Reunion ranch: a getaway as a kind of camp—ideas for living in touch with nature - Home and Design

Sunset, Nov, 2003 by Mary Jo Bowling

When former New Yorkers Peter and Betsy came back from a vacation, they had a great idea for a Northwest retreat: Make it part camp, part ranch. "They had this picture of a gathering place where people could come together as a group to sit, relax, and cook," says architect Joe Greene. "It reminded me of the classic cookhouse you'd find on a working ranch."

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That image--paired with Peter and Betsy's fond memories of the summer camp their children attended on Washington's San Juan Islands--inspired Joe and wife Nancy, a designer, to create a compound for Peter and Betsy on property in the San Juans. To describe it in ranch terms, a reconstructed barn is the bunkhouse, an industrial shed serves as a cookhouse for eating and gathering, and a nearby sauna acts as a bathhouse and anchors a mini-campground for visiting family and friends. This arrangement makes it possible for the family to enjoy privacy, togetherness, and a connection to the outdoors.

Bunkhouse in a barn

Another factor in the project's development was an old barn Peter and Betsy had purchased--in pieces--and shipped to the site. The Greenes reconfigured it as sleeping quarters. The large, open space where farm machinery and animals were once kept is now a gathering-sleeping area that can open to the surrounding fir trees through barn doors on three walls, turning the room into a porch. The family uses it year-round, even in winter. "We sometimes open the doors and sleep out there and listen to the rain on the metal roof," says Peter.

Small, more private sleeping quarters are just off the larger communal room. In the parents' suite, the architects made sure there was ample reading and relaxing space. A large window seat provides a great place to curl up with a book. Upstairs in the sleeping loft, retractable "headboard" panels lift from behind the bed for reading and lower during the day to preserve the view from the stairs.

Simple details make the space special: Window mullions are spaced so they don't block the view of Peter, who is tall, or Betsy, who is shorter. The original barn beams make an interesting contrast against the smooth drywall. Small spaces between the slats that cover the stairs create privacy without blocking the light.

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Cookhouse at the center

The cookhouse--a rectangular building just a few steps away from the barn--opens to three outdoor rooms: a rear deck facing the water, a smaller side deck connecting to the kitchen garden, and a small east-facing concrete patio at the front for sipping coffee and enjoying the morning sun. "He loves the water, she loves the garden," says Joe. "We wanted them both to have a special connection to the outdoor spaces they love."

The simple, open design of the kitchen area makes it easy for everyone to fend for him- or herself. "Because there are so many visitors, we wanted to create a space where you didn't have to wonder where things go--even if it's the first time you entered it," says Nancy. "In the entry, a row of hooks shows where to hang your coat. In the kitchen almost every pot, pan, glass, and plate is on an exposed shelf. You can see where everything is." A large table and stools, just a few of many pieces created by local contractor Johnny Nopson, make every meal communal.

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"We asked Joe and Nancy to create buildings that had a strong Northwest flavor," says Betsy. "We moved to the Northwest from New York City, and we were enchanted. We wanted a place where we could enjoy the climate, indoor-outdoor living, and be as close to nature as possible."

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DESIGN: Greene Partners Architecture and Design, San Juan Islands, WA (360/468-3655); Johnny Nopson, Upright Construction, San Juan Islands (360/468-3564)