Accommodation
Getting Around
We are only 3 km to the township of Harcourt which has a local shop, post office, outdoor public swimming pool (summer only), service station and heritage centre.
We are only about 10 km from the vibrant cafe culture of Castlemaine and 20 minutes’ drive though the gorgeous granite hills of North Harcourt and Sedgwick to Bendigo – a fantastic ride for the cycling enthusiast. In fact, for the cyclist there are popular road routes through to Bendigo, or Castlemaine, as well as a host of mountain bike adventures to be had right behind the property on Mount Alexander.
We have two accommodation venues on the property; Blue Devil Cottage and The Garden Cottage. The Garden Cottage is sometimes unavailable when we have farm workers staying with us.
Blue Devil Cottage is the quaint, fully-renovated, original Victorian-style farmhouse on the grounds of Hillside Acres farm. The cottage has been named Blue Devil Cottage because of the iconic and relatively rare Blue Devil native herb found in a few locations on the property (also known as the Star Thistle).
Our cottage is entirely yours – two bedrooms (a double bed in one, and two singles in the other), a lounge room, a fully equipped, separate kitchen and a large bathroom with shower and a long, deep bath. The veranda overlooks the formal garden and picturesque dam. There is also an outdoor patio area for barbeques or simply soaking up the serenity. Although close to the main house, a large hedge and garden maintains your privacy.
The Garden Cottage was the original kitchen for the farmhouse. It has subsequently been fully renovated and is a studio style accommodation. It has a large bedroom / living room, with a double bed, kitchen table and chairs, armchair and cosy pot-bellied stove. There is a separate and roomy bathroom in what was the old pantry, with a great double shower and a separate toilet. While not having a full kitchen, the Garden Cottage does come with a bar fridge, toaster, kettle, microwave and small hotplates. Suitable for couples who enjoy the peace and quiet, you can sit on the verandah and watch the Superb Fairy Wrens playing in the garden.