Ted d’Auvergne and the bottle that still waits

Visit Ted’s Bottle at the Waihao Forks Hotel

One of Waimate District’s best-known stories is still sitting behind the bar at the Waihao Forks Hotel.

Ted d’Auvergne’s unopened bottle has waited for him since he left for war in 1939. Outside the hotel, a bronze sculpture of Ted tells another part of the story.

Soon there’ll be a new way to visit.

The Waimate Trail/Te Ara Waimatemate will connect Waimate with Waihao Forks, so you’ll be able to walk, run or bike from town, stop at the historic country hotel for lunch and see Ted’s Bottle for yourself.

And once you’ve seen the bottle, there’s a much bigger story behind the man it belonged to.

Read the story of Ted d’Auvergne on District Life →