He was appointed as the Waipori Station farm manager last month.
The more than 12,500ha sheep and beef station running 57,000 stock units was a cool place to live and work, he said.
"It is vast country."
Born and raised on a lifestyle block in Whanganui, Mr Lee liked the idea of being a shepherd.
He left school aged 15 to realise his dream, securing shepherd work at farms in South Otago, including Beaumont Station, for about four years.
After a stint stock-managing on a farm in Middlemarch, he began working as head shepherd on Waipori Station for state-owned enterprise Pāmu Landcorp in 2012.
During his five years at Waipori Station, he progressed to stock manager and then a second-in-charge role.
He left Waipori Station to work in a management role on Cabbage Tree Flat Station in Waimarama, Hawke’s Bay for three years.
When Cabbage Tree Flat Station was sold, he co-founded a fencing contracting business in North Canterbury and worked in it for a year.
"We built a successful business."
When he and his wife were expecting their second child, he wanted to be home more and returned to farming on another privately owned sheep and beef farm in North Canterbury.
Another opportunity to finish about 50,000 lambs a year spurred a return to Hawke’s Bay, this time south of Hastings.
"That was good fun — super intensive and a lot going on."
Since leaving Waipori Station, he had not settled into any role, so when he saw Pāmu advertising the farm manager role, he applied.
"I was real keen to have a crack at it because I always wanted to back in the day but I didn’t have the experience at the time."
His wife hailed from Lawrence, so it was an easy sell to return to Otago.
"It is home for my wife and it is home for me."
He enjoyed working with people and the new role allowed him work with a dozen staff.
Working on a smaller farm would rob him of an opportunity to work with a lot of people, which was why he had never chased farm ownership.
"I don’t think farm ownership would fulfil me in the way I need."
Sheep and beef farm ownership "from zero" was still achievable but required plenty of hard work, good decisions and sacrifice.
He had been offered two equity partnership deals in the past but declined both.
A farm management role suited his lifestyle including fishing and hunting and raising a family on farm.
Often a large corporate company, such as Pāmu, could offer more opportunities than working on a smaller privately owned farm.
New technology and health and safety initiatives were often trialled on Pāmu farms.
"It is a guinea pig."
Often health and safety protocols, such as providing helmets for staff on quad bikes, was an initiative on Pāmu farms before it came a national directive.
"Pāmu are hot on health and safety so a lot of time you are on the forefront of it."
People often lamented health and safety protocol but it was there to make sure everyone made it home safe each day.
All the farm equipment provided to Pāmu staff was top-notch.
"You’re never riding around on an old buggered four-wheeler with bald tyres; you can be sure the equipment that you have is up to scratch. Which is a good thing: if you don’t have to deal with average gear, it makes things a lot easier."
Although the standard of the equipment and homes provided to farm staff was higher than those offered in the private sector, it was more a case of being fit-for-purpose rather than luxury.
