About 300 people turned out for ''The Thirst Quencher'', aiming to turn the stresses of the drought into something positive.
''It's been such a nasty season for so many people and farmers can become hermits,'' one of the organisers, Elizabeth Hayes, said.
''People around here aren't down in the dumps ... but you do know everyone is having a bit of a hard time.''
So what better excuse to bring them together and shout them all a beer and a feed, she said.
The aim was to bring South Canterbury and North Otago communities together at a central point and encourage farmers and families to leave their worries at the door.
Lake Tekapo singer Bex Murray and the No Reason Band played into the night. The Thirst Quencher was organised by the ''Waitaki Wags'', who also put on the ''Bridging the Waitaki Waters'' community celebration to mark the opening of the new twin bridges between Kurow and Hakataramea.
Their initial idea snowballed and attracted ''an amazing response'' in a short time from businesses who had weighed in to help pay for the event. Doug Avery, who is on his Innovate or Stagnate tour, stopped in at the Kurow Hotel to speak to the farmers gathered yesterday.
His business, Resilient Farmer, aims to deliver support to New Zealand farmers across three pillars - financial, environmental and social resilience.
''I see one of the most challenging parts of rural New Zealand at the moment is the emotional resilience and social resilience,'' he said.
His aim was to offer collaborative support to help farmers meet the needs of modern farming by helping introduce new tools in the office and on the farm to grow wealth and well being.
Mr Avery is talking from experience. He turned seven years of Marlborough drought into a rural success story.
''Our farm was just about had it and I asked for help and I got it,'' he said.
He heaped praise on organisers of The Thirst Quencher who had brought South Canterbury and North Otago farmers out together to drink, talk, unload and know they were not alone.
''It's fantastic. When people are suffering from depression the first thing they'll probably do is isolate themselves,'' he said. ''[I isolated] myself, and that only made things worse.''
Everybody would be in a different place, he said.
''Some people will still be pumping along, but one of the great mistakes you can make in life is to ever think that you're there,'' he said.
''Life is a continuous journey, right until the last breath, and that was the big mistake I made myself - I stopped innovating and then I stagnated.''
When stress turned to depression, it could become very serious, he said.
He said there were six ''great things'' that farmers could do: connect with other people, keep giving time and resources, take notice of what is going on around you, do not blame yourself for problems out of your control, keep learning and keep active.
Mr Avery will return to the Waitaki District on March 19 to present his full ''Innovate or Stagnate'' talk at the Oamaru Opera House.
