- A glass-sided home near Athol is for sale as owner Stu Tripney plans more travel.
- Tripney designed the one-bedroom property for 360-degree views, sunlight, creativity and minimal heating costs.
- He built a fly fishing business in Athol and hopes selling will fund writing and travel.
The “punk rocker” of New Zealand fly fishing is selling his fish-tank house to go travelling.
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Stu Tripney's unusual property boasts glass on all sides and is designed to make the most of the rugged landscape near his hometown of Athol in Southland
He told OneRoof that 27 Avon Street was an antidote to "dull" home design in New Zealand, noting that it stops drivers in their tracks when they see it.
“I’ve done a lot of travelling, and I started photographing old rustic square-style homes around Joshua Tree in California. I didn’t really know why at the time; I just thought they were cool. Years later I realised there must have been something making me do that.”
Builders nicknamed 27 Avon Street “The Glass House”, but Tripney prefers another name: the fish-tank house. Photo / Supplied
Walls of glass frame the views and capture year-round sunshine. Tripney says he wanted 360-degree views from every room when he built his unconventional Southland retreat. Photo / Supplied
Tripney, who founded a well-known fly fishing shop in Athol and designed his own award-winning flies, said that most homes and businesses in his patch were shaded for half the day in winter and that wasn’t how he wanted to live.
When he saw two sections for sale on Avon Street with all-day sun, he pulled out all the stops to buy them. “There was sun on that area all the time,” he said. “All year. It was near the river, and there were beautiful views. I realised I was going to miss out unless I did something, so I took a risk and bought both sections.”
The sections had views of the mountains, not someone else’s fences, Tripney said. “I love views and nature. That was my vision. I thought, why can’t you have 360-degree views wherever you are in a house?”
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After doing some research, Tripney contacted Modbox Homes, a Queenstown-based modular/prefabricated building company, to build a fish-tank-themed home.
“Before I contacted the builders, I wrote down 20 things I didn’t like about houses and 20 things I wouldn't have in a house I built,” he said.
“I turned up to the first meeting with this bit of cardboard. They looked at me like I was a nutter, but the young guys were super keen because it was challenging. It was new. I built it high-end. Every time there was an option, I kept saying, let’s do it rather than regret it. We basically did everything that was on that list.
“The idea was always that the bottom half [of the house] would be a creative area and the top half would be living. At the time there was nothing really like that in the Queenstown area.”
A pole art installation is among the handcrafted features dotted throughout the property’s rewilded grounds. Photo / Supplied
Native birds, tussocks and mountains surround the rewilded property. Photo / Supplied
The builders nicknamed the property “The Glass House”, which caught on with locals, but Tripney prefers “the fish tank”.
Whatever it’s called, it turned out to be everything Tripney wanted in a home and more. “The longer I’ve stayed there, the more I’ve realised how stunning the views are. When it snows and when it’s windy, it’s incredible. It’s so inspiring. When I’m there I’ve got to put the blinds down because I get distracted by the views and the birds.”
Despite all the glass and the mountain-ringed environment, the home costs very little to heat, Tripney said. “It basically heats itself with the sun all year. I can wear shorts and a T-shirt in winter while everyone else is wearing woolly hats.”
Tripney grew up in Scotland but made his name in fly fishing in New Zealand from the 1990s onwards. He worked initially as a fly fishing guide, then opened Stu’s Fly Shop in 2004, which gained a reputation as a tourist attraction and developed a worldwide following, he said.
Tripney: “I was like a punk rocker in fly fishing. I was probably before my time. Some people got me, some people didn't.” Photo / Supplied
Over the years, he has guided countless people, including celebrities, but he won’t share names. “I treat everyone the same, whether they’re a backpacker or a celebrity.”
Tripney, who became Australasia’s first certified IFFF Master Fly Casting Instructor, said fly fishing was a job, but also all about having fun. “I was like a punk rocker in fly fishing. I was probably before my time. Some people got me, some people didn’t.”
Tripney told OneRoof he was selling to free up money for his passions. “I want to carry on travelling and writing,” he said.
“Anyone who knows me says, ‘You’re not selling. You can’t sell it’. I’ve done so much physical work there, especially in the garden. But I’ve realised you can’t take certain things with you.”
He admits that he’ll never be able to replace the home. “If I sell it, I’ll probably never find another place with those views, that space, no fences, no sandflies and sun all year,” he said.
“A very successful client from Sydney told me every neighbour should be coming and shaking my hand. I said, ‘Why?’ He said, ‘Because you’re about to increase all their property values’.”
The one-bedroom, one-bathroom, 102sqm home on 3347sqm of land is listed for sale with Colliers agents Vicky Tomich and Liz Avery.
“Living here means being immersed in New Zealand’s natural environment. Birdsong fills the garden, and the native plantings – meticulously arranged to ‘talk’ in the breeze – move gently with the wind,” the agents wrote in their listing on OneRoof.
“The skylight opens to the spectacular night sky of rural Southland, while picture windows draw these moments indoors and two fireplaces create a warm retreat on winter evening.”
- 27 Avon Street, Athol, Southland, is for sale by negotiation
