Property Description: 1685 Dry Brook Road

Set on roughly five acres, with a creek moving past the front porch and a hillside meadow rising behind, this late-nineteenth-century farmhouse surrounded by more than 1,000+ acres of New York City watershed land (and connected to over 5,000 acres of NYS and NYC land). That neighboring forest is protected from development, so the ridgeline, the woods, and the quiet beyond your property line stay exactly as they are. Start each morning on the covered front porch, a warm cup of coffee in hand, listening to Dry Brook tumble its way down the mountainside. Nap in the hammock, or settle into a rocking chair with family and friends. This setting offers the kind of ease you'd expect from a top-rate retreat, and you have it all to yourself. Though, as you'll see, you could do much more.

A Farmhouse Reimagined

Cross the creek over a well-tended bridge and wind down the level gravel driveway, past the historic barn, to an open lawn framing the house. Its cedar clapboards are finished in black linseed oil, and a standing-seam metal roof tops it off. A covered porch wraps two sides of the house, and a south-facing deck completes the footprint.

When architect Neil Logan took on the renovation, the house had stood empty for decades. His approach was to preserve what mattered without indulging in nostalgia for an imagined past. Original windows were kept or faithfully duplicated. Original doors and flooring remain in place, carrying traces of the house's long history.

Underneath that enduring exterior, the structure has been rebuilt from the ground up. It has a new poured concrete foundation, new framing and joists, new septic and plumbing, and spray-foam insulation throughout. The result is a level of performance that is practical, substantial, and hard to overstate.

The mechanical systems follow the same logic. A complete geothermal system handles both heating and air conditioning through forced-air ductwork, with no fossil fuels involved. Between the house and the barn, a 65-panel solar array doubles as a carport and feeds the home's grid-tied, 200-amp electrical service, for power that is clean, steady, and affordable.

Wrapped in Wood

Inside, Logan's taste for natural materials and open flow shines through. Interior and exterior openings were carefully aligned to create sightlines and view corridors from room to room. The defining material choice is smooth, finely crafted marine fir plywood cladding the ceilings and interior walls, set against crisp wallboard partitions. It gives every room a warmth that feels at once modern, tactile, and yet natural.

The center hall anchors the first floor, with a door opening to the creek-side front porch. Even the staircase earns its keep: the treads lift on piano hinges to reveal hidden storage, and there's a cubby tucked beneath.

The kitchen was relocated to the perimeter, creating a clear procession between the dining and living rooms. An oak floor and tiled backsplash pair with a stainless steel countertop, an integrated sink, and generous open prep space. The dining room opens in two directions, toward the side porch facing the barn and toward the rear porch overlooking the terraced gardens and hillside. In the living room, pine floors and ceilings frame a Hearthstone soapstone wood stove, the natural gathering point on a winter evening.

The first-floor bath adds a quieter kind of luxury: a large soaking tub with subway tile surround, Kohler chrome fixtures, a square Duravit sink, black stone floor tile, and a wall-mounted electric heater for comfort.

Upstairs, Room to Read and Rest

A rustic staircase with character in every turn leads to an open office and reading nook, warmed by its own small Jotul wood stove, and a window seat overlooking the backyard. The front bedroom has three windows facing the yard and stream, and antique wood floors that wear their history well. You can hear the creek from here. A second bedroom sits mid-hall. The primary bedroom is a bright white retreat with its own large en suite bath and soaking tub.

The Barn: A Space Without Limits

The large square barn has been renovated with real intention. Its original timber frame was preserved as found, down to its quirks and extraneous elements. Inside, marine plywood lines the walls and ceilings, carrying the farmhouse's material palette across the yard.

The ground floor works as a garage and workshop with electric, with a level poured concrete floor, reinforced supports, and straight pass-through doors that make moving equipment simple. Above, finished studio floors with insulation, wide-plank floors, and exposed beams rise around a dramatic center staircase. It climbs from the main entrance and its oversized sliding doors to a mezzanine, then continues up to a private heated top-floor office.

The possibilities are broad: an artist's studio, a yoga or martial arts space, a dance floor, a music hall, or a gathering place for friends and family. With protected forest beyond the property line, the retreat potential here is tangible. Or you can keep it all to yourself. That may be the greatest luxury of all.

Outside, Every Direction Rewards You

The backyard has been terraced into three flat levels, ready for serious gardening. The wraparound porch keeps the creek in view and within earshot from nearly every angle. And there's that hammock, the right place to settle in with a cold drink and let the water do the talking. To the side yard, there is a gin-clear mini pond with ever-fresh artesian spring water, flowing year-round.

Dry Brook Road brings together historic character, genuinely modern building science, fossil-free energy, and a forested backdrop you'll never have to maintain. It is a Catskills home with substance, precision, and a setting that does real work.