Featherston: We've got wind

Flying trampolines, power cuts, downed trees, lost washing, and the sound of rubbish bins skipping merrily down the street. It’s another lovely Spring day in Featherston.

It’s ironic that so many Wellingtonians move to the Wairarapa for better weather, probably hoping for less wind as part of the package.

Instead they find themselves triple pegging the washing and unpacking the portable gas stove during yet another power cut.

I love being inside listening to the rain on the roof, but for some reason gale force winds don’t engender the same cozy feeling. And while I don’t mind a bit of rain when I’m out for a run, gale force winds don’t really cut it when you’re 5’3” and liable to get blown over.

“Oh my goodness - how does everyone cope with this wind?” a new arrival in Featherston (“Feddy” to the locals) plaintively enquired on Facebook. “We feel like the roof is going to blow off. Is it always this bad?” She received 116 replies, none of which included the word, “No.” The general consensus was this always happens in Spring, so just cross your fingers your trees stay upright, and count the days until Summer. It’s referred to as the spring equinox.

“My first spring equinox here, I came home from work in Welly to find my front gate in the vege patch and the roller door on my garage completely ripped out of the sides,” said one respondent. “Have faith, the wind comes and goes but the mad townsfolk go on forever.”

“When I moved here there was a night I hid in the wardrobe because I thought a tornado was coming,” said another. “Now I don’t even wake up.”

Another topic of conversation is the best way to hang your washing on blustery days. Hanging everything sideways is the deal, along with triple pegging. One joker suggests using a rivet gun.

One post included a 1998 image from our local newspaper, The Phoenix, reporting on October winds in excess of 190km/hour. Here’s hoping we don’t see a repeat performance this year.

I’m not a weather expert, so I don’t know the exact reason for these blustery winds. I’ve heard it’s got something to do with the wind funnelling down through the Remutakas. A few years ago, two locals produced a line of bumper stickers with the slogan, “Featherston – We’ve got wind”, for a community fundraiser. It’s almost as good as “Right up my Hutt Valley” that was unveiled back in the 90s.

Some locals say the wind lulls them off to sleep while others complain of being kept awake. Me? I happily slept through the worst of the gale force winds last Thursday night, so I have no cause for complaint. If I had been scared, I might have been tempted to curl up in Arki’s cozy new den, which is now covered in camouflage netting for extra comfort and privacy.

Arki's newly camouflaged den (with hidden dog).

Thanks to the weather, we also lost power for most of Friday, with a number of downed power lines and trees in the Wairarapa. The power came back on a couple of times during the day before frustratingly disappearing again.

These days, having no electricity doesn’t just mean no heating and eating dinner by candlelight; it means no internet connection and, in our case, no cellphone coverage.

The word on the street is that Spark is the only reliable mobile service provider in Featherston when the wind is up. Take it from us: Vodafone is not.

But luckily, we had no fallen trees or broken fences to contend with, as some of our neighbours did. A few pieces of outdoor furniture got blown over and the front garden was covered with someone else’s recycling on Friday. Our own recycling bin had to be retrieved from a few hundred metres away near the train station.

It was a good excuse to head out for dinner for the first time since before lockdown. The power was back on by then, but we weren’t taking any chances.

Perhaps I’ll leave the last word on Featherston’s wind to Adele Reilly:

It stops in summer and Feddy rocks. I felt the same when I moved here. Thought to myself, WTF have I done. Then summer came. :-)