Coastal: Live the dream

By VICKI HOLDER

Unlike many city dwellers, Alastair Cumming didn't just harbour a dream of going bush.

This urban cowboy escaped the city sprawl 28 years ago to live the hippie dream. Finding a magical waterfront property hidden down a long, winding road in the hills between Waiwera and Hatfields Beach, Alastair built himself a rustic log cabin on the Hibiscus Coast.

From his perch, high on the coastal headland and without a close neighbour in sight, he savours the breathtaking Hauraki Gulf and island views. His children have grown up enjoying the privileges of a carefree outdoor lifestyle. The property has access to a private, sandy beach, so they don't have to go far to swim, fish, sail and kayak. Alastair's wife, Shirlene, loves it "simply because it's paradise".

Originally the native bush came right up to the house. As the family has grown up, Alastair has continued to clear the land to make way for garaging, a three-bedroom, semi-self-contained guest or nanny extension, a double-storey implement shed, stables and paddocks.

The family play polocross and have up to eight horses on this fully fenced property. The horses get their exercise on the steep terrain, as the family often treks down to the beach on horseback. There is a lungeing ring with a sand floor near the shed.

Sprawling across the cliff, the north-east-facing, timber-shingled house welcomes you at the end of the drive. Assorted boots assembled on a bench built across roughly hewn logs protruding from the house steer you towards the entrance.

A big entry hall with a tiled floor wraps around the living areas and leads through french doors to a deck overlooking a stunning panorama. More than a transition point, the room incorporates a laundry, lots of storage cupboards behind sweet-smelling, farmhouse-style, eucalyptus doors, and a toilet and a shower semi-concealed by timber saloon doors.

Beneath a tall, round, pitched, timber ceiling, the kitchen and dining areas balance near the cliff edge. With the doors open, you can hear the sound of water lapping on the shore below. A huge kauri slab containing the sinks splices the room in half and hides storage in open shelves. With rough-cast walls, the room is unpretentious yet equipped with a pantry and the latest appliances, including a Quantum DishDrawer and a double Meridian oven.

A free-standing woodburner sits against the remnants of an old brick chimney stacked with logs in the timbered living room. Next to it, an old-fashioned iron Shacklock cooker nestles under baskets brimming with dried flowers. Coloured leadlight chandeliers and crystals hang from the ceiling, completing the cosy picture.

Ranch sliders extend the room to the porch where deep timber soffits provide shade on hot days.

Off the living area, a kauri villa door inset with coloured glass opens to a small study. Stairs rise to a mezzanine sitting area between the four bedrooms and the family bathroom. The two smaller rooms open to a sunny deck. The big master bedroom has a toilet and shower in a corner and a kauri washstand against the wall.

Turning its back on the metropolis, this quirky, hand-crafted retreat, in its spectacular rural waterfront location, is just three minutes from Orewa and a 30-minute drive from the CBD.

Vital statistics:

Address: 694 Hibiscus Coast Rd, Waiwera

Features: Four-bedroom, two bathroom log cabin with semi-self contained three bedroom annexe; fully-fenced, bush-clad, waterfront rural property; private beach access; implement shed with stables; 6000-gallon concrete water tank feeds implement shed for stock.

Size: Land area (a leasehold estate for a term of 999 years commencing November 22, 1991) undivided 16/25 share of 5.6504 ha.

Price: $3 Million

Agent: Maria Todd and Jim Mays, Premium Real Estate, Takapuna. Ph 486 1727 bus; Maria 025 743 187 mob; Jim 021 937 766 mob.