The ultimate porthole over Pittwater, we couldn't have wished for a more whimsical experience for our young family. From the giddy arrival, realising the panorama of our perch, decorated with utmost taste and integrity, nooks of repose beckoning every which way. A perfectly poised sundowners ledge casting out to Lion Island, The Heads and Palm Beach, as beguiling in moonshine as it was daytime, watching a parade of white sails or random kayak; a hammock that was actually practical and picturesque under the fringe of a frangipani; an outdoor shower just where you would wish it to be, springing up the private steps from the water, directly below. This was our morning ritual; it was lush. Just there. No beach palaver to tote up and down. The sandstone, the linen, Falcon dishware, phenomenal chef's knives (provisioned kitchen generally).... window seat, writer's desk, nautical nic-nac's... all lending flair and comfort and soul. Mackerel, itself, is thoroughly charming, from the boat-only access, to the book swap on the wharf, the wheelbarrow colony waiting for cargo, kids christening their arrival with a jump off the jetty. Bush, salt, cicadas, seclusion. The clincher is the history: the owners' faithful and sensitive revival of a 1920s fisherman's shack. Rare and memorable.