Feature Home: Join the birds in paradise

Fiona Jamieson-Folland outside her home. Photo / HoS.

One day almost three years ago, while out kayaking on the Okura River, Chris and Fi Folland spied something that appeared to be straight out of a fairy tale.

Past the mangroves were what seemed like acres of lawn, sloping gently up to a European-style two-storey mansion, ringed by native and subtropical bush. They were spellbound.

"We thought, wow, people live like that?" says Chris.

A few months later, back in Torbay, Chris was leisurely surfing the internet one Sunday morning when he stumbled on a real estate site and there it was - the fairy tale house for sale.

They had to go up and have a look. And once they'd looked, of course they had to buy. What they bought was, in many ways, a fairy tale - a property to fulfil just about every dream.

For those who dream of the tropics there are extensive subtropical plantings - including a lush, banana-lined driveway that acts as a conduit between the world outside and the retreat within.

For those who dream of a native bush hideaway, the Okura Scenic Reserve rises on the hill just the other side of the Okura River, and brings with it all the birdlife you could imagine: tui, fantails, kereru, rosellas, quails, ducks - and kingfishers galore.

"One day I was sitting inside and, smack! into the window goes a kingfisher," says Chris.

He says he picked up the stunned bird and held him until he could fly again, at which point the kingfisher made for the goalposts at one end of the rugby field on the front lawn (for those who dream of that sort of thing) and perched there, looking back at Chris for a while.

"Ever since, we've had this relationship going, where he sits there and says hello."

For those who dream of a spacious mansion with room for everyone - even for grandparents or a teenager to have their own self-contained space - this home has six bedrooms (two with their own sitting areas, one with its own kitchen space and bathroom), three bathrooms, two living areas, a separate formal dining room and an enormous kitchen.

For those who dream about effortless indoor-outdoor flow, almost every room on the ground floor connects through French or bifold rimu doors to paved areas outside that capture the sun from morning through to late evening.

And for those who dream of an active outdoor life, there's an in-ground swimming pool, that rugby field, space to set up a cricket pitch every summer, more than enough room on the back lawn for a tennis court - and direct access to Okura River for kayakers.

Inside, the 12-year-old home is light and airy - and has a certain comfort missing from many modern homes, thanks to rimu joinery and masses of north and west-facing glass.

It also has interesting spaces and angles - none of this clean, stark minimalism - with the ceiling of every upstairs room following, to some degree or another, the pitch of the Welsh slate roof.

Chris and Fi have added to the dream factors. They have planted an orchard with almost every kind of fruit you could wish for: various plums, pears, peaches, apricots, apples, quinces, oranges and even almonds. There are also some large, mature feijoa trees.

They have also created a shell-lined, fern-covered nook, just large enough to take a dining table and chairs, in which to dine and sip wine while enjoying the dappled shade during hot summer days.

You might say that Chris and Fi have lived the dream - but having done so, have decided that such a mansion really needs a family to fill it, while they really need to be a bit closer to town.

So they're renovating on the Shore - ensuring they get spectacular sea views - and offering this dream to someone else.

72 Haigh Access Rd, Okura

6 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms

Size: House 400sq m; land 2ha.

Price indication: Interest expected above $2 million; expressions of interest by September 30.

Inspect: Saturday, Sunday 2.30-3.30pm.

On the web: Bayleys listing

School zones: Long Bay and Silverdale schools, Long Bay College.

Contact: Willi Bardohl, Bayleys, ph (09) 414 0950, mob 021 19 22 925.

Features: European-style modern mansion on large, waterfront section, featuring extensive native bush and subtropical plantings. House features rimu joinery throughout, master suite with access to courtyard spa pool, and en suite featuring a bath with views. Access to the outdoors from most ground-floor rooms. Self-contained apartment above garage can be either opened to or locked off from main house.

On your doorstep:

From the end of Haigh Access Rd is an entrance to Okura Scenic Reserve, on the northern side of the Okura River.

The Okura Bush Walkway takes you to Dacre Cottage (4.8km, 1.5 hours one way) or as far as Stillwater (8km, three hours one way). Along the way, the Department of Conservation tells us, you will see mixed coastal forest and, waterfront and wading birds such as oystercatchers and stilts.

Dacre Cottage was built in the 1850s by Henry Dacre and, according to localmatters, is one of the oldest buildings in the Auckland region. The brick cottage had fallen into disrepair, but has been restored by volunteers.