Gun-toting horsemen, highway robbers, cheese-rolling races, a keg-throwing contest and even a lolly cannon — Saturday's Wild West Fest in Waimamaku had all that and much more.
Several hundred people turned out for a day of western-themed fun despite occasional rain and a postponement from the original date due to February's Covid level 2 alert.
The annual event is a fundraiser for various health causes in South Hokianga with much of the cash raised by shotgun-wielding bandits extracting tolls from passing motorists.
![A bandit named Blue and Wild West Fest organising committee chairwoman Chrissy Turner guard Waimamaku's southern border. Photo / Peter de Graaf](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/C5N3VHH56JSQOXW5DZPNX3T6BM.jpg?auth=883da486d4f754953b01fc8e5c3d5ff1205875928b10934f6185b06db60ae952&width=16&height=12&quality=70&smart=true)
![Rider Donald "Fordy" Ford of Ōue and his horse Chees. Photo / Peter de Graaf](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/LCMPAO5EDOH73QCPCJRQGP4VNA.jpg?auth=9bd920a9f2fa250c03d714f9b3ec7344a77a47d95c5458b10622ea47a1a41c59&width=16&height=24&quality=70&smart=true)