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James and Hayley Baillie had a dream of eco-chic perfection. For James, inspired by managing numerous luxury resorts in some of Australia’s most beautiful destinations and for Hayley, by over a decade spent guiding guests’ nature and adventure experiences aboard the world’s best expedition ships. Over recent years many guests have made James and Hayley’s Capella Lodge, on Lord Howe Island, their home away from home, but the couple had another level of eco-luxe wilderness on their visionary radar.

Kangaroo Island

Kangaroo Island sits just fifty-minutes by sea ferry off the tip of South Australia with nothing between its wild southern cliffs and Antartica than the moody expanse of the Antarctic Ocean. Kangaroo Islanders number just one person per square kilometre. The rest of the inhabitants are abundant kangaroos, koalas, goannas, seals, penguins … the list goes on. And these are not just any old variety of ‘roos and the rest, the island has been cut off from mainland Australia for around the last 10,000 years so these are unique genus and sub-species not seen anywhere else in the world.

The rural north gives way to wild, windswept heaths, dunes, cliffs and beaches in the southern regions. It is on the edge of this wild landscape, atop the magnificent Hudson’s Bay that the Baillie’s have seamlessly integrated their exceptional luxury destination – Southern Ocean Lodge.

The Eco-Luxe Lodge

Looking back at the Lodge from across the Bay, the buildings mimic the landscape’s natural geology formed over the eons, with the spherical day spa, and premier Osprey Pavilion majestically marking the eastern and western nodes.

Architect Max Pritchard completed the inspired Baillie triad, bringing into reality a building that’s footprint rests oh so lightly on the sensitive wilderness of which it is such a beautiful part. Employing the latest remote area building and energy management technologies and design sensitivities, the sculptured limestone Lodge is fully independent of mains services capturing its own rainwater, producing its own electricity and processing its own waste.

But don’t imagine any modern luxury is surrendered to environmental protocol; this is a seriously luxurious stay. Think heated limestone tiling soft underfoot, the finest linens, softest angora wraps and throws, expansive rain showers and handcrafted baths set before the full wall glass that is all that’s between you and the magnificent coastline and ocean in all its moods. Eco-chic stainless steel fireboxes are an exceptional delight, warming you thermally and ambiently with no guilt factor bar a skerrick of Co2. The lounge, terraces and dining form a room of expansive proportions that is somehow vast yet intimate, again its entire length immersing you in the wonder of the vast waters’ emotions and waterwild - from whales to dolphins, to birds and seals and the odd penguin.

While I was there the young orphaned SOL Hudson, a six-month-old joey brought within the lodge the gentle warmth of a baby wild creature, as the Lodge’s Experiences Manager, Sandy McFeeters, added to our delight with close-up and personal wildlife hugging experiences.

Chef, Tim Bourke is a stalwart of the Slow Food movement, sourcing lush produce, wines and locally crafted fancy fare from the island and nearby mainland to ensure minimum food miles, maximum freshness and unique creations that introduce your palate to the finest of local gastronomy. With a menu of at least two unique dish creations over four courses every day, and the option to request a personal favourite, the daily dining pleasure is a vital component of the overall Lodge experience.

And then there is the Spa.

The Spa

The spherical spa sits as a hallowed sanctuary a short distance from the lodge at the highest altitude of the cliff-top precinct. Glowing as a beacon of rejuvenation, it beckons with exceptional therapists delivering personalised treatments in harmony with the both the Lodge’s ultimate service standard and with the natural environment. Bay of Shoals salts laced with Emu Bay lavender or eucalyptus exfoliate; Kangaroo Island’s exclusive Ligurian Honey melts with organic milk to nourish your renewed glow. The authentic Australian indigenous Spa brand Li’Tya, now experienced in some of the world’s most exclusive locations, helped Hayley to create unique signature treatments that you will experience nowhere else but in this southernmost spa. This is where you set time apart to ease out long held tensions; to remember the warmth of the glow within when you spend precious time in retreat with yourself, being nurtured by gentle skilled hands; or to spend time in renewal with your loved one in a sanctuary where you are reminded of the connecting depth of your love. The rewards are a thousand fold.

The Renewal

From the Spa, to the warmth of the terrace infinity pool blue, into blue, into blue. To the long curl up with one of the Lodge’s many books in the home away from home lounge; or on your own deck from which you see no-one but the gulls; or from beside your clean tinkling fire’s glow… with complimentary wines and gourmet delights. Then to sleep on feather down, to the lull of the waves and the hum of the winds, in the peace on the edge of the world.

www.southernoceanlodge.com.au

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