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Source: Thinkstock
It may not have been the quickest proposal but, for Sarah Keast, it was well worth the wait.
The 24-year-old was overwhelmed on Saturday after her boyfriend, Tim Hoffman, 22, finally popped the question after several days of romantic buildup.
On Wednesday, Hoffman arranged a "decoy date", with the delivery of a dozen roses to Keast's office where she was picked up by a friend, given another rose, and blindfolded while driven to the White House restaurant for dinner.
But, despite the elaborate planning and Hoffman donning a suit, which was rare, no ring materialised.
Then on Friday another bunch of flowers arrived at the office followed by a blindfolded motorbike ride to the top of Wellington's Mt Victoria, but again no proposal.
Beginning to wonder if all of this had anything to do with marriage, Keast - a keen tramper - agreed to Hoffman's suggestion they head to Matiu/Somes Island on Saturday.
On arrival, she learned she would be taking part in a treasure hunt with clues tied to tree branches, bushes and gun emplacements.
They led the pair to one of the Conservation Department cottages on the island, where a picnic and black leather-bound book with Keast's name engraved on the cover were waiting.
Once she had finished flicking through the collection of photos and words about their relationship, she looked down to finally find Hoffman on one knee with a ring. The Dominion Post said it was happy to report she accepted his proposal.
"I sort of knew something was coming in terms of the fact we've had chats about things and I know Tim being Tim, he was going to try and plan something.
"I sort of got to the point where I didn't have any expectations, I said 'let's just have a fun day', I was just getting excited about the treasure hunt."
The proposal had impressed her female friends, although some of their boyfriends were far from excited, claiming the bar had been set too high.
Hoffman said some people would hire a helicopter for a proposal, and he wanted to do something as impressive, but more personal.
The couple, who met just under a year ago at a friend's flat-warming, shared a love for the outdoors and planning the elaborate proposal had taken two months, he said.
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