For a Sydney family, weekend bliss means a retreat to the Cooranbong Valley of NSW.
Searching for a NSW weekender to escape the city snarl took one family blissfully off course.
Sydneysiders Merrilyn and her husband Tony had been looking for a place to escape with their four children on weekends for six months. After scouring Sydney’s Northern Beaches, the couple did an about-turn on the location. Refocusing the search were Tony’s nostalgia for his childhood, when he spent a lot of time on relatives’ farms in Tasmania, and his daughter’s growing interest in horse riding. Their second home also had to be within an hour’s commute from Sydney and easily accessible from the freeway.
The couple found a 20ha property in the Cooranbong Valley with an established home and gardens, close to a town with reasonable services. Its location, on the edge of Watagans National Park, was beautiful, and the previous owners had operated a horse stud there.
Five years on, considerable time and effort has been spent on making improvements in the home, renovating the machinery shed, stables and wash bay, replacing fences and upgrading the access road and dressage area. The house gets its water supply from rainwater tanks while the gardens and stock are fed from the dam; fire-hazard reduction is another area they’ve tackled. “The list goes on!” says Merrilyn.
Built in 2003 by the previous owner, the four-bedroom, two-bathroom, brick-veneer home had some great features, including a vaulted cedar ceiling, timber deck, and a
verandah that’s been expanded to match the total size of the living space, as well as a pool. The house is at the rear of the block and its elevated position makes the most of views across the valley. Surrounded by nature, they adore the bright stars
of the dark country nights, away from the city lights. “Though Tony and I were immediately attracted to the property, we were concerned about the large size of the house and the dilapidated cottage in need of major renovation,” says Merrilyn. “But in hindsight, it was a great buy for us.”
Interior designer Lynne Bradley, who had decorated their Sydney home, was asked to update the house and renovate the cottage. “Continuity was very important so the home didn’t become disjointed,” says Lynne. “My selection of green and grey wall colours was to counteract the orange timbers throughout and provide a stylish backdrop for other colours to shine.” Under Lynne’s direction, cabinets and pine furniture the family had owned for up to 30 years were also painted and some given a contemporary feel with leather pull handles from Made Measure.
The projects are ongoing, but have given the couple a great sense of achievement. “Tony and I have done a lot of hard yakka,” Merrilyn laughs. It’s a different life to living by the coast, but seeing the property transformed has clearly been worth it. >