks, sweetheart. BOTH: # She's a grand ol' lady, # a true blue Kiwi. # Where the land and the waters meet # (PLAYS HARMONICA) Thank you! (CROWD CHEERS) * Lewis, aka Finn, of Pioneer Rafting has been eco adventuring on the Clutha for several decades, and picking tea tree for the pot is just part of a daily ritual. The Mighty Clutha is New Zealand's swiftest flowing in all our land. In fact, it's up there with some of the biggest rivers in the world. Now Lewis loves the Clutha like no other, so he's the perfect guide for us on our first white-water rafting adventure ever! You know this river like the back of your hand, don't you, Lewis? I do. In some ways,... I think the river knows me more than I know it. Yeah. For me, water is life, and this is where I'm most comfortable. I feel totally at home here. It does feel pretty special to be on it, eh, Lynda? Yeah. Is there any tucker in this river? There are quite a few trout. Yeah. Rainbows and browns, and some salmon. Incoming ducks, Jools. Ever the hunter, eh, Lynda? Yeah. (LAUGHS) Have you ever fallen in, Lewis? The only time I've had a really big swim was in a rapid, which we nicknamed 'The Terminator.' (BOTH CHUCKLE) Boat was on an angle, wave hit us like a truckload of wet cement. I went down like a brick. When you're underwater, it's very important to have confidence in the river. Not in yourself, in the river. So I just went with it, and it carried me right across to the right, and I got out. So we all came through OK, and that was a very memorable day. (ALL CHUCKLE) We all celebrated. So we've got some rapids coming up, Lewis. There's a big one coming. Righty-oh. Are you ready, Jools? Yeah, I'm ready to go. Off we go. Whoo-hoo! Come on, Jools, paddle! I'm paddling! (BOTH LAUGH) Yee-ha! Whoo! Whoo-hoo! Pulling in here. Whoo-hoo! We made the Clutha river! Whoo-hoo! Right, I've got work to do, haven't I? Yes, you're gonna plant some trees, aren't you? You have to go up the track about 100 metres, turn right, go another 100 metres, and then you should find Anne on the right. I'll be lost by then. (LAUGHS) What are we gonna do, Lewis? We're gonna have some billy tea, some tea-tree tea. Sounds good to me. How are you girls? Oh, hi! I'm looking for Anne. There she is, in the green vest. I'm Anne. Hi, Anne. Hello. I hear you're a bit of a local hero here. Aw, I don't know about that! What exactly are you doing? Well, this is an ecological restoration project run by Forest And Bird on Department of Conservation land as part of the river corridor. Wow. So what we're doing here is trying to rebuild the indigenous biodiversity that may have been present on this site and bring back some of the distinctive local landscape character. You'd better show me what you do here, so I can help. I've got a ro` Oh, you wanna help? I wanna help. You wanna roll your sleeves up? Brilliant. Be part of the community. I'm not here for long. (BOTH LAUGH) How you doing there, Lewis? Good, we've got the water. Straight out of the Clutha! Absolutely. Here's the tea. Righty-oh. That's all Manuka tree, is it? It's a great tea, and it's called tea tree because Captain Cook made tea from it in 1769. That's pretty exciting, isn't it? And so, I mean, he was just guessing that it was healthy, but he was absolutely right. It has lots of beneficial chemicals that are great for your digestion. Unreal, we're gonna have Captain Cook's tea. Wonder if he had it in a nice china tea cup from England? What are you gonna plant in here today? Well, this is a Porcupine Shrub. Now, this is a really good plant for this site, because it does well on these very dry, rocky slopes in full sun, and they have masses of little white berries underneath, which are what the lizards need. And the reason they're on the bottom and they're white is so that lizards can see them, but birds can't from the top. Ah, OK. So it's lizard heaven, one of these bushes. Yeah, clever. Ok, so the first thing we do is take it out of the pot and have a good look at the root ball. It's a bit dry, so what we're gonna do is dunk it in here. There we go, that's pretty good. Then we lift it out carefully, cos sometimes the root ball can disappear. The next thing we need to do is put compost in the hole. There you go. Brilliant. That's great. In these dry soils, we like to plant them a bit deeper and have a good saucer around them, so that, whenever it does rain, it collects in and... OK, so when the rain comes down here, it's gonna catch it in that little area? That's right, yep. Get those big rocks out of the way. Now the next thing we do, see if you could just grab that carpet square there. Yep. This is our mulch. But it's gonna keep a little bit of the moisture in there, eh? Yeah, it stops the rabbits digging up around the roots, which is a big problem here, and it stops weeds growing up, and it's also a great habitat for lizards. You'll lift up one of these one day and find a few skinks underneath. A little wool cottage for a skink? Exactly, that's right, yeah. (LAUGHS) So we're just steeping the tea, and` And that's important to swing it like that? Yeah, you have to do that. It helps release the oil. You know, I can swing it over my head if you want me to. Yeah, I wanna see that. OK. Well, I'll just stand over here and do that. OK. I mean, everyone does this. And you swing it over like this. (LAUGHS) I normally do it about seven times. OK, there it is. There's the Kiwi way to make tea. (LAUGHS) That's the Kiwi way to make tea, that's right. Well, it does help. It pushes the leaves down. Oh, yeah. It helps bring the oils out. I think that's actually Lewis' way of making tea. (LAUGHS) Don't other people do that? I've never seen that done before, Lewis. That's exciting to me. Well. We'll just give that a couple of final thwacks and that's pretty good. So, there's only one more thing to do, and that's to put a bit of water on it. By putting all these plants up here on the hill, do you think it changes or does anything to the river? In the long term, it will. The more vegetation you have along a riparian corridor, which is how you describe a river corridor, the less erosion there is, the better water retention, and the water that does flow down is often cleaner, so, yeah, it is important, and it's part of the whole habitat as well for the creatures that live around the river. Righty-oh. Done. Done our first tree. Well done. Well done. I like to give them a little prayer. Grow well, little plant. And give them a bit of a hug before we finish the job. I'd better give it a hug too. Absolutely. See you later, little fella. (LAUGHS) Hope you're here when I get back. (LAUGHS) Try that. Oh, it smells good. (SIGHS) Oh, Lewis, it's good. How are you, team? Jools! You're just in time, we're having a cup of tea. Oh, I've had a lovely time, I've been planting trees. Try that. Working hard. Who wants a sausage? I got these from The Gamekeeper in Kurow. Well, hurry up and give me one! (ALL LAUGH) Crikey dick, they look good, I can't wait. I've worked up a bit of an appetite, Toppy. That's the story. How many trees did you plant? Oh, I can't remember. Thousands (!) Thousands! (LAUGHS) Whoo! She's hot. Beautiful. Whoa! Whoa! I dropped my sausage! (LAUGHS) Here's to the Clutha, buddy. Here's to the Clutha. Cheers. Cheers. Long may she reign. Absolutely. (LAUGHS) KEN: The river was our first motorway! With waka, barge and steam, and many men to unload goods for the waiting Clydesdale team. As kids, we all went fishing along that river's edge. There was always plenty of tucker amongst the rushes and the sedge. The rivers are our life-force, so keep 'em all pollution-free. Cos you know just where they're headed, Ken, out to the deep blue sea. Ken! Whoa! Ken, I've got something! Quick! Ready! I've got it!