Only once in a rare while does a property in this gracious, tightly held enclave of historical properties on Hat Hill Rd come on the market, and 'Borris Brook' is a unique example in this special niche. It is overflowing with quintessential Mountains charm: history, garden, position - all rolled into one highly desirable 2443 m2 package. Easy to imagine setting up home and never wanting to leave this rambling, enchanting weatherboard with its breathtaking view and all the comforts of 21st century living.
From its kernel of 1880's wattle and daub and a deep, tin-roofed return veranda, the original nest of 'Borris Brook' cottages has grown over the century and a half into extended wings that are embraced by a glorious four season garden. The heart of the home is a charming country kitchen, featuring Ilve appliances and an outlook to a sheltered entrance courtyard, filled with oversize pots of citrus and blossoming bay. From this pretty nexus the home flows, labyrinthine, in every direction. Bedrooms spill to sunny patios or covered verandas, with extended outlooks over the garden - each one feels like a peaceful, private retreat. The dining and main living area are expansive and gracious, cosied by wood fires, book-lined walls, encompassing views to the wild beauty of the Grose Valley beyond the garden edge. Two other sitting rooms also feature fireplaces -leaving no shortage of cosy nooks to rest and play. Throughout are timber-lined walls, ceilings and other period features: a beautiful leadlight bay window, French doors and brick fire surrounds. A patchwork of lovely polished wooden floors is a reflection of the home's different periods. Newer additions have been sympathetically blended with the old, leaving the home's unique character uncompromised.
Just imagine warm summer evenings, as friends and family - drinks in hand - spill out from the house to soak in views of the Grose as the cliffs turn rose gold in the setting sun. As cool descends the magic twinkling lights of Sydney begin their glow on the far horizon.
The flowing structure of the garden reflects its English-style garden 1880's beginnings. Mature trees frame the view. A sweeping drive, walls and hedges encircle a series of 'rooms', interspersed with flowing lawns and dotted with stunning magnolias, flowering cherries, rhododendrons, apples, maples and many other cool climate perennials. The garden explodes with scent in spring, with thousands of bulbs swathing the beds in colour. A timber & corrugated iron garden shed, once a rustic early C20th dwelling, is a quaint reminder of Borris Brook's past.
In the 2000s a new two storey, north-facing outbuilding was added to the property. It is a whimsical mix of repurposed cladding and aged corrugated iron sourced from an old Megalong Valley farm and designed for modern practicality and comfort. It houses a spacious double garage with an automatic cedar & stud door, an enclosed potting/green room and upstairs there's a loft apartment with its own private Juliet balcony. Timbered-lined, shuttered, light-filled, with a gabled ceiling and its own mini-orb lined bathroom, it is the perfect studio/private guest room.
• Beautifully framed views to Mount Hay
• Set on over half an acre of park-like grounds
• Five bedrooms, three bathrooms, five toilets and five fireplaces, including two Jotul wood stoves
• Dedicated study with an ensuite/storage room
• Town gas central heating
• NBN and free-to-air TV
• Back to base alarm system
• June 2019 Pest inspection showed no significant issues
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