A beautiful, small, off grid house with all the modern comforts you need. Truly breathtaking views of the ocean and rainforest set over a deep gorge. Birds, wildlife, and ancient trees will greet you through the infinity window that looks beyond the comfort of the luxurious queen bed, complete kitchen, cozy lounge with cute fireplace, and a spacious bathroom. Shower or soak in the outdoor bath on the big deck, gaze the Milky Way at night, sit by the fire, it's all here for you to rest.
The space
Big Bear's small hoose; a literal sanctuary and retreat from the outside world. Our very secluded and beautiful property sits atop a ridge line, with breathtaking views, and the most peaceful serenity at the very end of the approx 2km long gravel road. There’s no road disturbance or urban noise here. Ever.
We are a lovely and scenic 15 minutes drive into Apollo Bay township, and If you want to put your toes in the sand, the closest is at Skenes Creek beach, just a 10 min roll down the hill.
This small house is spectacularly appointed with all the little, and not so little, things you will need to be very, very comfortable, whilst feeling as close to nature as you can get. We catch our own crystal clear Otway's rain water, have full access to off grid solar power with battery storage and all our firewood is sourced from fallen limbs on our property.
In the tiny house you will enjoy the cleverly designed fully fitted out inside kitchen, complete with fridge and freezer. Plus everybody's favourite, the magical Scandinavian toasty wood fireplace, with all the firewood supplied for you. The fireplace is small, but it’s mighty. We have an amazingly roomy (and not at all tiny!) bathroom indoors with shower, sink and loo. There’s an outdoor kitchen with BBQ, a shower and bath outdoors, too.
This space comes complete with a couch to lounge on, handmade timber breakfast bar and a super luxurious pillow top queen bed for you to relax, rest, and recharge. We have a split system for AC on those extra hot days and nights (that are thankfully not that common in this temperate rainforest 🙂).
When it's cold out, relax inside by the fire, put your feet up, gaze into the drama and feel the stillness of the lush green forest, and just BE. We have a gorgeous range of organic tea from our friends at Love Tea, as well as amazing quality ground coffee from the supurb local roasters, Hello Coffee. Brew your beans with the espresso machine or why not make a French press and head back to bed for a bit?
The infinity window at the bed end of the tiny house gives you majestic views down a vast rainforest gorge, right through the ancient canopy to the panorama of the deep blue ocean beyond. You’re quite literally surrounded by soaring eucalypts, serene Blackwood trees and the ancient wisdom and soothing presence of mature tree ferns.
A myriad of birdlife will welcome you daily and in the evening the owls take over when the sounds of the Australian bush come to the fore with all its nocturnal wonders. After a day of exploring the region come home to a hot shower, indoors or outdoors, or soak outside in the bath under the stars while listening to all the forest creatures.
We have an outdoor bath and shower, both plumbed with hot and cold water and lit with festoon lights at night - which are optional on a full moon. There’s literally no light pollution here, unless it’s a full moon. Outdoors here is so magical, perfect for a relaxing soak or rinsing the salt and sand off after a lazy Summer beach day.
The outdoor kitchen gazebo with a sink, running cold water and gas BBQ. This undercover space complete with fairy lights is designed for all year round ease of use and there’s a picnic table right beside the kitchen gazebo for easy dining. Cook, eat, drink, bird watch, read and relax.
Buttery soft and organic bamboo bed linen awaits when you're ready to drop into sleep mode, after a weary road trip, or a day out exploring the forest or ocean.
We hope this place will act as a place of rest for all fellow travellers and explorers of our planet. We have put our attention into making this calming space just what you need to feel one with nature and do so with ease.
We can't wait to share this space with you :)
Note: Where we are located, we experience limited mobile phone reception. Telstra is definitely the most reliable network here in the forest. If you are with another phone carrier, your mobile phone/data reception may not work or be reliable during your stay. We have recently added a Starlink internet connection; it’s the only service that works in the location of the hoose.
Guest access
You need a car to stay with us.
There is parking available outside the tiny house in a relatively large flat area.
The door will be unlocked upon your arrival for self check in.
Lockbox code: xxxx
There will be a key in the lockbox for you to use as you come and go.
Please ensure you leave the key in the lockbox, if you loose it or lock yourself out and we are not home, you will not be able to gain access to the tiny house until we return home.
Regarding wifi. We use Starlink. Turn it on at PowerPoint and it doesn’t have a password so should be good to go.
Please note it’s limited to 50gb p month, therefore we don’t encourage streaming and video content etc.
We have it there so people can stay connected, feel safe in case they need it, then you can enjoy the forest as much as possible :)
Other things to note
There is so much to see in the otways, and the great ocean road. We include some things to do and see in a clipboard in the tiny house. You can also ask us, or go to the tourist information centre in Apollo Bay, which has a lot of help available.
Our favourite places to visit are:
- the redwood forest outside the town of Beech forest
- Stevenson's falls, and also the falls outside of the redwoods
- Mait's rest rainforest walk
- Shelly beach
- Blanket bay and the walk to Parker's inlet
- Carisbrook falls, and the beach along sugerloaf past Wongarra
- Petticoat beach
- kayaking to visit the seal colony outside Marengo
- Apollo bay harbour for swimming and fish and chips
- Skenes creek beach for sunsets and surfing
- many secrets coves between here and Lorne
- rainbow falls on cape otway, and the walk to aire river inlet
Regarding wifi: we use Starlink, which is unlimited and works great. You have a separate router that can be switched off if you prefer.
