- Jef Desbecker and Robina Bodle selling their Lake Hayes lodge for $7.95m
- Couple built the top-of-the-line property with sustainability front of mind
- The Queenstown pair still going strong in their 70s, they’ve just completed a bike tour of Europe
When Jef Desbecker and Robina Bodle decided to build on land they owned for years in Queenstown’s Lake Hayes, they first had to get rid of the 1970s house that was already there.
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The couple are both in their 70s and are known for their outdoor adventures.
Bodle is 75 and this year ran the Routeburn, a demanding 32km bush and alpine run. Desbecker, originally from America, is no stranger to adventure sports either. They both cycle and ski, and Jef was the first commercial customer of AJ Hackett’s Queenstown bungy jumping venture.
The couple also share a passion for sustainable living and keeping their carbon footprint to a minimum so when it came time to get rid of the 1970s house Jef put an ad on local websites for people to come and take whatever they wanted for free.
The lodge-style home and two-bedroom apartment sit on 6467sqm in Queenstown’s Lakes Hayes. Photo / Supplied
The house was built to be Desbecker and Bodle’s retirement pad. Photo / Supplied
“People came and they tore up the floorboards and they took insulation out of the walls. They basically took so much stuff that was reusable – I took a lot of the roofing for myself, because I hate seeing waste. So, anyway, my demolition costs were minimal.”
The couple went on to build a lodge-style house and the property, which includes a two-bedroom separate flat, is now on the market for $7.95m.
Although they built with the intention of moving there when they were older they have decided they love their existing Crown Range home so much they are staying put.
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Desbecker explained the couple bought the Lake Hayes property about the same time they built their Crown Range home, around 20 years ago.
Bodle had been out running the Lake Hayes track and saw a For Sale sign on a fence.
“It was just sort of, ‘Wow, here’s a piece of property that’s right in the midst of where we do quite a lot of our cycling’,” Desbecker told OneRoof.
“She could see what the outlook was from the property. Everything sloped down to the lake so the views were just stunning across Lake Hayes and up into the Remarks [the Remarkables Mountain Range], and you could turn around and you’ve got Coronet Peak and direct sunshine.
“The property is quite long. It runs exactly north-south so there’s a lot of sun. I think she could see that. She just said, ‘We gotta buy this’.”
Architect Marc Scaife designed the house, which is built with sustainability in mind. Photo / Supplied
Desbecker reckons he had to be talked into the purchase but it only took about half an hour.
They rented the 1970s house out for about 15 years to numerous tenants and continued to live on their Crown Range property, which they expanded to 68 hectares.
A few years back they started selling parts of that property, and the sale of a 30-hectare block allowed them to build at the Lake Hayes site for when they were older as “we might not want to deal with the Crown Range when we’re 90 years old and it’s snowing and all that”.
An architect friend, Marc Scaife, designed the house for them and Desbecker started sourcing local materials for the build.
They got a water diviner to come to the property who discovered water so then they got in drillers who hit water at 16m.
The property captures the sun and makes the most of the stunning landscape. Photo / Supplied
“We put in a well so the property has its own water supply, all consented with the ORC [Otago Regional Council].”
Another friend was a provider of a German-made heat pump system, Stiebel Eltron, so there is a geothermal heat pump system serving both the residential flat and the main house.
“So we have this minimal carbon footprint geothermal heating system to heat the buildings, and then we put 17.5 kilowatts of solar panels on the roof to provide the electricity to run everything,” said Desbecker.
“It’s very, very efficient. It’s very warm. We get quite good sunshine and three or four months of the year I get a refund from the power company instead of having to pay.
“Once again – you hear me saying it over and over – Robina and I are both big fans of doing what we can to minimise our impact on the planet.”
Desbecker and Bodle aren’t ready to give up their adventurous lifestyle just yet. “We’ve just completed a seven-week cycle trip in Eastern Europe.” Photo / Supplied
Desbecker said the couple slept at the new house for a few nights and though they thought it was “really, really cool”, they decided they did not want to come down off the Crown Range yet, although, they do leave home for adventures.
“We’ve just completed a seven-week cycle trip in Eastern Europe through all the Balkan States and Robina – I got damaged so I had to come home 10 days early – she rode 1300km with over 30,000m of climbing. These are road bikes, they are not e-bikes. She just blows me away.”
Listing agent Cam Winter, managing director of Oliver Road Luxury Real Estate, said not only was the Lake Hayes home exceptionally high quality with a rustic, timeless appeal, there was an opportunity for someone to take it to the next level, possibly as a semi-commercial accommodation operation or luxury retreat.
“With its uninterrupted and protected views, not to mention the quality and value of neighbouring properties, the location justifies almost any level of further investment into it.”
- 37 Central Park Avenue, Lake Hayes, Queenstown, is for sale for $7.95m
