In 1962, architect Robert C. Williams designed and built a ski house, located at 234 Hawk Mountain Road, Pittsfield, VT and also selected almost all of the furniture, which was still in use when we sold the house on 1/8/16

The house is located in the Hawk Mountain community, from the General Store on the corner of Rt. 100 and Upper Michigan Road, follow Upper Michigan Road for a half mile, then make a right on Hawk Mountain Road. Follow Hawk Mountain Road for a quarter mile and the house is on the right.

The house is very private, set apart from other homes in the area

Currently, the Hawk Mountain Owners Association enforces the strict covenants put in place by Williams that regulate the appearance of all of the properties in the Hawk Mountain community

Mountain Architecture, an architectural style developed by Williams, was in the forefront of the green architecture movement in New England

The definition of green architecture is to design a building or home in such a way that:

• Minimizes the building's energy consumption by reducing the need for electric lighting, air conditioning and heating
• Minimizes the amount of resources used in a building (during construction and after construction is complete and the owner occupies the building) by building smaller, building for longevity and designing for more efficient use of space
• Builds with renewable materials that are manufactured sustainably and that are non-toxic (that do not contribute to an unhealthy indoor air quality)
• Minimizes change to the local ecosystem during construction and maintains the ecosystem's ability to sustain itself in the future

Green architecture features of our Vermont ski house include the following:

• The south side of the house has several large windows that enables passive solar heating of the house during the cold months.
• During the day, direct sunlight on the chimney stones heats them up and at night the stones radiate that heat thereby reducing the need of heating oil heat.
• The south side of the house has tall windows which allow daylight to penetrate deep inside the rooms. The main rooms in which people spend most of their time (the living room, kitchen and the dining area) are on the south side of the house and the little-used rooms such as bathrooms and closets are on the north side of the house. Daylight from the southern exposure windows minimizes the use of electric lights during the day.
• Instead of building in the valley where farmlands were being squeezed out by developers, Williams built this home and the others in the community on a mountainside.
• Williams preserved most of the trees that were not on the footprint of the house. There are several large white pines situated very close to the front and sides of the house that are older than the house. These trees protect the exterior of the house from direct sunlight and shelter the house from strong winter winds.
• Large eaves protect the house's siding from rain and sunshine so that the siding is replaced less frequently and requires less maintenance. The large eaves also keep the foundation of the house and the dirt around it dry so that the foundation is not subject to damage from moisture and lasts longer.
• A metal standing seam roof lasts longer than a shingled roof, is more weathertight and requires less maintenance.
• Two ceiling fans circulate hot air in the winter and cool the home in the summer. There is no air conditioning.
• A Toto low-flush toilet in each bathroom conserves water (only 1.6 gallons per flush versus a normal toilet's 5 or 6 gallons per flush).
• The house has a few fluorescent lights that use less electricity than incandescent bulbs (don't worry, there are plenty of incandescent lamps too).