Properties to make you long to head off the grid
Terrara House Estate, near Nowra in NSW, has luxury, grandeur and 20 rooms in which to indulge a desire for privacy. Photo: view.com.au
It’s no news that the world has gone crazy, so is the only option left to go completely off-grid?
The properties listed here – ranging from fixer-uppers to unbridled luxury – might not let you completely disconnect from the rat race, but at least you will be able to believe you have left the madness behind.
260 Melanesia Track, Yuulong, Victoria
3 beds 2 baths 1 car
POA
Go remote at this two-hectare (five-acre) property in the Great Otway National Park off the Great Ocean Road and overlooking secluded Melanesia Beach.
Bird life and abalone and crayfish are the nearest neighbours, while residents enjoy produce from the property’s vegie garden, including avocados and lemons. NBN satellite and mobile coverage will keep residents in touch with the outside world, if they insist.
261 Estate Road, Campania, Tasmania
8 beds, 3 baths, 5 cars, pool, tennis court
Expressions of interest by February 28
Near the charming historic town of Richmond, Campania House is a Georgian mansion on 25.25 hectares (55 acres) of immaculate grounds.
The house was built for a Lieutenant Gunning in about 1800 – a time when “off the grid” was as mandatory as the luxuriously generous rooms constructed by convict labour.
1036 East Derwent Highway, Risdon, Tasmania
9 beds, 7 baths
POA
Cleburne, on 1.8 hectares (4.5 acres) beside the River Derwent, is about 15 minutes from Hobart.
It was built as a homestead in the 1830s and has four sandstone farm buildings clustered around a courtyard that are used as guest suites.
The property could easily become a self-sufficient farm – although, if the new residents do want company, the vendors will can make their alpacas and peacocks part of the sale.
Lot 8, Humphrey Street, New Norfolk, Tasmania
35 beds, 1 bath
Offers over $875,000 (plus GST)
Beaten up, yes, but also extraordinary. This Georgian pile oozes distressed, shabby chic and is just the place for a new owner – and his or her first, second and third cousins – to bunker down during any nuclear winter.
A magnificent central stairway links the downstairs living rooms to the bedrooms. These rooms were once home to wealthy female patients when the property as known as Ladies’ Cottage or – less euphemistically – Lachlan Park Asylum.
This freehold island near Wineglass Bay and the Saffire Freycinet luxury lodge is 800 metres offshore from the town of Coles Bay.
There is a 10-person lodge and a building with a lounge, bathroom and kitchen. Access is by boat to one of two jetties.
The 40,000-litre water tanks and a desalination plant mean residents are not totally castaway. But penguins are the only co-habitants.
Flower of Heaven, Garners Beach, Queensland
3 beds, 2 baths, 3 cars
POA
Nothing quite compares to this remote location perched 50 metres above the kilometre-long pristine coconut palm-fringed Brookes Beach.
Set on an exclusive 9.3 hectares (23 acres) of parkland with fruit trees and rainforest, the house has ocean views from each room, and wraparound decking that allows inside and outside living.
It’s two hours from Cairns airport and only 300 metres from where Prime Minister Harold Holt once kept his tropical retreat.
14 Elizabeth Close, Miallo, Queensland
4 beds, 2 baths, 2 cars
Mid to high $600,000s
There’s nothing modest about the lush setting and mountain views of this home set on 1.2 hectares (3 acres) less than 10 minutes’ drive from the Far North Queensland town of Mossman.
There is irrigation for the tropical garden and the citrus trees – mandarins, lemons and oranges – while the patios offer views of mountains and endless cane fields.
Terrara House Estate, 77 Millbank Road, Terara, NSW
7 beds, 3 baths, 4 cars, pool, tennis court
$5 million – $5.5 million
This palatial country retreat on seven hectares (17 acres) in the Shoalhaven region has 20 rooms, so residents will never be bored in their isolation.
Drift from room to room (between them, they have 13 fireplaces) and on to the lacework-bedecked verandahs, the conservatory, gym, pool, court and the spectacular gardens and converted stables for guests.
Then there’s the racetrack where Archer, winner of the first two Melbourne Cups, once gambolled. And the property is only three kilometres from Nowra.
28 Zelita Road, Moggill, Queensland
6 beds, 6 baths, 6 cars, pool, court
Expressions of interest
Known as White Waltham, this Brisbane riverside estate has its own orchard. It is only half an hour from Brisbane but is a world unto itself.
The gardens of roses and magnolia trees complement the 1950s New England-style house. The large cellar means residents would be able to survive for quite a while out here on their own.
Part of Fiji’s Mamanuca group and half an hour from the
Cloud Break surf spot, Yadua Island is a 45-minute boat trip from the capital Nadi (or 15 minutes (by helicopter).
The Mamanuca islands are best known as the settings for The Blue Lagoon and Cast Away – both were filmed on nearby Monuriki Island.
Yadua – a mere 15 minutes from resort islands such as Varno, Plantation and Castaway – Is billed as a resort-style island “without a resort”. This means there’s absolutely nothing on it – except enjoy nature.
It’s available on a 99-year lease.
