POST TREE HOUSE
GREAT NORTH MOUNTAIN WILDERNESS AREA
FREDERICK COUNTY, VIRGINIA

The site for this house is an extremely steep, twenty-acre parcel that is virtually unwalkable. It is heavily wooded, rocky, and overgrown, and populated by black bears. However, the steep incline of the site affords a dramatic view of the Appalachian Mountains.

Due to the severity of the grade and, consequently, the difficulty of construction, we needed to keep the house footprint compact; The result was a four-story house, measuring 16 feet by 44 feet. The two lower levels are embedded in the grade on the entry side while the house soars a full four stories on the opposite, roof-deck side. Each of the four levels is essentially two areas, bisected by a staircase. The two lower levels contain bedrooms, the third floor is the entry and living level, and the top floor is an office and a large roof deck. The plan projects out on the longer facades, to provide different vantage points. Large windows take advantage of the view while small windows provide security where the house is more vulnerable to attack by black bears (or roving bands of feral teenagers when the owner is out of town).