Fish from the deck
Oregon timber beams, sarked ceilings, and slate floors makes this home special, discovers Donna McIntyre
Making the transition from life on board a yacht to being landlubbers again was made a lot easier when John and Sheena Wood found this waterfront cottage at Arkles Bay. But they had to wait for the property to come on the market. The couple, who had returned to New Zealand from sailing to the islands and Australia, came to visit friends who lived in Wade River Rd, just along from this cottage.
Says Sheena: “We went for a walk along the beach. They said, ‘We will show you a little house you will love’.
“I managed to get the owners’ phone number and said, ‘If you ever you want to sell it let us know’.
“One day the guy phoned and said he would like to sell but his wife wasn’t ready.
“A few months later he said she was willing to sell but we had to have an interview.
“We met her and she had to approve of us before she sold. I had to say I wouldn’t change anything inside.”
That was 25 years ago and at first John and Sheena moved in as weekenders. During the week they lived on their boat.
It wasn’t until a stray kitten adopted their cottage as its home that they became Arkles Bay permanents.
“At first, we were the only ones who lived here permanently. The others were all baches,” says Sheena.
“But over the years people have transformed them or pulled them down and built houses, and now there are six of us living along the beach.”
Sheena thinks the section was first sold in the 1930s — she has a document saying £1 had to be put down as a deposit.
She is not sure when the concrete cottage was built. “It was unusual. I thought it looked more like a little English pub, as we are from England originally.”
In summer, Sheena swims every day. “And we fish off the verandah when the tide comes in. We can launch our dinghy straight into the water.
“And the grandchildren live just up the road. When they were little, they used to come down and swim and have bonfires and barbecues on the beach.”
The nearest town is Orewa, about 15 minutes away by car. “We drive along the beach to the house. At full tide, we park up on the road and come down 160 steps to the house.”
The cottage features Oregon timber beams, sarked ceilings, leadlight windows and slate floors. On the ground floor are the kitchen, living, dining plus bathroom. French doors open the living area to the verandah.
“There is also a hatch from the kitchen into the lounge and that is marble,” says Sheena.
“We were told that it was used to gut fish outside but someone had incorporated it into the house.”
From the kitchen’s breakfast bar, they look staright out to the sea. “In winter we light the fire; that is so cosy and warm,” says Sheena.
Upstairs are the two large bedrooms. One bedroom has painted walls, the others are wood. Pull-down stairs allow access to the attic where the grandchildren would play.
There are no lawns to mow and their backdrop is bush. Their outdoors area is the verandah where they have most of their meals when the weather is warm.
Sometimes they’ll rake the sandy beach in front of the cottage if there is a lot of seaweed.
“It is going to break our hearts leaving,” says Sheena. “But we have got older; my husband is almost 80.
“We feel we should move while we can rather than waiting until we have to.”