FEATURES:
Large weatherboard and steel holiday home fronting Buckleton Beach reserve. Ground floor: open-plan kitchen/ living, four bedrooms, three bathrooms. Upstairs: master suite with deck.
When Peter Clapshaw and his wife Helen decided they would buy some land on which to build a holiday home, New Zealand's currency was still the pound.
But even before 1967, he says, waterfront land sold at a premium. "We used to have our holidays in the Bay of Islands,and thoroughly enjoyed it up there," Peter says. "But that's a three- to four-hour drive."
Then a new subdivision opened up at Buckleton Beach, as a farmer sold off some of his land, dividing it into about 40 lots. When the Clapshaws came to look, only three or four of the waterfront sections were left. They bought one, and have owned it ever since.
At first, with finances limited, they built a simple two-bedroom holiday house where they and their two daughters could escape to for weekends and summer holidays.
The house grew over the years, as the daughters grew up, got married and brought their husbands and children to spend their holidays at an archetypal, pohutukawa-fringed community of beachside baches.
First, the ground floor was expanded to include four bedrooms (including a large bunkroom) and three bathrooms then, about seven years ago, Peter and Helen decided they needed a quieter retreat. So they built upwards, creating a huge master bedroom, with walk-in wardrobe and en suite. It also included their own large, private deck, with views over the pohutukawa trees, out to Kawau Island. It's not the only deck. On the northeastern, bay side of the lower floor, a large deck catches the morning sun and looks through the pohutukawa trees to the same bay and island view. But when the sun moves around to the west, the outdoor living goes with it, to the front of the house and another large deck, where the Clapshaws have their barbecue. Two lemon trees are planted within easy reach, for those early evening G&Ts.
Like many holiday homes, the furnishings here are functional but comfortable. The floor at ground level is polyurethaned chipboard - perfect for cleaning sand off. "For 40 years, we've had Christmas holidays here every year, and I don't think there would have been more than one or two Christmases during that time when the whole family wasn't here," Peter says.
The attractions are obvious: a sandy beach, with rope and tyre swings off the pohutukawa trees; a large grass reserve out the front ; good fishing in the bay (a large sign lets you know your daily limit of kina, mussels, paua, scallops, etc); and a stable community of bach owners who, like the Clapshaws, have been coming here for years. It's a boat ride to Kawau Island for a picnic, and Matakana is just a few minutes' drive away, for cafes, bars or the movies.
The holiday home has had plenty of use throughout the year, with a log burner in the lounge for chilly evenings. It's close enough, says Peter, that you don't have to plan a weekend or a night away - you can decide you want to go, and be there just an hour later. And, except in the school holidays, you will often be the only people in the bay.
It's been a hard decision to sell - indeed, Peter says, if both daughters lived in Auckland, it would stay in the family. But they don't, and Peter and Helen want to be free to travel and spend their holidays in different parts of the world - which means passing on this slice of heaven to some other family.
