Photo: supplied
Chef and barista Sam Wilson hopes the re-opening of his cafe in a rustic railway station flanked by Mt Ruapehu is a pointer to something good for a region suffering economic hardship.
He lives at nearby Kakahi, far from his old life in the city.
Now he's fuelling hikers day-to-day and creating a meeting point for people in the Central Plateau.
"There's been a great deal of loss in the region, with the Chateau closing and with a lot of the businesses closing in what was National Park," Wilson said.
"The failure of the skifield and the timber mills closing, and then having us opening is some
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