Tree changers who traded apartment life for alpacas

When a couple decided to swap Sydney Harbour apartment living for the clean air of the Adelaide Hills it was life changing. But career demands mean their dream property is now on the market.

The property at 289 Rangeview Dr, Mount George, is now on the market.

Never in a million years did Pete Egglestone and Andy Bousie imagine a life for themselves living on farm.

But now the couple and their little cavoodle, Digger, don’t like to imagine life any other way.

After living in Cremorne Point and completing a full-scale renovation of their apartment overlooking Sydney Harbour, the pair decided to try something new.

They packed up and purchased a home in the Adelaide Hills in 2019, which proved the perfect place to bunker down during the early days of the pandemic when the world stood still.

Then Rangeview came on the market.

Positioned on top of a hill, Pete and Andy were immediately besotted with 9.5ha property and its 360-degree views down the range and across to Mt Lofty.

“You can change what a house looks like on the inside but you can’t change how it feels when you’re there,” Pete said.

“The fact is, it was such a simple, calm and, relaxed setting.”

Rangeview owners Peter Egglestone, middle, and Andy Bousie, right, with their son Josh, cavoodle Digger and alpacas.

While Pete is detail-minded, Andy is creative. Together, they used their skills to give the stately home a complete refresh, transforming it inside and out into a contemporary lifestyle property.

Walls were removed to make way for an open-plan design that takes advantage of the natural light and views, with the living and dining rooms and kitchen brought together at the heart of the home.

“We’ve got a double-faced fireplace in the centre of the room which is just beautiful on those red wine afternoons,” Pete explained

The home also has two “accommodation wings” for the five bedrooms: one for kids and guests and another featuring the parent’s retreat.

The exterior was given a monochromatic facelift with handcrafted stone, which complements the extensive landscaping.
The alpaca stud farm was not technically part of the plan when they moved to the Adelaide Hills. However, the Christmas gift of two alpacas snowballed into four, then eight and eventually into a herd of 23. The move to Rangeview in 2022 gave the animals plenty of space in one of the three paddocks.

The Adelaide Hills property, Rangeview, at Mount George has views of the valley below.

“They just multiplied and we have absolutely fallen in love with them,” Pete said.

“They are majestic animals and they give us humans so much.”

Andy is now on a board member of the Australian Alpaca Association. When not looking after “their girls”, the couple enjoys playing golf at the course neighbouring the property or sitting back around the fire pit on a cool evening.

Their little cavoodle they brought with them from Sydney also became the perfect farm dog. Digger loves joining the men on trips around the property on tractors.

“It’s about enjoying the property,” Andy said

“If you want to be out in the paddocks all day, if you want to be inside or outside, you can do anything you want.”

Pete recently took on the role of chief executive at Zenith Finance, which means the couple must return to Sydney.

While they are returning to apartment living for now, the alpacas are heading to a temporary home in the NSW Southern Highlands. Andy and Pete hope to find the perfect farm nearby to escape the city on weekends.

One of the many views from the Mount George property.

Rangeview at Mount George is now on the market with agent Dee-Anne Hunt from Williams Real Estate in Rose Park. The expression-of-interest campaign closes on October, 23.

Andy said he was a little nervous about heading back to Sydney after their years out of the city.

“We found this special part of Adelaide we didn’t know existed and it just grabbed us,” he said.

“You can be in Adelaide in 20 minutes and we can have this incredible lifestyle with acreage and animals. You come up the hill and you could breathe, all these stressors would go and you could find this incredible space of light air and freedom.”