If your dream is to be self-sufficient, to have your own slice of history at a property where you see nothing at night but the stars of a velvet sky, here is an enduring and gracious home at tranquil Summertown in the Adelaide Hills.
The original part of Calawyn dates back to the 1870s when the 16.5 acre (6.67ha) property was built by the pioneering Holliday family, and farmed for apples, flowers and market gardening.
The stone, brick and stucco-painted home now offers four bedrooms, two living areas, a separate breakfast/meals area adjoining the kitchen, a new ensuite bathroom, and additional separate upstairs and downstairs shower and toilet facilities.
Inside Calawyn, you find all the gracious character period features of a grand old home: thick stone walls, soaring ceilings, traditional stone fireplaces, sash windows, solid timber floors. You also find surprises around every corner ? a leadlight window depicting a blue wren that catches the morning sun; a skylight opening up an internal space; a custom-built window that frames yet another spectacular vista, or a more subtle and secret garden view.
One of the truly special rooms inside the house is a north-facing living area called ‘the blue room’ at the northern end of the home. On a winter day the sun beams through stunning white-painted sash windows and warms the room. A radiant heat-bank also keeps the room cosy. Australian cyprus lines the floors, blending beautifully with the baltic pine timber used in hallways and other rooms and the view is truly spectacular.
Calawyn has a flexible floorplan and new owners will want to layout the rooms in the manner that best suits their lifestyle. Currently, the ground floor hosts the master bedroom and ensuite, ‘blue room’, large entrance area, a separate television or sitting room, the second bedroom, a large study and the kitchen/dining plus laundry facilities. The timber kitchen runs a gas cooktop, new Bosch electric wall oven and dishwasher. A mobile timber and stone-topped island bench increases working surface and functionality.
The kitchen and dining area has links to two lovely outdoor entertaining areas. The first is a large timber deck, perfect for family gatherings and parties; the second is a more intimate and secluded wisteria-covered patio and pergola.
Downstairs are two further bedrooms with bay window additions that create study areas or sunrooms, perfect for teenagers seeking to create their own individual space. There is a shower, toilet and hand-basin here and direct outdoor access.
The owners have restored the grounds to as close to its original biodiversity as they’ve been able to achieve; removing weeds from the creekbeds and planting trees and bushes from local seed.
They’ve planted natives around the house gardens, which now include a lovely mix of native and exotics. The result is a landscape that reflects the seasons with stunning autumn colour from the deciduous ornamental and fruit trees, spring bulbs and flowers, plus the enduring grace of Australian natives.
The heritage-listed bushland on the property is full of blackwoods and stringy bark gums that form homes for kookaburras, ringtail possums, koalas and birds.
As its market gardening background would suggest, Calawyn is an extremely productive property and self-sufficiency is an attainable goal. Within a stone’s throw of the homestead are fruit trees galore: walnut, fig, apricot, apple, pear, peach, plum, loquat, plus orange and lemon trees. There is a chicken run, compost beds and a huge vegie patch plus a glasshouse.
There are solar panels on the roof aiding electricity supply and a 20,000 gallon (approx 90,000 litre) rainwater tank plus two bores pumping at nearly 8-thousand litres an hour. The water license that will become available later this year should prove a valuable component for new owners who might want to increase the productive capacity of stock or other agriculture in years to come. Soil tests have confirmed high quality alluvial soil, suitable for vines.
Fallen timber from the blackwood forest and limbs gathered from old stringbarks are cut and dried annually and supply the fireplaces.
Calawyn has the space and fencing infrastructure to run stock and would particularly suit horses. There are multiple outlets for troughs or irrigation in all paddocks. A separate shed in an elevated location is used for stabling and tack facilities.
There is an additional huge main shed, 60ft by 40ft with a large sliding door on two sides, three-phase power, half cement floor and a functioning 12ft by 12ft coolroom. A mezzanine level has been built to further increase the storage capacity.
Summertown is one of the idyllic Adelaide Hills towns with facilities including post office, bowling club, local primary school and kindergarten, and easy public transport to Crafers and Heathfield schools plus the range of Adelaide Eastern suburbs’ private and government schools.
The town is 14kms from the Adelaide GPO