Yesterday, we did it... drove 3.5 hours up the Melba Highway, through some absolutely beautiful countryside and had a lovely pub lunch in Mansfield. Instantly, that warm friendliness was before us. We were the second group of people to enter the pub, and the lovely waitress in her jeans & long sleeve rugby top, as rough as anything, welcomed us to sit wherever we felt comfortable. We ordered our food, and she said that Lachy, the bartender will look after our drinks. When I looked over at the bar, there was no one there. Then she called out for him, and there he was, sitting on the couch next to the open fire 'fixing' the jukebox connections to get it working. I told him that we weren't in any hurry, and within a couple of minutes there were three of us waiting for drinks, he looks up and says 'Fuck! Better get to it then!' I just had to laugh at his candor!
After our pub meal, we ventured down to Goughs Bay... a beautiful little sleepy township about 12 minutes south of Mansfield on Lake Eildon. The boys and I got out of the car, had a walk around, discovered lots of different animal droppings, walked down to the lake to see the mystery that nature is, and admired the beautiful mountains beyond the lake, before meeting with our real estate agent. About two weeks ago, I found on the net this cute little lakeside getaway that seemed more than affordable. A week ago, I went to the bank to see if it was possible to get a loan for it... and they gave me the OK. So we went up to check it out. In some ways, it was so much better than I could ever imagine - the position is just stunning - 100m to the general store, 200m to the boat ramp for fishing, waterskiing and wake boarding, walking/bike track between you and the lake and the lake is perfect for swimming, fishing and kayaking, it's only 30 minutes drive to the snowfields, and there is some magnificent wine country surrounding you. So, in terms of a holiday spot, it has everything for all seasons. But in other ways, I can see that there is still so much potential within it to make it amazing. Million dollar properties are popping up all over the place, and there is 10,000sqft of land for me to play with. It is all predominantly renovated, it just needs a better main bathroom, but that's easy over time. I could build a writer's retreat at the back of the block, I could extend it, I could do so many things with it, because the position is literally perfect!
While we were standing on the front verandah, some beautiful parrots came up to say hello. The ambience was just so wonderful and relaxing. This is the view from the walking track outside. The house I looked at was a lot more elevated so you could see much more of the water As it's winter, the water levels are lowish and come in more after the Spring rains and the snow starts to melt on the nearby snowfields. It has the ability to rise about 2 metres higher, bringing the water's edge that much closer.
Anyway, after looking at a second property which was not even close to this little gem I found, I put an offer on it yesterday, and it was all signed up today, pending on finance (which should be fine as I had the pre-approval). So in two months, I will have my home away from home, and an investment property that can be filled with holiday makers to help me pay for it. And a delightful community to make friends with. So looking forward to kicking back, enjoying the view with a glass of sauv blanc and writing my next book. :)
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