278 Crows Nest Road Cairo NY | A Castle For the Modern Man
Posted by Coldwell Banker Village Green Realty on Thursday, June 11th, 2015 at 3:10pm
Catskills Real Estate | Cairo NY
When I first saw the pre-listing photos of 278 Crows Nest Road in Cairo I quite literally freaked out. This is the sort of house that real estate geeks drool over - gorgeous spaces, surprises around every corner, combining old and new sensibilities in innovative ways. It. Is. Stunning. It's set on 178 acres of private Catskill Mountains land on top of Black Mountain. If you're a golfer it's within walking distance to Black Mountain Golf Course. As soon as I got wind of it, I picked up the phone and called our photographer/videographer and said, "get up there now (please), and take thousands of pictures!" Sometimes photos don't quite do a property justice, they don't give you the feel of the place, these are pretty great. Enjoy!
The Main House
The main house is at the end of a long driveway and is accessed through grand antique gates. The exterior of the house is completely modern, but the entry gives just a hint of all the surprises you'll find inside. The current owners built this home themselves and have finished it with treasures they've collected all over the world. The picture below shows the courtyard, main house, and to the right, is a detached 2500 sq ft insulated, heated and air conditioned studio/atelier/warehouse steel building provides great work space for a ceramicist, sculptor, restaurateur, classic and vintage car collector, antique dealership warehouse, wild animal sanctuary, Health SPA, Wellness Retreat, Private Retreat, Retreat for the Body and Mind, you get my drift, this compound could become just about anything you can imagine. It's fabulous and flexible.
The exterior pillars flank a gorgeous antique door that is an homage to the Crow's Nest Road location. Stained glass doors with crows amongst the brambles are joined by a crow carving atop the staircase lintel.
From this vantage point the space opens. I can only talk about this house in the terms that you might use to discuss spaces in a castle because that's how grand it feels. I'm calling this space "The Great Hall". The moldings, the fireplace, and the amazing surprise of it opening into a completely modern dining space, before it all gets a little overwhelming, is something I've never seen the like of. Aren't the chandeliers amazing?
To the right of the grand fireplace a door leads to a secondary living space that's perfectly suited to the everyday family (and extended family and friends) lifestyle of the Catskills. There's a fantastic rustic kitchen, again, with details sourced from all over the world and pulled together flawlessly, a secondary dining space, a family sitting area perfect for movie watching and a bar and wine "cellar" waiting for someone's extensive collection.
How beautifully do all these different materials meld together? Rustic cabinetry, marble countertops, antique beams, natural beadboard, simple modern windows, and a marble fireplace. And it's perfection!
The stairs beside the entry to "The Great Hall" lead up to another wonderful space, "The Library". This library is a comfortable place for study and contemplation with plenty of room to let your thoughts roam. It overlooks "The Great Hall" so that while up there you can be connected but separate from what's happening in the rest of the house.
Off "The Great Hall" on the other side of the entry doors is the master bedroom. It's incredibly spacious with great light and an amazing carved entry to what I'm calling "The Bathroom of The Gods" - you'll see why.
There's another fantastic space in this home, a secondary master suite, I'm calling it "The Princess Suite" because at the moment it's decorated in a way that any girl from 8-18 would give her front teeth for, and that's saying something.
The Guest House
There's more? Yes! On the way up the long drive to the Main House you pass the Guest House. It has quite a different style than the main house. It's an old fasioned farm house and it's been decorated in that vein to perfection. Take a look.
The Grounds
176 acres is a lot of land. This 176 acres has mountain views, fresh mountain air and just as many surprises as the inside of the houses. The landscaped spaces outside the main house provide great spaces for entertaining and taking in the views.
Near the guest house is a waterfall....
There are three stocked ponds with lovely little bridges and perfectly sited benches to fish from.
Now for the real surprises....through a huge door on the lawn there is a pathway that becomes elevated and leads to a screened in tree house. A fantastic place for some quite contemplation and taking in the views.
Near the ponds there's a sleeping caboose, for the gypsy in you.
Flabbergasted? I'm not surprised. This is truly a unique property.
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