Sounds sanctuary a place to chill out

By SUE FARLEY


We wake early here - it's too nice to waste the day sleeping. From the kitchen comes the smell of freshly baked croissants. Julie had made the dough the evening before and chilled it overnight before getting up at first light to roll it with thick layers of butter, making them all the more flaky and tasty.

On the window sill a loaf of newly baked bread cools for later in the day, rich with the eggs and milk she has used to make it soft and filling.

Glentui is all about good old-fashioned comfort. The food is friendly and satisfying, the house is interesting (a hand-made log house), and the setting is superb. It's a summer place. Just 20 minutes from Havelock by boat, which is the only way in, it sits high above Hikapu Reach overlooking the entrance to Kenepuru Sound in the Marlborough Sounds. And, through the day, as the sun ambles across the sky, it changes the colours of the hills and the sea through a thousand shades of green, blue and grey.

Guests come to Glentui for a variety of reasons. Relaxation is mandatory. The fishing is good most of the year, there are bushwalks around nearby headlands and through coastal bush. Next door is home to a local artist whose studio and art garden are well worth a visit. And it's only a short boat ride to any number of quiet bays and sleepy sunny spots, to which host David is always happy to ferry guests.

In winter, dolphins swim through the channel below the house, their dark fins breaking the water in morse code patterns. In autumn the stags roar on the hills high above the house. And, as Julie says, the men who come to stay are usually happy just to fish all day long.

Which brings us to dinner. Local food is high on the menu here. Wild pig and venison slow-cooked in the coal range get the aromatic senses working overtime long before the first bottle of wine is opened. Merino lamb, fresh snapper and local oysters and mussels are always in season. There are fresh veges from the garden and rhubarb and apple pie is a perennial favourite. But Julie's lemon meringue pie is just about worth the trip on its own - layers of sweet pastry, thick creamy filling and piles of light meringue spell the end of any kind of exercise for the rest of the day.

Visitors can choose to visit as B&B guests with a fully catered stay, and all the hard work done for them, or they can rent the house for themselves. Easily sleeping three couples Glentui provides a perfect base for a few days of shared company with good friends and a carton of fine Marlborough wine.

Glentui is typical of the best places there are to stay in the Marlborough Sounds. It is remote and quiet without being too hard to get to. It has mains power and reliable telephone but also the options of a woodstove and candles if you prefer. It sits high enough above the sea to give an overall view of the waterway without being too close to the sea traffic.

Plan a stay of three or four days to allow time to slow to the right pace. Lunch on the deck can take all afternoon if you do it right, finishing in time to start thinking about dinner. In the meantime, though, there's the beach to wander along, and some interesting books about life in the Sounds to read.

If the pressure is just too much, then sitting in front of the big lounge window, watching the boats chug by on their way to the outer sounds, will easily fill those last quiet moments of the day.

* Sue and Georgia visited as guests of Glentui Lodge

Getting There

Rimu Bay, Pelorus Sound. Water taxis and the mail boat from Havelock will stop on demand at neighbouring Whatanihi Bay wharf. Ask for details when booking at Glentui - hosts David and Julie Boys, contact by email, phone 03 574 1198 or fax 03 574 1197.

Costs

Summer rates (October 1 to Dec 22, and Jan 6 to Mar 15) $230 a double, $180 a single each night. Christmas/New Year (Dec 23 to Jan 5) $300 a double each night. Tariff includes all meals, refreshments, wines and beers with meals.

Access

No easy access for wheelchairs or disabled people.

Children

A great place for kids under supervision. Under 5s are free, 5-10 yrs quarter charge, 10-15 yrs half charge.

Dogs

Dogs are OK - $5 a night.

Smoking

OK in the lounge but not the bedrooms.

Cuisine

Can be all-inclusive and features tasty local foods. Or come well prepared if doing your own thing.