High Heels and Gumboots

For anyone who has dreamed of living in the country … here’s the hilarious, heart-warming brutal reality.

Rebecca Hayter was a high-profile yachting journalist based in Auckland when she followed a whim to buy a lifestyle block on the beach at Golden Bay at the top of the South Island – but she didn’t know what she didn’t know.

Unexpectedly in charge of chickens, sheep and an orchard, Rebecca shamelessly exploited local knowledge as she tackled drought, isolation and the mysteries of her Massey Ferguson 135. As a journalist, she explored local politics and the differences between urban and rural New Zealand. As a daughter, she explored the most complex relationship of her life.

Based on the author’s column of the same name (Best Columnist/Blogger in the Media Awards 2020 for North & South magazine), this is a candid, hilarious, heartbreaking and heartwarming story of a woman learning the realities of life on the farm and finding confidence in new skills and in herself.

About the Author:
Rebecca Hayter grew up in the rural community of Golden Bay and loved sharing her classmates’ farming lifestyles. However, she was also passionate about writing. She graduated from the University of Auckland with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English in 1985, but doubted her ability to make writing a career. In 1990, aged 26, she nursed her father through terminal cancer – the intensely personal experience provided clarity and encouraged her to pursue writing and sailing.

Within two years, Rebecca had completed a Diploma in Short Story Writing, followed by a Certificate in Journalism. She began writing for Boating New Zealand and bought a 26ft yacht which provided an unofficial course in DIY – skills that would later prove useful on her lifestyle block.

She joined Boating New Zealand as yachting editor in 1998 and became its first woman editor a year later. She led a major overhaul of the magazine to win 2006 Editor of the Year – Supreme Overall Winner. After more than 12 years over two terms as editor, she resigned to return to her rural roots and buy Oceanspirit, the small farm which would be her home for the next seven years. She now lives in Nelson, keeps her launch Nantucket at Waikawa and continues to write about boats.

Author Biography

Rebecca Hayter grew up in the rural community of Golden Bay and loved sharing her classmates’ farming lifestyles. However, she was also passionate about writing. She graduated from the University of Auckland with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English in 1985, but doubted her ability to make writing a career. In 1990, aged 26, she nursed her father through terminal cancer – the intensely personal experience provided clarity and encouraged her to pursue writing and sailing.

Within two years, Rebecca had completed a Diploma in Short Story Writing, followed by a Certificate in Journalism. She began writing for Boating New Zealand and bought a 26ft yacht which provided an unofficial course in DIY – skills that would later prove useful on her lifestyle block. She joined Boating New Zealand as yachting editor in 1998 and became its first woman editor a year later. She led a major overhaul of the magazine to win 2006 Editor of the Year – Supreme Overall Winner. After more than 12 years over two terms as editor, she resigned to return to her rural roots and buy Oceanspirit, the small farm which would be her home for the next seven years. She now lives in Nelson, keeps her launch Nantucket at Waikawa and continues to write about boats.