Beach Haven Point: Going up in the world

A Beach Haven couple loved the view from the roof so much they added a second storey to their cottage, writes Ellie Martel.

"People meet and talk on the street, and at the beach when they're walking the dog, and pop round for a glass of wine."

18 Beach Haven Road, Beach Haven Point.

Fifteen years ago, Gareth Eyres and Kate Greenaway were kayaking the Grand Canyon and photographing Canadian loggers cutting down trees with protesters still in them.

The adventurers decided it was time to come home. Gareth, a photographer, and Kate, a book designer, packed up their gear and returned to buy a peaceful little cottage in Beach Haven.

"One day I was on the roof cleaning gutters and I looked out, saw the view, and said to Kate, 'we have to build up here'," recalls Gareth.

"The cottage came with plans for the second storey. When it was being built, people kept referring to it as the ferryboat house, because it is shaped like the old Devonport ferries," says Kate.

The redesign, by local architect David Delamere, gave them a large, second-storey master bedroom overlooking the sea, an en suite and a large office studio. Downstairs, the ground floor is wrapped in a deck. Each of the three downstairs bedrooms plus the living area opens to it.

In winter, the house is heated with a woodburner and is warm and dry all year round.

Down the garden and through the neighbours' place is Sunset Bay, where the couple kept kayaks for years They could paddle all the way up to Manuka Road, Glenfield, and up another arm of the harbour to the Riverhead pub if they timed the tides right.

From the second story the sunsets over the Waitakeres are phenomenal, they say.

Kate works on her book designs in the large studio overlooking the reserve across the road: the place they call their "other garden" looked after by the council.

Gareth works in the basement of their other house, a smaller one up the road, where they are moving after their tenants have moved out. As well as freelancing internationally and for publications such as North and South, he has now published three books showcasing New Zealand's wilderness. Photos of icy peaks, strange underwater plants and remote beaches bear testament to a life spent going to great lengths to get the right shot.

"My big interest is people doing things in the great outdoors. We travel a lot. That's the major reason for downsizing. We wander around in the mountains, fly around in planes, sail on boats and walk up hills."

When they first moved here, they got involved with the local community.

"It's amazing how many guests we have who say this is just like New Zealand used to be. It's very friendly, we have a loose neighbourhood watch system.

"People meet and talk on the street, and at the beach when they're walking the dog, and pop round for a glass of wine. There are some really nice values here, which I hope won't disappear when the older folk move on."

The area is excellent for children, they say, with four primary schools, an intermediate and buses to four high schools.

Buses leave outside their property. Ferries to downtown Auckland are due to start at some stage - work on the floating pontoon is supposed to be finished this year. It takes 12 minutes to reach the harbour bridge outside rush hour. Northcote's Bridgeway theatre and cafes are closer. Beach Haven's shops and a patisserie are just up the road.

Says Gareth: "Beach Haven's time has come. I think it's a bit out of the way, but has easy access to town. You feel you're not too much in suburbia."

Vital Statistics

SIZE: Approx 220sq m. PRICE: $589,000.

INSPECT: By appointment and open homes - Sat/Sun, 3pm-3.45pm.

CONTACT: Grant Thorrington, Harcourts, ph 027 473 1035.

FEATURES: Large upstairs bedroom overlooking water, large study overlooking reserve above another beach, wrap-around decks, lots of glass doors, bus stop next door, ferry to Auckland in the pipeline.