...the ideal getaway was a log cabin in the modern-day wilderness of Wyoming, within sight of the dramatic Teton Mountains. Wanting a place that would be "small and manageable," the couple turned to Alpine Log Homes to design and handcraft a vacation house on ranch land they had purchased near Jackson Hole.

The starting point in designing the house was to consider its site, which is spectacular. The Alpine Log Home designers oriented the house toward a meadow and a creek, so that the generously sized windows could take full advantage of the wonderful vistas offered, including looming in the distance beyond the woods, snow-capped Grand Teton Mountains.

After the design plans were finalized, the logs were precut from lodgepole pine (only standing dead timber was used, no living trees were sacrificed), and the notches handfit. The house was then preassembled, and each log numbered before being shipped to the site. At that point the contractor took over the project.

A loft over the kitchen can do double duty as storage or an extra sleeping area. Custom beds and window seats enhance the 12x15-foot bedroom Concealed below the cozy window seats are large storage spaces.

(Photos by Mark Bryant)