Near the town of Hamilton, Montana, roughly 45 miles south of Missoula, the Bitterroot Valley and Sapphire Mountains converge, and the steep rock walls of Blodgett Canyon soar skyward more than 1,500 feet. In this majestic outdoor cathedral of Ponderosa Pine, swift-running streams, and incredible natural beauty, a family from Minnesota has found its western paradise. Within the Stock Farm Club real estate development, three structures—a house, cabin, and barn—surround a serene courtyard and welcome the …

Northern Colorado’s Routt National Forest might be one of the state’s best kept secrets. The outdoorsman’s mountain paradise remains spared from many of the crowds that enjoy Colorado’s other outdoor playgrounds. The forest, which is split by the Continental Divide, extends over one million acres with seven different wilderness areas and is home to Steamboat Ski Resort. As avid athletes and wilderness enthusiasts, John and Carrie Morgridge were overjoyed to find 15 acres in Routt County available for pu…

Like many members of the Stock Farm Club on the slopes of the Bitterroot Valley in western Montana, the owners of this spacious house chose a Rocky Mountain Log Home that blends seamlessly with its rocky, wooded environment. The Stock Farm Club, a golf club development owned by Charles Schwab, covers 2,600 acres on the mountainside and offers a variety of home settings  as well as a log clubhouse lodge and other amenities.    Architect Jeremy Oury of Kibo Group designed the home for this …

For Brian and Tracey Stratton, the log home they wanted was more than worth the wait; rather, it was a goal that they worked steadily to achieve. On a 14-acre wooded homesite in central Wisconsin, the idea took shape, and the result is just what they planned. However, the time table was a bit longer. “We wanted a warm, homey feeling, and I think we succeeded,” comments Tracey. “I also wanted to be able to decorate with antiques, so I did not want too much of a modern look to the house. Another thing I d…

For families looking for year-round recreation, Lake Sunapee in western New Hampshire offers something for everyone. Summers are spent swimming, fishing, and boating. Winters are spent skiing at nearby Mount Sunapee. Spring and fall offer the chance to explore local hiking trails. So when Nicole and Stephen were looking for a place to build a vacation getaway, Lake Sunapee fit the bill. Since it’s just two hours away from their primary residence in Boston, they are able to spend plenty of time there wit…

Heaven’s Landing, a unique residential airpark community, is nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of northeast Georgia, about three miles from the city of Clayton. The 635-acre gated development is surrounded by thousands of acres of National Forest.   “My wife, Jan, and I have a 1.5-acre lot at Heaven’s Landing,” says Tom Nasser, “but it came with a million dollar view.” Owners of a Cirrus SR22 airplane, the couple met Mike Ciochetti, developer of Heaven’s Landing, during the annual Cirrus Mig…

What do you get when you combine luxury living in Montana with a beautiful, rustic, log cabin home? The end result is the ultimate second home nestled at The Yellowstone Club, an exclusive residential club, ski resort, and golf resort in eastern Madison County, Montana. Situated just west of Big Sky, south of Bozeman, and northwest of Yellowstone National Park, Yellowstone Club is operated by Discovery Land Company and offers a variety of options for premier mountain living. The club’s home sites provid…

As the owner of Oregon Log Homes, Mike Neary has nearly 40 years of experience supplying and building custom log homes around the country. From weekend cabins to large-scale commercial projects (including Disney’s Fort Wilderness Lodge in Orlando, Florida), he’s pretty much seen it all. So when the time came for Mike and his wife, Patti, to build on their property near Dufur, Oregon, he had a pretty good idea of what he wanted. In this case, what the Nearys wanted was a home that would bl…