Historic Hayes

22/06/2026

Meet Oturehua legend Ken Gillespie, who has been leading tours and doing other helpful things at Historic Hayes for a whopping 50 years.

On Sundays in summer, Ken runs the entertaining operating tours at Hayes, bringing to life the ingenious farming inventions of Ernest Hayes. Ken explains, "Most of the creations are fencing-related — wire strainers and triplex — but also windmills, cattlestops and stock handling equipment."

Ken is embedded in all parts of the Oturehua community: he is a keen curler — his team has won two golds at the NZ Masters Games, and to top it off, he is a trustee of the world-famous Otago Central Rail Trail Trust.

Thank you Ken for all you do to bring history to life for locals and visitors alike.

Read more about Ken here: https://www.odt.co.nz/regions/central-otago/spirit-town-embodied-one

Plan your trip to Historic Hayes in Central Otago: https://tohuwhenua.nz/historichayes

📷These great shots are by Clare Toia-Bailey

24/05/2026

🍂 That’s a Wrap for the Season! 🍂

Today marked the final day of the season at and what a wonderful season it has been.

To everyone who visited us over the past months — thank you. Whether you stopped in for a quick look, shared stories over coffee at Hannah’s Café, or brought friends and family to experience Hayes, your support means the world to us.

This special place is kept alive by the people who walk through the gates, and we feel incredibly fortunate to have welcomed so many fantastic visitors again this year.

Now it’s time for a winter pause while the team recharges and prepares for another exciting season ahead. Both Hayes and Hannah’s Café will reopen in September 2026, ready to do it all again.

Until then, thank you for being part of the Hayes journey. Have a safe and happy winter, and we look forward to seeing you again in the spring.

💚 The Team at Hayes

18/05/2026

We are frozen today.

The café is open.
Hot food and great coffee ready.

The museum is closed today as the ground conditions are treacherous.

Hopefully the sun comes out tomorrow.

13/05/2026

A huge thank you to Darren Carson from Roy Carson Builders for taking away our gate that had reached its last legs and rebuilding this lovely gate for our driveway.
Darren reused all of the hinges, catches and bolts and after 4 coats of paint put it back on the gudgeons.

Doesn't it look amazing.

11/05/2026

We've sent the team on a first aid training course today so the museum and café are closed.

We will be open at our usual time tomorrow.

08/05/2026

Historic Hayes and Hannahs Cafe will be closed from 1.30pm today.
Our apologies for any inconvenience.

02/05/2026

The will be no Operating Tour today through the workshop.
Self guided tours only.

29/04/2026

We are closed 30th April.
As we are nearing the end of our season,its good bye to our casuals, Evanne and Louis and our fixed term ladies Glenda and Christine.

So we are heading on a mystery day out as a End of Season farewell and thank you.

We'll be open again on the 1st May.

23/04/2026

We are CLOSED on ANZAC DAY.

Image result from keanewzealand.com