Soul escape

Quirky cabooses, traditional tipis and stylish studios—whatever your style, Solscape Eco Retreat in Raglan has an eclectic array of accomodation for all

Quirky cabooses, traditional tipis and stylish studios—
whatever your style, Solscape Eco Retreat in Raglan
has an eclectic array of accommodation for all

Photos supplied

It’s dark and rain is
bucketing down when my
husband and I turn up the
long and winding drive
to the Solscape Eco Retreat
in Raglan.

In summer, Raglan might
be the perfect Kiwi beach town,
packed with bronzed surfers,
friendly locals and humming
with the tunes of touring
musicians, but I can’t say for
sure. I’ve always retreated
here on cooler days, when
looking out to sea, watching
the surfers line up to claim the
waves, feels contemplative
and restful rather than lazy.
There’s a kind of meditation in
watching other people surf: tiny
compared to the vast grey ocean
that surrounds and regularly
engulfs them, the surfers accept
what nature serves up, riding
a rare wave to victory, but
mostly being tossed aside and
swallowed by the churning
ocean.

On this wet spring
weekend, I’m happy with
introspective walks along the
waterfront, good food, great
coffee—those surfer-baristas
make a mean flat white—and
a splurge in the town’s primo
antique shops and art galleries.

Raglan operates on laidback
surfer-time, the drowsy,
smiling locals taking their
sweet time to serve their
customers. It takes a little
while but eventually I stop
sighing impatiently, shifting
from one foot to the other,
take a deep breath and allow
myself to slow down to their
more peaceful pace. But unlike
most sleepy Kiwi beach towns,
Raglan’s world-famous waves
summon hardy tourists and
their surfboards year-round, so
even in the off-season the town
centre’s half-dozen restaurants
are filling up and there’s a
gig most weekends. The only
things missing from Raglan’s
festival feel are the tipis.

Above: Built from earth bricks
and reclaimed native timber,
Solscape’s studios are
modern but comfy—and
very, very peaceful

Solscape Eco Retreat is
perhaps better known in Raglan
as “the teepee place”. Nestled
into native bush, six traditional
white tipis are erected over
poured earth floors between
December and April every year,
accessible only on foot. This
unconventional, very pretty
camping area is completely
off-grid, with hot water and
LED lighting supplied by solar
panels and an adobe oven
for wood-fired pizzas under a
covered dining area. Most tipis
sleep two on comfy futon slat
beds, with one huge familysized
tipi accommodating four.
It’s the ultimate in civilised
camping, complete with nice
big feather duvets made up
with high-quality linen, bedside
tables, solar-powered reading
lights and hot water bottles for
extra coziness.

If that sounds quirky, wait
till you see the cabooses.
Old rail carriages have been
recycled and refurbished as
cosy couples accommodation,
twin and triple-share units. The
larger, self-contained family
cabooses are everything a
young boy (and the boyish-atheart)
could dream of.

There’s also an eclectic
array of self-contained cottages,
including two brand spanking
new eco-studios, where we
stayed. Built from earth bricks
and reclaimed native timber,
with a high angled ceiling
and floor-to-ceiling windows
(double-glazed, of course), our
modern studio feels spacious
but snug and very, very
peaceful. One small heater
warms up the space in no time,
and when the sun’s shining
the doors can be thrown open
to connect the studio with an
outdoor dining space.

For mum or dad, the
treatment room offers
a tempting escape

At night, there’s plenty
of options for mood lighting
(I counted 16 LED bulbs, and
yet the entire studio uses only
85 watts of electricity), and
the kitchen’s well-equipped
for self-catering—though once
we discover my new favourite
Raglan restaurant Orca, our
budget-friendly home-cooking
intentions go out the window.
Outside, a fire pit surrounded
by seats carved from treestumps
is begging for toasted
marshmallows and stories
under the stars.

Current owners Bernadette
Gavin and Phil McCabe have
spent the past eight years
developing Solscape into
the embodiment of living in
harmony with the land and
are now looking for investors
to partner with. They see
their labour of love as a
“living, working classroom”,
where guests, volunteers and
employees can explore ways of
living with a lighter footprint.
An onsite vegetarian cafe will
open this summer, and many
weekends there’ll be a practical
workshop on permaculture,
earth building or yoga—and
if you’re not much of a joiner,
there’s plenty of individual
pursuits on offer.

Above: Kids will love
sleeping in an old
rail carriage or the
family-sized tipi.

There’s a bush-enclosed
treatment room with views for
miles and a rotating roster of
miracle workers, with a range
of restorative treatments that
includes Bernadette’s own
traditional Hawaiian body work
practice. It’s a great way to
recover from being pummelled
into the reef in Whale Bay, or to
relax after a big day outdoors.
Raglan’s well-known for its
horse-trekking, fishing and golf
course, while the adventurous
can head out mountain biking,
kayaking, paragliding or
skydiving.

And of course, there’s the
surfing. Just 15 minutes walk
from Solscape is Manu Bay,
aka ‘The Point’. Said to have
the world’s longest left-hand
point break (translation:
waves), its starring role in 60s
cult classic movie The Endless
Summer keeps surfers pouring
in from around the world. But
Raglan’s not just for the surfing
hardcore; it’s also a great place
to learn, and Solscape has some
persuasively priced lessonsplus-
caboose accommodation
packages, from $165 for a two
night stay, 2.5-hour surf lesson
and all the gear. Maybe next
time I won’t just watch.