Japanese and Scandinavian aesthetics combine to create this clean-lined mountain chalet straddling the Continental Divide in Colorado. Built based on the Japanese philosophy of shakkei, or “the capturing of a landscape alive,” the Rocky Mountain retreat was built to be both simple and elemental—a home without pretension that allows the surrounding scenery to shine. 

While certainly sleek and minimal, this vacation home for rent in Colorado remains warm and inviting, an ideal retreat for families or friends who relish the natural beauty of the great outdoors.

The Continental Divide is this spare mountain home’s raison d’etre, and every effort was made to focus its design and layout on the dramatic landscape beyond the windows. With mountain, forest, and pasture views stretching for miles in every direction, the design goals were met and exceeded! 

Inside, window-dominated white walls reveal an interior décor that tends toward simplicity and purity. Unlike typical mountain lodges with their hefty beams and warm, wooly carpeting, this modern mountain retreat is all glass, concrete and wood, an elegant, spare chalet that truly celebrates nature and a simple, pared down lifestyle.

This vacation home for rent in Colorado is comprised of two perpendicular structures—a main house and garage / guest suite combination building, connected by a glassed-in bridge room built over a dry riverbed in the landscape. Peaked windows, wood siding and a wide hearth are nods to classic, mountain lodge styling, but sleek, polished concrete floors, a soaring blonde wood ceiling, and giant picture windows on every wall set the chalet apart.

An open concept kitchen with island seating and ebony cabinets is perfect for family gatherings and occupies the center of the main house. Next to the kitchen, a dining nook spreads along a wall of glass, with one window protruding slightly out from the wall, giving the feeling of being suspended outdoors. There are four bedrooms with barn door closures and 4.5 baths, and kids will love the crowd-friendly bunkroom that sleeps eight.

AROUND

Hiking trails, from easy to more technical, depart right outside Divide House’s front door, and “the place where the rivers change direction”, the Continental Divide that gives the home its name, is accessible nearby. 

While the chalet enjoys a natural setting, the nearby community of Winter Park offers a mountain recreation mecca, drawing skiers and ice skaters, fans of sledding, snow tubing and fat tire biking in the winter, and mountain bikers, fishermen, and hikers all summer long. 

Rocky Mountain National Park is just north of Winter Park, and numerous lakes, creeks and hot springs are a quick drive away. Two of the best ski resorts in North America, Winter Park Ski Resort (downhill skiing) and Devil’s Thumb Resort (cross-country skiing), are each less than a 10-minute drive.

LOCATION

Winter Park, Colorado, USA. Nearest airport: Denver (67 miles).

BEST TIME TO VISIT: The ski season typically runs from December to April, but temperatures are warmer and snow abundant from March until mid-April. July and August are the warmest months for summer holidays; the changing of the leaves that typically occurs in September or early October is a sight to behold.