Off The Beaten Path: 5 Rural Retreats

In peaceful locations from the verdant reaches outside Greenwich to New Mexico’s “O’Keeffe Country,” these rural retreats enjoy plentiful privacy, inspiring views, fresh air, and interiors that are as enchanting as their surroundings.

The Forest Home

This unique rural wine country retreat consists of four residential pavilions linked by boardwalks, two luxurious tents, and decks elevated above the forest floor on approximately 40 acres. Three sleeping cabins and a central lodge for cooking, dining, and lounging that includes built-in furniture, a home theater, and a woodstove are accompanied by an amphitheater-style patio with a fire pit, a saline pool with a sundeck, lush lawn, and in-ground trampoline—all amid a madrone forest.

Texas Oasis

Just outside the city of Victoria, this elegant four-bedroom residence was designed for stylish living and entertaining. Highlights include an open-plan kitchen, living, and dining room; a bar area with wine chiller and kegerator; a great room; and a temperature-controlled 750-bottle wine cellar. An L-shaped covered patio with a fireplace and outdoor kitchen offers views of impressive expanses of emerald grass that stretch out toward the horizon. The 3.92-acre property also features an insulated garage and shop capable of accommodating an RV.

The Black Fox

Nestled in an oak grove on 1.38-acres outside downtown Sonoma, this sleekly stylish 4,600-square-foot oasis is filled with designer details and elements. The heart of the home is a great room composed of a living area with a gas fireplace, a dining area, and a chef’s kitchen with appliances from Sub-Zero and Bertazzoni. Outdoor living is effortless around the waterfall edge pool and spa, with multiple areas for alfresco lounging and dining, a fireplace, and an outdoor kitchen.

Apache Mesa Ranch

The countryside north of Santa Fe, whose terrain inspired Georgia O’Keeffe nearly a century ago, is the backdrop for 1,060-acre Apache Mesa Ranch, an irreplaceable private estate encompassing idyllic rolling grassland, rock outcroppings and bluffs, mesas, and mature piñons and juniper. The estate consists of a two-bedroom hacienda with a traditional courtyard and a refreshing pool and spa, a caretaker’s residence, a one-bedroom guesthouse, a studio or office with a workshop and garage, a bunkhouse, a carriage house, and a two-bedroom caretaker’s residence.

Stonehedges

Recalling a classic manor in the English countryside, this stately historic eight-bedroom home is instead located on 3.46 verdant acres north of Greenwich. It is replete with vintage architectural details, among them rich wood paneling and flooring, plaster ceilings and walls with intricate detailing, leaded-glass windows, and ornate fireplaces. A stone terrace was designed for enjoyment of the bucolic setting, which includes a truly expansive green lawn, a tennis court, and a swimming pool.

This article was originally published in Sotheby’s International Realty’s Extraordinary Living Blog.