The sale of a much-loved family bach on Bremner Bay has sparked interest in the value of the property - it is one of Wānaka’s few remaining concrete block baches, with a multi-million dollar view, but for one family member the sale is mostly about memories.

Long term Wānaka resident (and journalist) Marjorie Cook, who has spent many holidays at her grandparents’ bach, said its sale has sparked interest from many locals, including one of the original builders.

The 2,814sqm property (on two titles) has been in the family for 60 years.

In the late 1950s, the Lake County Council announced a subdivision by ballot and Marjorie’s grandparents - Horrie and Jessie Nelson - were lucky to be drawn for three section purchase rights.

Prior to developing their property, the Nelson family camped on the land in tents and caravans, and along with their neighbours gradually cleared large swathes of kanuka from the front of their properties, providing clear views and access to the lake. 

Marjorie said the road in front at that time was just a gravel track. 

“The Nelsons and their neighbours had an informal agreement to set their houses back from the road frontage so all could enjoy a spacious aspect of lake and mountains, which is why the older 1960s baches and some (but not all) of the newer, modern houses are in what appears to be a reasonably straight line, considerably set back from the road.”

The property at Bremner Bay. PHOTO: Supplied

This “humble little house” - Marjorie’s phrase - was built in 1968, the culmination of milestones in the section’s development.

The first construction was a small ablution block at the top of the section, to service family and friends camping on the idyllic block of land. Soon to follow was a large shed with a fireplace and a huge colonial style kitchen table - the scene of many family get-togethers.

Various cabins were also dotted around the property, then the house was built in 1968 for the grand total of $8,700.

Everything about the house was “carefully thought about”, Marjorie said, from the layout to the stone façade - which is distinctively different from the current vogue of stacked schist.

Most of the stone was collected from the Haast River by her grandfather, Horrie.

Trevor Norman, who built the house with Noel Faulks, remembers signing his name on the gib lining of the bach, somewhere near the kitchen.

The ‘battleship cupboard’ housed everything you can imagine. PHOTO: Wānaka App

The house remains mostly original - “not much change except for the carport which was turned into a third bedroom”, Marjorie said.

A quirky artefact from the carport remains: a telephone cupboard built into the wall in the living room, which also opened into the carport. It meant any neighbours without a telephone could go into the Nelsons’ carport and access their telephone without having to bother them.

The ‘battleship cupboard’ is another quirky 1960s feature. The behemoth has six cupboards across and, and is four drawers deep below. Anyone looking for something would be told “it’s in the cupboard”, Marjorie recalls. ‘Well, which one?” was the common reply, she said.

Marjorie Cook (right) with her sister Judy on the boat that often did not go. PHOTO: Supplied

Life at the bach was all about the lake for Marjorie.

“We swam and we rode our bikes,” she said.

“We were always down at the beach any time of the year. We spent time in hammocks, reading books.”

She produced a photograph of herself emerging from the lake in what looks like a storm - an early indicator of her future as a lake swimmer.

Her grandfather owned a boat which seldom went, although the grandchildren spent a lot of time in it. Marjorie said there was great excitement whenever the boat actually roared into life.

The Aubrey Road property in the mid-1960s. PHOTO: Supplied

The property sale sparks so many memories it can be hard to talk about, she said.

And while the marketing (23 and 25 Aubrey Road is being marketed by Craig Myles and George Wallis of Aspire Realty, via tender closing at 4pm November 7) focuses on the land, its remarkable location and its subdivision potential, this time Marjorie gets the last word:

“I think it would be lovely if someone did want to live in the house.”