979 Mount Rae Road

Taralga NSW 2580

The cottage is fully Council approved for either a cosy weekender or a permanent dwelling house, with direct access by car off the Council maintained road.
Small rural properties are getting harder to find in this area. 'Peppermint Ridge' is a manageable 3 acres, it sits on top of the Great Dividing Range, at around 1000 metres above sea level, in a natural bush setting.
The property is located on the old Roslyn/Taralga road, which forms part of the Bicentennial National Trail (BNT), and stretches from Cooktown in tropical far north Queensland to Healesville in Victoria.
It is nestled among mature peppermint eucalyptus trees in a native hardwood forest, which is home to a large variety of native birds and animals. Cooking is supplied by a cast iron 'Rayburn 510' wood fired fuel stove or microwave oven, with plenty of firewood on the property.
The cottage is architect designed (copyright - Peter Lees VIC. ABN - 90 313 296 932) and the plans are engineer certified. It is constructed out of high thermal mass solid bricks and various Australian timbers. The custom made stairs, kitchen & bar tops are made out of recycled hardwood slabs.
It also has a high energy efficiency rating, which makes the cottage carbon neutral. This is achieved by using a combination of high thermal mass walls, north west orientation, double glazed windows, double sarking, double floor boards, alpine rated insulation to all walls/roof and an atrium to heat the upstairs bedrooms.
A PV solar system combined with compact fluorescent lighting and energy efficient appliances eliminates any need for grid connection, which in turn negates any electricity bills, access fees or GST
This yields a net effect of not needing any heating or cooling, with average inside temperatures in winter around 9 deg warmer and average summer inside temperatures around 9 degrees cooler.
The property is fully fenced around the boundary and is divided internally into 4 paddocks. There is plenty of wildlife for the nature lovers, including echidnas, wombats, wallabies, kangaroos and various birds.
Short peaceful drives along tree lined country lanes will access all of the local National Parks, including, Mares Forest NP, Blue Mountains NP, Abercrombie River NP as well as the scenic Wombeyan Caves Reserve.

Features:
* No power bills or GST - fully automatic solar system
* No service availability charges
* No sewerage rates - Council approved sewerage system
* No water rates - 5 x rain water tanks
* No stock rates - stock exemption
* Cheap land/garbage rates - zoned RU2 - $146 per quarter
* No VOC's or other chemicals - timbers are treated with linseed oil
* No close neighbours - private bush block
* Instantaneous gas hot water
* Cast iron Rayburn 510 fuel stove - RRP $10,000
* Plenty of recycled firewood on block
* Rural shed with workshop and lock-up garage - 12m x 6m
* Land line connected
* High speed broadband internet - satellite
* Digital television - satellite