Staggered Cabin

As the dark stained cedar-clad volumes shift and step down the alpine slope, they create compact exterior courtyards that celebrate some of the small site’s natural resources: boulders, massive Jeffrey Pines, and a level patch of ground that enjoys abundant sunlight. Inside, the 1400 square foot cabin efficiently distributes sleeping quarters about a central living and dining space that opens to the outdoors on either side. Finished in plywood, the cabin takes advantage of its steeply pitched shed-roof geometry to capture additional mezzanine spaces, maximizing functionality while maintaining a gentle approach to the site. Large openings frame views up into the trees or out onto the immediate context, focusing on the ordinary natural beauty that surrounds the house. The exterior spaces formed between the building masses afford glimpses of the lake and mountains in the distance, broadening this focus and linking the site to its spectacular setting.