Kawau Island: The great escape

Suzanne McFadden discovers a holiday home where groceries are delivered to your wharf, and wild wallabies clip your lawn.

Little Vivian Bay Kawau Island Colin and Maureen Gibbs will sadly bid farewell to their "clever little house" on Kawau Island.

But after three decades of glorious escape on the island, the Wellington couple, now in their 70s, find the distance between home and holiday spot too great.

It was a wet January in 1976 that the Gibbs family discovered their waterfront spot in Little Vivian Bay, on the northern end of the island. Looking for a place to have their summer holidays, their skiing friends suggested renting a "boatel" - a two-unit A-frame building where boaties could dock and spend a night on dry land.

The weather didn't put the couple off, and they eventually bought the property, converting it into their holiday home.

The Gibbs family would holiday here at least twice a year, even when they moved to Australia in the 1980s.

Four years ago, the couple built a more modern "bach".

"It's a pretty steep site, as most are on Kawau," says Colin, who recalls a builder accidentally dropping his hammer straight into the sea from the house's deck. The job required helicopters to bring materials in, and at least 80 poles to build retaining walls.

The Gibbs have had up to 13 people sleep over, all accommodated in beds - there are two bedrooms upstairs and a large family bunkroom downstairs.

An outdoor fireplace and barbecue area are under cover and roller blinds can be pulled for protection against inclement weather. A downstairs storage shed holds a four-wheel motorbike which the family has used to get down to the wharf, and around the island (there are no cars here).

Colin says the family loved the intimacy and solitude of Little Vivian Bay, but at the same time enjoyed being part of a small, social community.

"It's not so isolated - our groceries are delivered to the wharf. And we love the wallabies, who come and go and mow our lawns."

The residents in the bay share a wharf, and the Gibbs own their own boatshed which houses a variety of little sailing dinghies. They provided hours of adventure for Colin and Maureen's children and grandchildren.

Vital Statistics

SIZE: Land 2800sq m, house 200sq m.

PRICE INDICATION: Interest expected over $1 million. Tender closes May 31.

INSPECT: By appointment.

CONTACT: David Savery, Saverys Real Estate, ph 09 412 8284, mob 0274 317 172.

FEATURES: Waterfront property, shared wharf, boatshed, anchorage. Outdoor fireplace and bbq area. All furniture, boats and quad motorbike can be included in the sale.