Life in miniature: Little Earth is big on excitement

Do you love miniatures? Do you fancy visiting a really exciting model village? Then go to Little Earth you can when you visit On Yer Bike! in Greymouth on the West Coast.

I had the pleasure of catching up with West Coaster Alan Hunt, and I was amazed at what he has created with his model village. He brings Waiutu, a buzzing gold mining town in the West Coast in the 1930s, back to life in miniature form on an acre of land.

Alan was born in Reefton but has lived in Greymouth for 30 years, where he used to work in administration at the railways. When he retired he didn’t know what to do with himself. That is, until he saw a model village in England and “fell in love with it. I thought, ‘I can do that!’” he says.

He is in the process of building three different model towns – 1930s Waiutu, 1960s Reefton (housed outside and indoors) and an English village.

“I get these brilliant ideas and then I keep changing course. I have been at it for over 13 years and I never dreamed when I started just how involved I would get.”

Waiutu is close to Alan’s heart because his grandparents lived there. In those days it was a hard life, he says, but the town had great community spirit. Most people didn’t have cars and one particular street was named “Incubator Alley” because 64 kids lived in the street, though there were only nine cottages.

“People had large families in those days,” he says with a shake of his head.

Little Earth Model Village brings a lot of memories back to people who remember how Waiutu once was. Alan created Little Earth from old photos from the 1930s, and he has paid careful attention to detail: “I get some amazing reactions. Some people even cry because it all comes flooding back to them.”

If you visit Greymouth, check out little Earth at On Yer Bike! and look out for Alan. He is a real character and has plenty of interesting stories to tell. His miniature buildings (150 of them) are worth taking the time to see and marvel at.

Little Earth is open seven days a week from 8:30am to 5:30pm, with extended hours in summer.

Situated at On Yer Bike! on State Highway 6, Coal Creek, 5 kms north of Greymouth. Read more at www.onyerbike.co.nz.

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