Poets and musicians came from throughout New Zealand and Australia to rendezvous in Naseby during the weekend for the third annual Bards, Ballads and Bulldust Festival.
The three-day event, which featured half a dozen performers and a band, was organised by Roch Sullivan, the owner of the Ancient Briton Hotel which hosted the event in Naseby.
‘‘It was absolutely out of this world, I was just speechless,'' Mr Sullivan said.
‘‘Essentially it is a gathering of artists, poets and balladeers to celebrate the history of Naseby - its gold mining days of yesteryear and high-country farming history.''
Some of the entertainers were world-class performers, he said. The only disappointment was the audience numbers.
‘‘There weren't enough people, but those that were there . . . were just in awe.''
Throughout the weekend the public was invited to recite poetry or to sing, including at the Gusto Children's Competition at Black Forest Cafe.
On Sunday at the hotel, performers ‘‘had listeners crying tears of laughter one minute and tears of sadness the very next poem'', Mr Sullivan said.
Mr Sullivan, who lives in Auckland, said there were several people who helped bring the festival together.
The late Warwick Brock, who came to Naseby in 2000, was so taken with Naseby farmer and poet Ross McMillan that he came up with the idea of the festival.
Mr Sullivan and highcountry balladeer Phil Garland, of Culverden, eventually took up the challenge and held the first event in 2006.
Garland, who was voted the nation's top folk music artist for 2007, was MC during the weekend.
He performed with his band Bush Telegraph on Friday night at the hotel and at a barn dance in the Naseby Town Hall on Saturday night.
McMillan, who uses the nom de plume ‘‘Blue Jeans'', also recited poems from his many works, including his latest publication The Mountain Man and Other Verse.
Born and bred in Naseby, his life had lent itself to writing verse, he said.
‘‘I've been a highcountry musterer and all types of things. Did a bit of shearing, broke a few horses - it's the high country, it's got something different,'' McMillan said.
He is also a familiar face on the cavalcades and the first and only person to be made life member of the Naseby Curling Council.
Many of his poems had been put to music in Australia and New Zealand including by Garland, and Dusty Spittle, who now lives in Cromwell.
