KEY POINTS:
There's no better place to get away from the rat race than your own bay.
Oyster Bay, Great Barrier Island.
A bloke could successfully go bush in this remote bay on Great Barrier Island, and owner Dennis Turnbull has done just that on many occasions.
``When I get there I switch off my cellphone, take off my watch, put on my old clothes, and there's no need to see anyone for weeks if I don't want to,'' he says.
Oyster Bay is a hunting, shooting, fishing, diving kind of place where living off the bounty of land and sea becomes second nature. Hunt wild pigs, fish for marlin in the deep water, or simply catch a snapper from the end of the wharf. Scallops, crayfish and the bay's namesake, oysters, are there for the taking in the pristine water.
It was during a foraging expedition - a skin-diving trip, to be precise - that Dennis happened upon this bay 23 years ago. He came back from that dive trip with more than the evening's supper.
He liked Oyster Bay so much he bought the place - well, nearly 7ha of surrounding coastal real estate.
The sandy beach and sheltered anchorage are a yachtsman's delight.
``You can moor a boat out there all year long,'' says Dennis.
A safe mooring is not simply a nice feature; it's pretty much essential since the property is accessible only by water. Port Fitzroy is a 10-minute boat trip away, then it's a 10 to 15-minute drive to Okiwi where the primary school and airfield are located.
Twenty years ago Dennis and wife Colleen had their Lockwood house barged into the bay in kitset form. Nestled into the hillside on a slightly elevated site, the house was built just 20m from the high tide mark.
From the kitchen, living room and deck that stretches the length of the house are sweeping views across the bay to Kaikoura Island, a DoC sanctuary.
While the interior has classic Lockwood wooden walls, the exterior is painted a sandy colour to match the beach below where many a game of family volleyball has been contested.
``We've got riparian rights. We own to the high tide mark,'' says Dennis.
He and Colleen raised their children in Oyster Bay. They lived there as a family for six years until they shifted back to Auckland when their oldest child needed to attend high school.
So the simple Lockwood home with the world class views has been their holiday retreat ever since. While they were permanent residents they ran cattle and sheep on the property; today native bush is slowly regenerating.
Every power source in the house is backed up by an alternative source to ensure home comforts are not interrupted. Water is heated by a chip heater if there's not enough sun for the solar powered heating system.
And Dennis explains that each light in the house is connected to two switches so if you need a midnight toilet stop when the generator is off, 12-volt batteries will power the bulbs instead.
It's the end of an era but Dennis and Colleen are ready to move on.
``We're leaving with good memories. It's time for other things. We'd like to do some travelling,'' he says.
Great Barrier Island is undergoing a steady process of gentrification. Residents are moving out while increasing numbers of Aucklanders are building holiday homes on its rugged landscape.
But Dennis is confident this particular slice of wilderness will remain immune to progress.
``It will never change. Nothing can affect it. There's not another bay like this.''
VITAL STATISTICS
BEDROOMS: 4
BATHROOMS: 2
GARAGES: 0
SIZE OF LAND: 6.9 ha, house 124sq m.
PRICE INDICATION: Offers over $1 million will be considered.
Auction March 1.
INSPECT: 10.30am-5pm Saturday 17, Sunday 18, Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 February.
ON THE WEB: www.harcourts.co.nz, # MY061209
CONTACT: Mark Fitzgerald, Harcourts Hobsonville, ph 833 5588 bus,
021 357 080 mob.
FEATURES: The single-storey Lockwood house has a wood-burner and three water-heating systems (gas, solar and wetback). The property also has a generator room, bunk room, garden shed, garage, garden, orchard, wharf and two moorings.
