PROPERTY:
A historic 1,919 +/- acre forest
preserve etched into the
southern Vermont landscape,
Smokeshire Valley Preserve
is truly one of New England’s
premier recreation, sporting and
conservation retreats.
Tucked into the hillside of a
region known for its excellent
ski resorts, world-class fly
fishing, fine dining and
shopping, local
arts and crafts, farmers
markets, scenic bike touring
routes and seasonal festivals,
it is easy to imagine hiking,
bird-watching,
or trout fishing Smokeshire one
day and soaking up the local
scenery, food and culture the
next. The property’s privacy and
magnitude are especially unique
given that Smokeshire
Valley Preserve is
easily accessible from several
major east coast cities,
including Boston, New York and
Washington D.C., as well as
international and regional
airports.
A corner of the property is
handsomely outfitted with a c.
1819 Cape, antique barns and
guest quarters, a newer
caretaker’s |
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residence, kennels, period gas lamps and
lush gardens. This area of the property
is punctuated by a tapped sugar bush,
apple orchard, 40± acres of
rollingmeadows and fields, deep-water
trout pond, and extensive stonewalls.
The trout pond, framed by a stonewall
and pine stand, affords tranquil
fishing, excellent summertime swimming,
and wintertime ice skating and hockey
games. From the c. 1819 Cape, there are
bold views of the antique stonewalls,
meadow, mature tree lines and distant
mountain ranges. The height of land
features a permitted building site
for a new five bedroom residence should
additional accommodations be needed, and
provides an unrivaled setting with total
privacy,
southern orientation and
incredible views all the way to New
Hampshire. Enjoy the company of friends
and family next to the large stone
fireplace that fills the Cape with
warmth and glow, or pond-side with a
stone-pit blaze and background music
provided by peepers and owls.
The enchanted forest features a cozy
remote cabin constructed of timbers from
the property, mountain streams,
waterfalls, apple and berry orchards,
beaver wetlands, miles of woods roads
and recreation trails, and an extensive
internal road system. For historians,
uncovering the many stone cellars and
remnants of early settler homesteads,
including hydro-mills and stone-lined
wells, could be an all-consuming
endeavor. Professionally managed for
wildlife and ecosystem diversity, this
environment is home to beaver,
white-tail deer, moose, black bear, red
and gray fox, coyote, wild turkey,
fisher, bobcat, mallard, wood duck,
osprey, blue heron, native and stocked
trout, woodcock, grouse, red-tailed
hawks, owls and a variety of songbirds.
The ridgelines that define the preserve
are dense and majestic, and sweep down
to the valley floor where rolling hills
intermingle with beaver-made wetlands,
orchards and streams.
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Recently, the property was selected to
participate in a Forest Stewardship
Council
(FSC) certified harvest of Red
Maple. The timber will be transported to
a Vermont-based
FSC certified mill to be
milled and kilned, and then transported
to one of Vermont’s finest
furniture
makers to be crafted into a ‘green’ line
of bedroom furniture. This truly ‘all
Vermont’ project is expected to serve as a formidable example of the many
ecological, environmental and economical
benefits of localizing the forest
industry. |
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