The creek at all times of the day and night dominate the environment and it is the source of life here - for the birds calling at dawn, the goanna slipping past in the quiet of the heat of the day, the frogs and the bats that come out at night, the ducks quietly honking to themselves in the evening, and us too, drinking it like a nectar - the creek casts a kind of spell over the River Room, and the whole blissful house. And in the opposite aspect, the Dorrigo hills sit just a short drive to the west, and are a soothing place to retreat when the day is hot - deep lush rainforest towering Tallowoods, waterfalls and rainforest.
Kirsty and George's home holds many stories I suspect, including of novels and books written in the calm of the timber surrounds. Our family just loved it. To me it's the quintessential Australian home - adventurous in design, but not pretentious, and embedded in its environment. So much weathered timber so the place had a friendly feel, reminiscent of holidays years ago, in the shack on Stradbroke Island - but miraculously, at least in our experience, without the massive spiders! And open to the light and breezes.
The scent of orange blossom and warm lemons drifted across us all day and was completely intoxicating - the fresh juice we indulged in, warm off the tree, felt zinging with vitamins - just glorious. The privacy of the River Room with its entirely opening wall (we slept it seemed, inside the trees), the casual luxury of the daybeds in the net-enclosed, but otherwise open-to-the-world verandah, with the view of the glorious hills, the pleasure of cooking in the rustic kitchen - the yoga verandah/breakfast spot overlooking the creek... just sheer pleasure. I loved the open bathroom - a shower (like a small waterfall) and a loo with views is heaven to me.
We swam (brrrr) in the creek after a jog up the road (so few cars - another attraction!) and paddled the canoe in the waterhole. It felt like an age but was just five nights, we came home with clean lungs and an intention to return. We felt so lucky that Kirsty and George share their home in this way - a heartfelt thank you!