Bicheno is often only a stop-over for visitors who pass by in search of it’s neighbour Coles Bay, a town slightly further down the Tasman Hwy and known as the gateway to Freycinet Peninsula and Wineglass Bay.
But for many Tasmanians, Bicheno is the perfect spot to slow down and take in the surrounding beauty, sea air and bush landscapes. Tasmanians also know that the Tasmanian East Coast has the best weather, the best wine, and also the best oysters in Tasmania. What more could you ask for!
For some it’s a holiday destination, but for others who live here all year round, it is a working town with a supermarket, small fishing fleet, hardware store, medical centre and chemist. Only 70km from it’s bigger neighbour St Helens to the north, and only 2 hours from Launceston Airport (it’s slightly further to Hobart in the opposite direction).
Bicheno is rapidly becoming known for its annual Wine and Food Festival (which has sold out already for this year), and some great places to eat – like Pasinis, The Sandbar, and the Sealife Centre, or try Fish and Chips with a great view at the gulch. Attractions include the blowhole, penguins, the Douglas Apsley National Park, and kilometres of stunning beaches. If this is all too much for you then you can always have a wine tasting at the Farm Shed.
My family has a connection with Bicheno dating back over 30 years and we are getting ready to launch an exciting project that has been unfolding over the last two years within Bicheno town boundaries.
My mum and dad (Helen Preston and Kim Paterson) are long term Bicheno residents and have joined with my brothers John, Bruce and myself, and our respective partners to convert Helen and Kim’s five acre bush block Moonya into a low impact, sustainably designed community.
It’s a unique 5 acre bush block still within town boundaries and only a short walk to town or the beach. Over the years Moonya has retained many beautiful gums as the town has grown around it and my mum has planted many more. My family’s vision is to preserve it for both wildlife and the people who come to live in it by maintaining the block as a natural space for native animals and plants by allowing only eight new small houses, limiting car use, maintaining a shared food garden, and limiting fences as much as possible.
Many local residents know my parents through their work in the Bicheno community to inspire social and environmental practice. They were founding members of Makers Creators craft co-op, the Community Garden and Earth Ocean Network which fundraises through the second hand book stall at the Sunday Market. They are a part of an energetic community along the East Coast who are working hard to build a strong and vibrant community. We hope that this new development which we call Moonya @ Bicheno will form part of that network.
To minimise disruption and waste, the village will be made up of prefabricated houses that are built offsite, and as much as possible will be self sufficient through solar energy and rainwater collection. The family’s vision is for a space that encourages people to walk or cycle to the beach and town to minimise impact, improve health, and provide possibilities for people to meet and interact. We hope to attract a group of people like minded in their goal to live sustainably and harmoniously, from a diverse range of backgrounds and age groups with the young helping the old and the old helping the young – all drawing on their experiences, skills and capabilities.
My partner Anita and I have just launched this website as our family prepares our development application to go to council. Assuming everything goes smoothly we hope to begin offering houses for sale off the plan early next year.
So if this sounds like something you would like to get involved with please let us know. Or subscribe to this blog because we will start putting up more detailed plans over coming weeks.
Hope to see you in Bicheno sometime!
Rod Paterson