ABC Far North / Amanda Cranston
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Off-grid and open to the wildlife
Leah Kelly fell in love with a plot in the middle of the rainforest in Kuranda 20 years ago and has been living there off-grid ever since.
Large Balinese doors found at a garage sale provide a grand entrance to Leah's home.(ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)
She said her favourite childhood memories were camping with her family so her home was almost a replica of that.
“It’s like I’m living on a permanent campsite, basically, with all my furniture,” Leah said.
The long driveway to the property is rough, off-road and 4WD-only, so getting building materials to the property has been difficult over the years.
The windows and front door are a fairly new addition to the house.( ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)
It is not your standard home with walls on all sides, and has been built with home-milled timber, recycled materials and garage sale finds.
“The house looks like it is still under construction, but I did recently add large wooden front doors and windows,” Leah said.
One section of Leah's vegetable garden, which produces an abundance of food.(ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)
Being open plan means Leah sometimes encounters snakes inside her home, especially pythons and night tigers.
“I generally find them around the rafters, on top of my wardrobe or sometimes in my drawers curled up,” she says.
“The nasty ones like taipans generally don’t come into the house although I do sometimes see them outside.”
Leah says she does not mind the wildlife, even the bush turkeys, wallabies, pademelons, goannas and chickens who eat the vegetables she grows, she just asks that they leave her half.
Leah with a collection of her homemade jams.(ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)
Her garden is thriving with every kind of vegetable, herb or fruit tree imaginable, as it needs to sustain her through the wet season when supplies sometimes run out because of flooded creeks.
Leah makes her own cordials, wines, jams, chutneys and even dehydrated fruits.
Leah makes wine from the various fruits grown on her property.(ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)
She has always lived sustainably and relies on rainwater, has solar panels and a generator to top up the batteries in the wet season, and has recently built a bathroom and installed an eco-toilet.
But living off-grid means living minimally, so there is no toaster, electric kettle, microwave, air fryer, television or air conditioner, and certainly no wifi.
But Leah, a successful fashion designer who works from home, would not live any other way.
“I love the lack of power bills and not hearing neighbours argue or flush their toilet,” she says.
“And being surrounded by nature is grounding for me as an artist.”
This is Leah's favourite place on her property where she watches the sunset.(ABC Far North: Amanda Cranston)