This year marks five years since the Gunson whānau took over the running of Tautane Station.  Tautane Station is a Ngāti Kahungunu owned 3,500 ha sheep and beef breeding/semi-finishing station situated at Herbertville, and features significantly in Kahungunu history and Aotearoa history.John and Liz Gunson were both brought up in Dannevirke on sheep and beef farms.  Following their tertiary education at Massey University they purchased Glenheath Farming Company in 1988, a 250ha sheep and beef property in Dannevirke. Since then, they have purchased a neighbouring dairy farm, followed by the Silver Fern Oringi farm – converting the latter to a dairy farm.  Both John and Liz were familiar with Tautane Station, having holidayed at Herbertville beach, and like many other Dannevirke school kids, attending Camp Tautane staying for a week in the shearer’s quarters. When the opportunity arose to lease the property from Ngāti Kahungunu, their son James and his partner Hele moved up from the South Island to run the station on their behalf.That first summer, Hawkes Bay was hit with a significant drought, followed by Covid restrictions in the autumn.  This created challenges with stock water and being able to sell stock with livestock processing and interisland transport all being shut down for a period. While they were lucky to have little damage from cyclone Gabrielle, the wet winter that followed also presented significant challenges. Maintaining stock proof paddocks was difficult, and access around the property on quad bike was near impossible, which is when the team started to rely on horses to get around the farm.James and Hele now have three young kids, a dedicated team at Tautane, and are highly regarded by the locals and farming community.With lambing and calving well underway, James and Hele are now leading into the busy time of year, and have nearly completed docking, followed by calf-marking and weaning. This year will see Tautane Station hold their second on-farm Lamb Sale on Tuesday, 12 November, starting at 1pm.  All are welcome to attend.Bayden Barber, Chair, Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated “Te Whatuiāpiti fought an important battle in this area and there are a number of wāhi taonga sites identified on the farm. We want to share these stories with our people.  Having the Gunson whānau as kaitiaki of Tautane Station assures Ngāti Kahungunu that the farm is in capable hands for future generations.”