Just by chance

Stepping back 4 years to when the idea of moving first came about, it really was just by chance. Many years ago my husband declared that he had no interest in moving unless we could have a view of Camel's Hump. For those of you unfamiliar with this distinctive mountain, the knobby peak is part of the Green Mountain range and easily visible from I-89 and many Stowe and Waterbury locations.

Close friends in Waterbury Center were concerned about the future of their neighbors' property, 120 acres of private land with a large house and pond, and were struggling to find a way of protecting it from development. Many years earlier a developer had plans for at least 17 lots and even built a road through the woods to access these new sites. What he didn't figure on was the amount of ledge present and the difficulty of installing enough septic capacity for such a large project. Soon the plan was scrapped and the old farm was mercifully left intact. But now the owners were aging and ready to sell.

Could our friends, another couple and we, purchase the whole together and divide it 3 ways and thus control it's destiny? An idea was born! In the end we bought in with just our friends and then partitioned off about 18 acres for ourselves.

The site is dramatic, perched on a wooded hillside surrounded by rock faces and with a stunning 270 degree view to the south that includes, of course, Camel's Hump. To fully appreciate the view many trees will need to be cut or trimmed providing many years of firewood. Included in our parcel is a share in the large pond and walking rights to the remaining acreage.

That first winter we started clearing for the house site and the driveway. Regularly we took walks in the woods and felt connected to this new property even though there were some moments when we questioned the wisdom of our actions. Our Sterling Valley property lacked for nothing, except perhaps a main floor bedroom for our later years. Should we remedy this and stay put? But no, the excitement of a new house in a new neighborhood, still close to Stowe and yet more convenient to Burlington, was tantalizing. We began sketching some ideas. How steep a driveway could we manage, to have the house site we wanted?

How much blasting did that involve? Where was the barn/workshop going to be? How could we build a house with the least amount of impact and still have our view?
Gradually our plans took shape and our new home was just around the corner, or so we thought.