Sunday, April 15, 2007
~ Michael and Barbara ~
THIS MAY BE THE HOME YOU'VE BEEN DREAMING OF
Your own private expanse of land in the mountains, with a spacious, off-the-grid strawbale home. You’ve envisioned yourself sipping coffee on the porch in the still mornings, watching the sun rise over the mountains. You’ve imagined watching herds of antelope grazing under the shadow of a circling eagle. The view goes on forever. You breathe deep of the crisp air.
… maybe you’ve dreamed it into reality! That home is here!
Michael and Barbara have spent 12 years on 40 acres of pristine valley floor land near Westcliffe, CO. They custom built a VERY beautiful 2,200 square foot strawbale home, garage and barn. Now health concerns require that they move to a lower altitude. They’ve said their goodbyes to their beloved valley, and are ready to call in the new owners.
Do you hear the call?
Strawbale construction is durable, environmentally friendly, energy efficient, and beautiful. Owner Michael has this to say about living in a strawbale home:
“From inside, it’s so quiet you don’t even know there’s a world out there. In summertime, temperatures go as high as 90 degrees in the valley. We close the windows during the day and open them at night. That keeps the indoor temperatures in the low 70’s all summer long. In the winter, we do the opposite with the windows. On a really cold day, we make a fire in the woodstove in the morning. That’s all the heat we need til the next day! We’ve used less than a cord of wood annually. We only use the propane backup heat when we’re out of town.”
Barbara says :” I love standing in the front yard. To the West are the Sangre de Cristo mountains - a masculine energy, and to the East are the Wet Mountains- a feminine energy. It is a lovely view and a lovely balance.”
This land sits in the high-desert valley floor between the Sangre de Cristos and the Wet Mountains. Without many trees, the entire acreage is available for gardening, grazing, building, or whatever you most desire. The Rainbow Trail is about a 20 min. drive from the land, for some outstanding wilderness hiking!
The quaint town of Westcliffe is eight miles away. It’s a vibrant community with a full school system, many art galleries, restaurants, hardware store, antique stores, garden center, grocery, and natural food stores. It features a movie theater, live theater, a library, tennis court and a bowling alley. There is a variety of churches and spiritual groups, including metaphysical, as well as an active sustainable living group. In the summer, Westcliffe hosts a jazz festival, a bluegrass festival, the Western Days festival and the Custer County Rodeo. Local sports include hiking, skiing, river rafting, fishing, and horseback riding. About 3500 people make Custer County their home. Around 600 live in the town of Westcliffe.
Below is the fact sheet for this property. If you think this home and land may be your cherished dream made real, come and see its amazing beauty for yourself.
If you are seriously interested, please email us at this address: strawbale4444@yahoo.com We look forward to hearing from you!Fact Sheet on the Home and Land
ACREAGE: 39.8 acres (Located on Bull Domingo Ranch - which has a homeowner’s association)
HOME: Strawbale, 2,200 square feet
2 bedrooms, 1 bedroom/office, 1.5 baths, attached solarium/greenhouse
GARAGE: 50’ x 21’ Garage/Workshop, attached to home
BARN: 30’x 75’ pole barn, detached
POWER: Solar and wind powered electricity
610 watt solar, 500 watt wind
12 V system, 1500 watt inverter
(there is an on-grid electric hookup at the property line, which can be tapped)
Propane hot water heater and backup heater.
HEAT: Primary heat source is the woodstove.
WATER: 22 gallon per minute solar powered well
1,000 gallon cistern
KITCHEN: Propane powered refrigerator and stove.
PRICE: $290,000
More information on Custer County at: http://www.custercountygov.com/ (click on homeowner’s packet.) Currently there are no building codes.
The magical property in Westcliffe, Colorado
Here are two views of the wonderful greenhouse! Imagine growing your own food, herbs and flowers year round, even while snow blankets the mountains around you. You can make it happen, with this greenhouse to help you!
More photos!
Here you see one of the bedrooms - use your imagination to picture your own decorating touches. The wood ceiling, floor and trim create a beautiful, natural ambiance.
Below that you see the exercise room, with its entrances to the greenhouse, bedroom and living room.
Here is a great view of the exterior. You can just feel the peace and quiet and fresh air!
Below that is one view of your future living room. Below that is the sunny kitchen, and the last one is another angle looking at the living room and dining room. You can see the woodstove, that adds such cozy warmth during the winter evenings.