Bluff Farm POP site

01/09/2024

29/08/2024

Spring has definitely sprung on Bluff Farm

New calves, piglets and blossom and daffodils

Calves love their first experience of being set free from the sheds. Time for new paddocks.

18/08/2024

Snowing at the farm

18/08/2024

It's snowing 🌨

10/08/2024

Local celebrities staying at our POP this weekend. Fire has been well used. Pet calf has been chosen and is beautiful.

02/08/2024

New residents have arrived at Bluff Farm.

01/08/2024

Calving has started and we have some gorgeous calves coming through the sheds. Let's hope that nasty weather stays away, looking forward to seeing you soon.

18/07/2024

Thanks so much to our lovely visitors and our amazing house sitters. Without them we wouldn't be able to get off farm

Thanks Gail Ruddle and Murray and Trevor

18/07/2024

Kids have been busy on holidays. We helped pick potatoes for Satisfy rescue through the Lions

Planting is nearly finished for the season
Flaxes, grasses, pittosporum and cabbage trees, Gavins Favorite 😍

Also been getting the sheds ready for calving
So if you want to experience feeding a calf or seeing one being born come on out and stay and get involved.

Always great to have an extra pair of hands.

23/06/2024

Got our next lot of native plants delivered. Thank you Synlait. 1700 plants which includes flaxes, grasses and cabbage trees.
These will be planted around the farm and filling in gaps now along creeks and laneways.

Next big project will be the cow shed around the yards and turn around.

04/06/2024

Had the most amazing group weekend with an all points group visiting our POP site over Kings birthday weekend. 25 people visited us this weekend some regulars and some new faces.

Lots of laughs adventures and great conversations happening around the fire and enjoying the winter sunshine.

Some of the visitors were keen to experience farming by moving stock up the road and some more amazing planting was done.
We even went down to the workingmens club for takeaways and netball.

Madeline and Thomas also put on a concert with their violins and guitars, getting their first busking experience under their belt.
We love having people coming to visit our piece of paradise

02/06/2024

Bit of violin concert and also guitar from the kids.

Also updated sign with our now Elite status through our milk company Synlait.

Bear our dog waiting for the campers to wake up.

27/05/2024

Some fabulous events happening over the next couple of months

Come stay at our camp site so you can take in the sights and events around the area.

26/05/2024

Along with our amazing staff and Gavin, some of our lovely regular campers have been helping to plant the many trees we have recieved from our milk company Synlait.

2100 plants so far and a few more to come

Thank you so much to all our lovely campers we couldn't do what we are doing with out all of your help.

Merv, Karen, Gail Ruddle Murray. Trevor and Jillian for the house sitting, tree planting, gardening, painting, babysitting and of course animal sitting.

26/05/2024

As part of the Ballance awards a photgrapher followed us around for the morning and took photos of our family and the farm. Such a lovely way to keep a record of our wee piece of paradise.

23/05/2024

So privileged to see the aurora from our place last week. Even woke the kids up to go hunting for more, we could see it from our driveway.

So lucky to live in a dark sky environment so our night sky can often be filled with stars, the milky way and many other amazing sites.

So bring out your telescopes to get the most amazing views. We also have a local observatory for anyone keen to book in for.
Night viewing.

Oxford Observatory
027 807 0630

https://g.co/kgs/Voybpfa

23/05/2024

Wee write up about our wee spot on the All Points coming website and page. It was the first stop they advertised this way. Was a nice surprise.

First up on 'Stop and Stay Spotlight' is Bluff Farm at Ashley Gorge.

If you're looking for a unique farm experience and a slice of rural paradise, look no further! We're a working non-irrigated dairy farm just 10 minutes from Oxford, 30 minutes from Rangiora, and 45 minutes from Christchurch.

Here at our farm, we love sharing the beauty of our surroundings with fellow nature enthusiasts. There are plenty of walking tracks for all levels, the Ashley Gorge river is just 5 minutes away, and we have exciting mountain bike tracks to explore.

