Ridge House Design

Working on a steep site changes everything about how you organize a house. The topography becomes the primary organizing principle, and you're constantly balancing access, views, and the way people actually move through the building.

This project sits on a ridge with significant grade change. We broke the program into distinct volumes that step down the slope, each one responding to a different part of the site. The main living volume sits at the high point with generous glazing oriented toward the view. A lower connecting piece holds more private spaces, and the garage structure anchors the composition at the entry level.

The rooflines follow traditional gable forms, which perform well in snow country and give the house a familiar mountain vernacular. But we're using those forms in a more contemporary way, with clean lines and proportions that feel current. The chimneys are expressed as deliberate vertical elements that punctuate the horizontal deck planes.

From above, you can see how the L-shaped plan creates a protected courtyard space. This is intentional. At elevation, mountain sites get wind, and creating sheltered outdoor spaces becomes critical if you want to actually use them. The pool and primary outdoor living areas sit in this protected zone, connected to the main living spaces through large door openings.

The decks are extensive, and that's by design. In a mountain house, the relationship between inside and outside matters enormously. We detailed the railings with simple horizontal cables to keep sight lines open to the landscape. The deck spaces extend the living area substantially during the warmer months and create layered thresholds between interior rooms and the surrounding forest.

The approach is from below, with the driveway curving up the slope to meet the garage structure. This creates a clear arrival sequence and keeps the service functions separated from the main living spaces without feeling disconnected. It's about making the topography work for you rather than fighting it.

Working with steep sites requires careful attention to how all the pieces relate. The volumes need to feel connected while responding to very different conditions. Done right, the architecture grows out of the landscape in a way that feels inevitable.