Trailhead Home

Boulder, Colorado

Located where the plains meet the Colorado Rocky Mountains, this home is at that critical distance in the plains for the ever present mountains to be deemed a ‘view’.  In the beginning, a rectangular Sears kit house was sited somewhat obliviously to its spectacular surroundings.  The owner dreamed of a modified home that spoke to its surroundings, and BSa signed on for this extensive renovation and addition.  Perpendicular to the existing house a long shed roof starts low, in line with the existing pitched roof, and lifts up, breaking free of the ridge to a dramatic two story volume facing the view to the west. The resulting combined kitchen, dining, and living room is a lofty and convivial space for family living and social gatherings. Overlooking the great room is an open sculptural stairway which leads up to the second story addition of a music loft and family room with a Murphy bed for a guest.  Other additions, garage, master bath, and pop-out window seats are off-set from the original rectangular form to create more complex spatial relationships that outline outdoor rooms and establish a hierarchy of public and private zones within the house.  This complete renovation reuses an existing structure that has very little connection to the land and invests the new spaces with respect for the special place it occupies.