Aidan Curtis
AFTER being stuck in so many lockdowns, Melbournians Anthea and Damian Harrison were eager for a breath of fresh air.
They had designs to move to the country, but it was not until border restrictions lifted earlier this year that things really took off.
And, little did they know, their plans to go regional would end up being an adventure in such a short space of time.
“We were looking for somewhere rural to live, we were looking to get out of Melbourne because our lockdowns were very severe,” Ms Harrison said.
“When we crossed the border and came to Mount Gambier, we fell in love with the place.
“I think we outgrew our existence in Melbourne and this was kind of the natural next stage.”
The pair, along with daughter Olivia, stumbled across Echo Farm and took a chance on something completely new.
With Ms Harrison, a teacher, and her husband, an operations manager in charge of a fleet of cars, neither had really had much to do with farming life, but it was the challenge they felt they both needed.
“We lived and worked fairly close to the airport and it was a hectic lifestyle,” Ms Harrison said.
“We’ve got the freedom to do things at our own pace,“ Ms Harrison said.
“We like things very neat and tidy, and looking at a farm, it’s overwhelming because nothing is neat and tidy and clinical – it’s the opposite.
“Things have to become a little wild, we have to let of controlling our environment to letting our environment speak to us.”
While they have needed to adjust to living in a small farmhouse from a five-bedroom suburban home, Mr Harrison said he is already loving his new home.
He said the peace and tranquillity at Echo Farm have been very welcome.
“Just a total unwind from the 30-odd years of dealing with customers in a high stress environment,” he said.
“You come out here in the morning, go for a wander down to the paddock, talking away to the chickens – they’re my new best friends now.”
Mr Harrison said he has his work cut out for him learning the ropes on the farm, but he has been enjoying it so far.
“You always worry about doing something wrong, but you learn by your mistakes and hopefully you don’t make any,” he said.
“We’re just getting infrastructure going, bringing things back to life, some things had been let go a bit mainly because of the weather recently.
“Now we’ve just got to get some tools together, some machinery together, beautify the place a little bit more.”
The Harrison family is hoping to bring some new ideas to Echo Farm and share their love of nature with the community.
Echo Farm is set to reopen after its winter break on Sunday, September 25.
