Pull on your gumboots for four days of exhibitions, contests, entertainment, food and even art and fashion at Hamilton's Fieldays, says Sarah Ell.

There's more to check out while you're in the region for Fieldays.

The sentencing of a Waikato woman who spent $312,000 of her former employer's money paying off her bills and her wedding has been adjourned.

A woman was left with a broken collarbone and head injuries following a late night assault in the Hamilton last night.

A man who beat a police officer to death has been denied parole in his first hearing since he was jailed in 1999.

A Japanese tourist who missed her bus outside a rural New Zealand cave attraction is overwhelmed by the kindness of local people who came to her aid.

More details have emerged about a boating tragedy on the Waikato River that left one man dead and his three mates clinging to trees after their runabout capsized yesterday.

A duck-shooting trip turned to tragedy yesterday after a group of mates were flung from their boat as it capsized on the Waikato River.

A driver has died after crashing a vehicle into a tree, just south of Hamilton, police say.

There were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the man's disappearance and the matter had been referred to the coroner.

Waikato Police are appealing to the public for help locating a 42-year-old man named Jonathan Kinvig, last seen at a holiday park on May 14.

Police were analysing reported offences to look for both investigative and prevention opportunities and encouraged rural communities to keep their property secure.

An 11-month-old girl is fighting for her life after being run over by a small truck in a Paeroa driveway this afternoon.

Four Auckland men who allegedly travelled to Hamilton and carried out a ram-raid of a city motorbike store were caught by police before making it back over the Bombays.

Three pedestrians have died after five separate fatal crashes this Anzac weekend, prompting police to lament drivers failing to heed basic safety messages.

A 20-year-old man is in a serious but stable condition after sustaining burns while adding petrol to a fire last night, a Waikato Hospital representative said.

The death of a rural paper delivery driver who was not wearing a seatbelt should be a warning to other delivery drivers, Waikato Police said.

A 26-year-old man arrested for assaulting a woman at a Hamilton massage parlour was caught with a large sum of cash allegedly stolen from his employer.

A bystander was bashed in the head with a pillowcase stuffed with a rock or brick after catching a burglar in the act in Paeroa last night.

A New Zealand Herald delivery driver could have survived an early morning crash today if he had been wearing his seatbelt, police say.

A Waikato farm development company - Dairy Solutionz - will open a 117ha, 300-cow demonstration dairy in the Narino region of south Colombia tomorrow.

Michelle Coursey finds the ideal way to get away from it all in the peaceful haven that is Kawhia.

Explore the River Trails, embrace the lake and let the young ones play freely while you unwind — this is old school cool, says Elisabeth Easther.

Animal care workers in Morrinsville have been left dumbfounded after a cat and its kittens were found covered in human faeces.

A driver is is dead and at least two other people are injured after a three-car crash in Eastern Waikato today.

Waikato police are appealing for motorists to slow down after eight crashes in the district since 8am today.

Elisabeth Easther goes to the birds.