meet your hosts, Rosalie and Russell Smith

We look forward to meeting you and welcoming you to this unique corner of New Zealand 

Rosalie’s family is from Auckland, but her parents moved to Sydney where she grew up. She spent many years as an international travel consultant which nurtured her love of travel and pleasure in new experiences.  She loves the sharing of stories with guests over a glass of wine at the end of the day.  
  
Russell grew up near Johannesburg.  He spent several years as a professional hunter and photographic safari guide before moving to Australia to marry Rosalie.  There he worked as a builder, before returning to the bush to work for the National Parks and Wildlife Service.  He is passionate about fly fishing, with the ultimate thrill coming from stalking a big trout, catching it with a fly he’s tied himself, then releasing it to fight another day. Russell considers the local waters provide some of New Zealand's best fly fishing.
 
During many visits to New Zealand Rosalie and Russell traveled extensively throughout the country, but fell in love with the Mackenzie High Country, both for the majesty of the scenery and the excellent fishing available in nearby streams and lakes. In 2002, having decided on a lifestyle change, they bought 4 acres in a small subdivision on Ben Ohau Station near Twizel.
They moved permanently from Australia in 2003 and the building of Matuka Lodge commenced in April, with the Lodge opening in November 2004. The Lodge is their own design, and while Russell worked with a team of local tradesmen on the construction, Rosalie arranged the decorating, using many pieces collected on their travels.

The Lodge was designed with special emphasis on making the best use of its north facing aspect, not only to take advantage of the spectacular mountain views, but to maximize the benefits of passive solar heating in winter.  The pond in front of the Lodge provides natural cooling in the summer as well as a wetland home for resident and migrating birds.

Rosalie and Russell are committed to pursuing environmentally sustainable practices wherever possible and are proud to have achieved Green Globe Benchmarked status.  They recycle almost all their waste, compost all vegetable material, grow salad greens and some vegetables in their organic vegetable garden, have allowed the grounds to regenerate with native grasses and have planted hundreds of trees.  Cleaning and personal products are from companies that use natural ingredients without synthetic chemicals.

We would love to meet you. Click on the Bookings heading in the menu above and choose your room. Come and share the magic of Matuka Lodge.