A once-in-a-generation opportunity to own your own island has landed in the form of the 40-acre Puncheon Island in the Furneaux group of islands in Bass Strait. Accessible only by boat or helicopter, Puncheon Island is the perfect place to escape the everyday or to create your own legend. This private, freehold island is a delightful contrast of granite outcrops and meadow. From the original title granted in 1853, inhabitants have used the island's natural resources to live in harmony with what can only be described as a sanctuary. Drystone walls built as windbreaks for sheep cast reflections on a bygone era while adding a purposeful divide across tussock grass paddocks.
The small, sandy beach boasts a new stone and timber wharf where, if you're patient, you could catch flathead or whiting for dinner, perhaps paired with oysters off the south coast of the island. As you meander around your shores, you take in the beauty of Cape Barren Island just 500m south, the volcano-shaped Vansittart Island to the north and the historic shipwreck of the Farsund (1912) in the distance - it doesn't get any more maritime and secluded than this! When the sun is about to set, amble past the red-flowering gum tree and head to Top Rock, enjoying the peacefulness and the sheer pleasure of being there as you watch the sun set between the points of Mt Munro in the distance.
The modest 3-bedroom home shows connection to the land through meticulous granite stonework, paired with quality timber, double-glazed doors. The 5-panel bi-fold doors invite seamless movement from indoors to outside. The kitchen was built for entertaining with plentiful cupboard space and a 900mm Smeg electric oven. Outside, self-sustainable infrastructure includes a hen house, 14 raised veggie beds, a tractor with slasher, four-wheel motorbike and a cart housed in a large storage shed. Solar panels and batteries are supported by a 4kv silenced generator to ensure all the comforts of modern conveniences are still at your fingertips. And speaking of convenient, grocery shopping at the village of Lady Barron on Flinders Island is just a quick 35 minute boat ride.
Filling in your days in the Furneaux group of islands is a treat with activities such as scuba diving, catching crayfish with pots or on scuba, hunting for king crabs and abalone, fishing, boating or visiting the local shops to pick up Flinders Island saltbush lamb, locally grown meats and local organic produce and crafts.
Live simply or create your own legend - the choice is yours. Discover the possibilities on Puncheon Island.