And guess what? We're dog-friendly! 🐶 Our three energetic Jack Russells are always ready to give a warm welcome to new friends. They love to say hello and share the joy of our little corner of the world. But we do ask that you keep your dog on leash until we have explicitly given you the OK to let them off. Not all dogs are as friendly as yours.

For the adventurous souls out there, we're thrilled to invite campers to not just enjoy the scenery but also get hands-on with farm life. If you're keen, you're more than welcome to join us in some farm duties and learn about the daily ins and outs of dairy farming.

So, whether you're a nature lover, a hiker, a biker, or just looking for a peaceful retreat, come on down and experience the magic of farm life with us! Feel free to drop a message if you have any questions or want to plan your visit. 🚜🌳

01/05/2024

Some previous photos of what the POP site looked like only a few years ago.

Large trees had to be removed to ensure we had an amazing view and for the safety of our campers. The mound was created and planted with various natives.

This paddock was previously used as a lamb or calf paddock for the children's Ag Day animals.

01/05/2024

Milking is slowing down for the season, but the work still continues into redeveloping and planting more native plants in various areas of the farm.

Soon we will receive 3000 plants from our milk company Synlait.
These will be planted in our laneways and waterways to protect them.

We are very grateful to receive these as part of a programme called whakapuawai. They are proud to donate over 70000 plants each year to the suppliers.

We have also been planting some manuka and kanuka around the farm and POP site.

Keep an eye on this space to see the updated photos.

Here are some updated photos from our previous planting from last year on our laneway. As this has grown so well we will continue to plant in the same areas. The plastic covers will be taken off to allow the plants to grow further.

28/03/2024

Bit of sawmilling happening today on the farm. Making some chopping boards and bar leaders.

21/03/2024

https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/350221028/tiny-nz-towns-hidden-treasures?fbclid=IwAR17YhJV92WT5q3__IzB6u0Y0dhLs60L9Jn97F9luNxpTBU10tAMaAPloPw

Check out our amazing town.

They ain’t famous for their stunning architecture and flashy department stores, but we love them.

20/03/2024

Oxford Dark Sky Park Staus.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/rqVQQAMFHWm9mokG/?mibextid=ZbWKwL

Dark Sky International has granted international dark sky park accreditation to the 11,350-hectare Oxford Forest Conservation Area.

20/03/2024

Check out our newly appointed Oxford Dark sky park status. Great area to check out the stars, Similar to Lake Tekapo

https://www.facebook.com/share/XsXx9QtJa3J5rRBa/?mibextid=qi2Omg

Community centre

07/03/2024

For anyone that has visited in the past few months you may have heard us talk about our nomination for A Ballance Farm Environment award.

We had our awards dinner last night. Lots of amazing farms. Sadly no awards for us but we came away feeling very proud of what we have achieved at out little piece of paradise.

We love sharing our farm with others and look forward to extending and building on what we have already achieved.

27/02/2024

Pretty amazing weekend weather wise. Still warm enough to go for a swim at the gorge.

23/02/2024

Come on down to the gala day. All getting set up

$10 at the gate. Proceeds go towards helping making the walking wheel chair accessible and towards a new playground.

Duck race
First 150 people through the gates gets a rubber duck to enter the race.

Duck registration closes at 1 and the amazing race will be at 2.00.
Check out all the other happenings at the gorge today

Treasure hunt with painted rocks
Egg toss
Limbo stick
Sack races
Tug of war parents vs children
Gladiator duel
Dunk tank
Giant egg and spoon
Apple bobbing

23/02/2024

Lawns all mowed, come join us for the weekend, plenty of room and the weather looks great.

23/02/2024

19/02/2024

We have joined another camping organization called Allpoints camping. This is an organization that encourages all to experience camping anyway they like.

You can come in your tents, caravans, motor homes or cars.

We have a shower and toilet block and also power

We charge
$5 per person to park up and you can have the use of the toilet.
$10 per person to use the shower and power.

We have 3 jack russells and are open to visitors bringing their dogs on leash. Visitors are responsible for their dogs and their outgoings.

Check us out on the allpoints camping website.

17/02/2024

Fabulous night with 4 more caravans in and lots of dogs having their best life.