The Great Indoors

Sydney Morning Herald

Saturday October 8, 2005

Samantha Selinger-Morris

Samantha Selinger-Morris, who prefers nature to keep its distance, finds an elegant solution at Mandalong.

I like my wilderness tamed, so Kemeys Mountain Hideaway sounded like the perfect fit. Set on 43 hectares of eucalypt at the foothills of the Watagan Mountains, it promised a rustic elegance with spa baths and open fires.

Apparently it's a haven for birdwatchers and bushwalkers, but sedentary types like me are equally catered for, with the owners, Robert and Jenny Kemmis, on hand to provide gourmet meals in your room or arrange a massage (sport, Chinese acupuncture or Swedish).

So, desperately needing a break from Sydney, my husband and I couldn't help but be enticed by the description of the B&B. Not to mention Jenny Kemmis's reassuring, assurance that Robert would be happy to tailor meals to suit our "dietary needs". (I like my food tamed, too.)

As soon as we hit the gravel road leading to the property, I'm certain that the vision I have for this weekend - me lounging in a spa with a bottle of red, watching the wallabies hop about outside my window - will come true. With a goat stud on our right and cows grazing on our left, it's as though we've been dropped on the set of McLeod's Daughters.

Things only get better when we pull up to the B&B and meet our hosts. They are Sydney refugees who fled to the Lake Macquarie area 20 years ago for some peace and quiet, and their version of nature dovetails with my own.

Once keen members of the tennis set, seven years ago they turned their home into a B&B, with full-size court, with the idea of catering to racquet bunnies wanting a brief connection with nature without sacrificing city sophistication.

Things get off to a blissfully serene start when my husband has a Swedish massage. June Austen sets up her gear in our bedroom - massage table, oil, CDs of relaxing tunes - and an hour later I find my my husband lounging on the sofa by the fireplace in our living room with a smile as wide as a dinner plate.

The B&B is tastefully decorated with pale watercolours and brass accents, and our room is more like a tiny apartment, with a fully outfitted kitchenette, dining area and ensuite with spa bath.

I'm the kind of girl who likes to experience the outdoors from indoors and Robert, a former timber merchant, has built a home that is as beautiful as it is educational. The deep, honey-brown ceiling in the main dining rooms, he explains, is western red cedar; the floor, slightly darker, is blackbutt and the mantelpiece a grey-tinged ironbark.

The visitors' book in our room has a list of bird life in the area, including the pied butcherbird, scarlet honeyeater and white-throated honeyeater. While I wouldn't know one from the other, I do spot heaps of jewel-feathered species. Yes, there are even a couple of wallabies munching on the grass.

Lake Macquarie is a 10-minute drive away, so we cruise along the lake shore, through tiny, quiet suburbs of white clapboard homes.

I'm in dire need of caffeine by now, and, remembering an article in the guest booklet that boasted of Robert being "a dab hand at the cappuccino machine", we head back to the B&B.

A hearty man who looks like a cross between Thomas Keneally and Santa Claus, he responds to my request blank-faced, before explaining that while he makes a coffee for himself every morning, "we've managed to avoid [making it for guests] so far, unless somebody's being particularly difficult".

So much for hospitality.

As well as what my husband and I now call "the cappuccino incident", there was the time when, on inquiring when our eat-in dinner (a beautiful affair featuring tender Barrington beef steaks and prawns in mirin) would be served, we were greeted with a terse: "What, are you starving or something?"

My breakfast request for hard-boiled eggs was met with runny eggs on both mornings, once with the slightly embarrassing query, in front of other guests in the dining room, as to whether I had "specific dietary needs".

Luckily, the Hunter Valley is only a 40-minute drive away, and we sought culinary refuge in the Terroir Restaurant at the Hungerford Hill winery. It's a suede and wicker haven, with a huge window looking out onto the vineyards and a framed note from the actress Sarah Wynter (24, Bride of the Wind, The Sixth Day) greeting guests to the cafe section of the restaurant with "Wanted to thank you for the most divine meal! It's so lovely to know there is such a magical place only a drive away from my home town."

I can't agree more. I slump into a deep chair, clutch my cappuccino for dear life and relish in the chocolate and ginger cookies that accompany it. Finally, my home away from home.

* Establishments featured in Weekends Away are visited anonymously by Herald writers, who pay their own way.

Visitors' book

Kemeys Mountain Hideaway, Mandalong

BOOKINGS Phone 4977 2525.

PRICES $170 a night at the weekend.

HOW FAR IS IT

About 1 1/2 hours' drive (depending on the traffic) north of central Sydney along the F3.

ROOMS AVAILABLE NEXT WEEKEND Yes.

CHILDREN No.

WHEELCHAIR ACCESS No.

SMOKING No.

PLUSES

Meals delivered to your room ($25, $35 or $39 for one, two or three courses), massages available ($60 for an hour).

MINUSES

Hospitality could be improved.

Rating 13/20

NEXT WEEK Off to a near-perfect location

© 2005 Sydney Morning Herald

Back to News Index | Back to Home