Various varieties of heather make a colorful mosaic leading up to the front door of Carolyn and Dave Hollenbeck’s secluded home on Timber Ridge Road in Somesville. PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLYN HOLLENBECK
Butterflies, bumblebees and other pollinators are drawn to Joe Pye Weed, coneflowers, sedum and other perennials specifically planted for the insects in the extensive flower gardens. PHOTO COURTESY CAROLYN HOLLENBECK
Mid-morning light illuminates the backs of decorative wooden chairs in the dining room. Carolyn Hollenbeck says 15 different species of birds were spotted in the apple tree on a single day last summer. YOUR DREAM HOME PHOTO BY BECKY PRITCHARD
Whether in the dead of winter or during another season, tranquility comes to mind at the Hollenbecks’ home. Built in 2002, the farmhouse-style house was designed to complement – not dominate – the wild landscape. PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLYN HOLLENBECK
Various varieties of heather make a colorful mosaic leading up to the front door of Carolyn and Dave Hollenbeck’s secluded home on Timber Ridge Road in Somesville. PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLYN HOLLENBECK
By Letitia Baldwin
Tucked away on a 7-acre wooded lot, this modern farmhouse-style home is a nature-lover’s paradise. The property was put up for sale last fall by owners Carolyn and Dave Hollenbeck. The couple had the house built in 2002.
“Unless you drive up the driveway, you don’t know this is here,” said Carolyn. “It’s very private. I like the fact that I’m really in the Maine woods.”
Located in the Mount Desert village of Somesville, the Hollenbecks’ Timber Ridge Road home is removed from summer traffic, but an easy, quick drive to pick up essentials at grocery and convenience stores.
Large windows frame the surrounding forest, ledges and wetlands. Porcupines and foxes are among the visible wild creatures inhabiting the area. Some “15 species of birds in the apple tree” were spotted on a single day last summer.
Carolyn, a Master Gardener by training, is responsible for the landscaping around the house. Heather gardens, heirloom apple trees and a pollinator garden surround the farmhouse. Something is always blooming from April to the end of August. Carolyn designed the grounds to blend with the nearby forest. “I’m into moss,” she said. “There’s an area with ferns.”
Butterflies, bumblebees and other pollinators are drawn to Joe Pye Weed, coneflowers, sedum and other perennials specifically planted for the insects in the extensive flower gardens. PHOTO COURTESY CAROLYN HOLLENBECK
By Letitia Baldwin
Of the nine-room farmhouse, real estate broker Susan Ferrante-Collier said, “It all flows to the outside.” As soon as you walk in the front door, you can see to the large back windows overlooking the apple trees and woodland.
The house is cozy inside. The living room features a wood-burning fireplace, which Dave said is perfect “for enjoying a book or puzzle in the colder months by the fire.” The floors have radiant heat, which Carolyn noted, “is especially wonderful on a cold winter’s day.” A whole-house generator keeps things running during power outages.
Extra touches create a homey atmosphere. The fireplace and chimney are constructed with Pennsylvania fieldstone, a rock chosen by Carolyn for its color and beauty. Doorknobs are glass, just like those in her childhood home. Kitchen tiles were chosen for their “restful color palette,” which sets the color scheme for the rest of the house.
“It was built as a year-round family home for a family of four and two cats,” Carolyn said. “There always seemed be plenty of space,” with a full-sized basement, second and third floor, and a room over a detached garage. Now the dwelling houses half the number of family members, with their children grown and living elsewhere. They still share the home with cats.
The third floor is a single room, which the Hollenbecks currently use as a study. Bedrooms take up the second floor: one large master bedroom with bath, and two smaller bedrooms with a shared bath.
Mid-morning light illuminates the backs of decorative wooden chairs in the dining room. Carolyn Hollenbeck says 15 different species of birds were spotted in the apple tree on a single day last summer. YOUR DREAM HOME PHOTO BY BECKY PRITCHARD
By Letitia Baldwin
An open-concept first floor features the living room on one side and kitchen-dining area on the other. The kitchen has a six-burner stove with a bread warmer underneath, two sinks, two ovens and a granite table. “It is well suited for anyone who enjoys cooking, and there is plenty of space to join the cook in the kitchen,” Carolyn said.
Off the kitchen-dining area is a TV room. As for the high-ceilinged room over the detached garage, the Hollenbecks’ son once built a climbing wall in there. Now the room serves as a storage space for gardening supplies. The space could be turned into “a lovely studio or playroom.”
“It needs virtually nothing,” Ferrante-Collier said of the house, which has been maintained by the owners through the years.
Clapboards were stained and sealed on both sides to make them weather-tight. A new metal roof was put on in 2017.
Whether in the dead of winter or during another season, tranquility comes to mind at the Hollenbecks’ home. Built in 2002, the farmhouse-style house was designed to complement – not dominate – the wild landscape. PHOTO COURTESY OF CAROLYN HOLLENBECK
By Letitia Baldwin
“The location is excellent for getting to island communities as well to Acadia National Park,” Carolyn said. Maintained by a homeowners’ association, paved roads lead to the state highway Route 102. “The road is always plowed and sanded,” she said.
For those who want to get away, far from traffic and crowds, this could be the perfect spot.
