Cape York peninsula: Wild, oceanfront paradise listed at Australia’s northern tip
A rare 88-hectare slice of secluded wilderness with two kilometres of pristine ocean frontage, just 18 kilometres from Australia’s northernmost tip, has hit the market for more than $8 million – complete with approval for a luxury eco-resort and strong competing interest from the space and education sectors.
Utingu, as the property is known, boasts a Maldives-like climate on the west coast of the Cape York peninsula, where pristine white sandy beaches, untouched coral reefs and thriving fish team at your doorstep.
The longtime Sydney-based owner has relished some of life’s simplest pleasures, including the exotic birdlife, green tree frogs, and the tranquillity of sunrises and fireside sunsets, but is ready to hand over decades of meticulous planning to a new custodian.
“It’s like an island but with a backdoor,” says listing agent Lynn Malone of Queensland Sotheby’s International Realty.
You get all the benefits of raw remote tropical beauty but with smoother logistics – transportation, access, and deliveries are easier by land, air, and sea, she says.
The rugged parcel was titled in the late 1800s, and is located close to the equator in New Mapoon, an area home to an Indigenous community of the same name, about 40 minutes south of Cape York in Far North Queensland, 1000 kilometres north of Cairns. The nearest town is Seisia, a tiny coastal community, about eight kilometres away.
Getting there is an adventure via a 1.5-hour flight from Cairns to Horn Island in the Torres Strait, followed by a 15-minute helicopter ride to the Utingu helipad. Alternatively, take a 1.5-hour flight from Cairns to Bamaga, a remote Cape York town, then drive 40 minutes to Utingu. Meanwhile, cargo takes a direct path via Seaswift to Port Seisia.
When you arrive at dense, green tropical vegetation, the property offers a wealth of opportunity for the right investor, while conveniently lying outside the cyclone zone. You’ll be able to call the folk from nearby Torres Strait Islands and Papua New Guinea neighbours.
“Some of the areas have never been explored. It’s just completely untouched,” adds Malone.
Malone says the property has attracted widespread attention among buyers vying to become Utingu’s sixth custodian in more than 125 years, however the vendor is keen to ensure it lands in the right hands.
Interested investors represent a broad range of industries including the space, surveillance, and defence industries, as well as educational investors and eco-resort developers, says Malone.
“The Utingu vendor cares more that the entity purchasing the property, which he has held for nearly 25 years, uses it to benefit Australia and the broader community rather than rushing to make a quick sale,” adds Malone.
Schools are looking at it for educational purposes in a similar vein as Geelong Grammar’s famous Timbertop campus as a retreat for students, while the space industry, both nationally and internationally, is interested due to its proximity to the equator – for orbital efficiency – and remoteness, adds Malone.
“If you’re shooting off rockets, or whatever you may do be doing, you certainly want to be remote,” says Malone.
“But you could imagine the benefits of a Space Centre, or anything that goes in, it would generate so much income for the local people, with jobs and training.”
The vendor, a businessman now in his 80s, has used the property discreetly for a quarter of a century as a holiday destination for family and friends between the optimal months of March and October, and it includes a helipad, wine cellar and facilities for fishing and diving, a homestead and large shed.
While the natural habitat has laid undisturbed for generations, change is inevitable.
The Torres Shire Council has approved an eco-resort design for 67 buildings with a bure-style thatched roof design, following decades of preparation to transform the piece of paradise into a commercial asset.
The resort’s footprint spans 7500 square metres, equivalent to one per cent of the total area of the site, according to Sotheby’s. It includes VIP and guest huts with decks, a swimming pool, a main reception building and games room, staff quarters, owner’s residence and manager’s quarters, all connected by walkways.
Some facilities have already been completed, including the manager’s digs, known as The Lodge. The 440-square-metre two-storey abode boasts high ceilings, a modern kitchen and four double bedrooms, each with en suites and air-conditioning.
Also completed is a 420-square-metre machinery shed with a concrete floor, which has a mezzanine level with three air-conditioned single bedrooms and a shared bathroom. There’s also space for the usual building site machinery and equipment, including generators to support construction and daily operations.
The homestead and beaches are accessible via a well-known 4WD track, the Old Telegraph Trail, which winds through the site’s diverse ecosystems including rainforests, bushland, savannah grasses, and a creek, with five barrier islands nearby that offer activities like fishing and pearl farming.
Utingu has a pristine archipelago of 274 islands at its doorstep, and is the only freehold property available in the upper Cape York region, meaning there is no competition for tourism within 600 kilometres. Furthermore, there are no restrictions on the land by the people of the First Nations, according to Sotheby’s.
“Utingu is ready for its future under its successive ownership,” the listing reads.
“The Utingu sale presents a one-time chance to capture the ultimate trophy property, appealing to those wishing to disappear from the crowds and experience the luxury of time in one of the most beautiful places on earth.”
