Central Otago Rail Trail

Stuart Duncan whistles his instructions to his dog, Tis, to bring the sheep down from the hills. Photos by David Lansing.

So this morning, shortly after dawn, I hear a long whistle somewhere out on the ranch. And then another long whistle, this one slightly different in tone—like two long whistles followed by two shorts. Sort of like a whistling Morse code.

Which, I discover when I pull on some pants and a jacket, is pretty much what it is. Stuart is leaning against the fence, hands deep in his pockets on this cold morning, whistling at his dog, high up in the hills, bringing the sheep down so Stuart can move them to another pasture.

Stuart has a whole repertoire of whistles. One means “turn left” and another “turn right.” There’s “move them up the hill” and “move them down” and there’s “stop right there.” A man and his dog.

The dog’s name is Tisdale; Stuart calls him Tis. Stuart says he pretty smart but he’s had smarter. And dumber. “This one here,” Stuart says, nodding at Tis as he herds the sheep directly towards us, “tries hard but sometimes he doesn’t get it right. I whistle right and he goes left. I think maybe he’s a little dyslexic. Can a dog be dyslexic?” Stuart laughs at the very idea and I do too.

It’s something to see though. A dog out there in the hills commanding a couple hundred sheep, all based on the whistles his master gives him.

It takes all of maybe twenty minutes to bring in the sheep from the high hills, herd them through a gate, across the road, and in to another pasture. Fast work. When Stuart locks up the gate he gives another high whistle and this time Tis comes running, hurdles the high fence, and jumps in to the back of Stuart’s flatbed truck. And his payoff for all this? A scratch behind the ears. And then the two of them are off.

The amazing Tis. Photo by David Lansing.

A man and his dog. Photo by David Lansing.

Our bikes await us on a morning that was below freezing at the Wedderburn Cottages in New Zealand. Photo by David Lansing.

The deafening silence all around woke me a little before five this morning. In the darkness I listened for a sound. Anything—a bird, the wind, a dog’s bark. Nothing. I can’t tell you how happy that silence made me feel. Usually when I wake up this early I’ll stay in bed pretending I might fall back asleep but this morning I got up, padded lightly on the cold wood floor, and checked to see what the coffee situation was.

Yesterday afternoon when we’d checked in to our cottages in Wedderburn, Lorraine, who owns the sheep ranch and lodging we’re staying in, said she’d packed us a little breakfast in our rooms. In the mini-fridge was some yogurt, a box of Weet-Bix, two slices of bread, and some Marmite. A proper Kiwi breakfast. There was also a baggie of coffee and a French press. I boiled some water.

Wedderburn may only be 540m above sea level, but it’s the highest point on the Central Otago Rail Trail. While the water was boiling, I opened my cottage door a crack and stuck my head out. Brisk. Definitely brisk. Lorraine had warned us that it was expected to get to –10 over night. And here we were on a biking holiday.

Once I’d made my coffee and a piece of toast with Marmite on it, I crawled back in to bed. I don’t know why I was so pleased with myself but I was. The dark morning, the cold cottage, being out in the wop wops surrounded by thousands of sheep, and here I was sitting up in bed munching on my toast, sipping my coffee, and feeling as content as I’ve ever felt in my life. Go figure. One of the serendipitous joys of travel.