Hope Farm in Danbury with its spectacular views of Mt. Kearsarge, is surrounded by over 5,000 acres of protected land. The Federal-period house sits on the north side of Walker Brook Rd, with roughly 68 acres of mature woodlands behind the house and 40 acres across the road with fields, a pond, and frontage on two sizeable year-round brooks.
The owners who are in their 70s and anticipate downsizing and relocating closer to their children, found that the past 12 months of Covid have underscored the property’s unique value as a secure and expansive sanctuary. They are fortunate to be able to work from home, to avoid or minimize risk. The water supply on site is limitless, the firewood supply more than ample (two years of dry wood under cover and 60 acres of healthy forests); delivery of groceries, heating fuel, packages, and secure telephone and internet service. A new owner will have the assurance that more than sufficient vegetables, fruit, and eggs have been produced, harvested, and stored from the properties’ fertile gardens, and that neighboring farmers produce beef, chicken, and poultry for purchase and delivery either fresh or for the freezer.
Although the 108-acre-setting and attributes are firmly rural, the property is located about 2 hours from Boston and Cambridge, 45 minutes from the Dartmouth campus, and ten minutes from nearby Ragged Mountain Ski Area. The craftsmanship in the nearly 5,000-square feet house complex, aesthetics of view and nature, and useful quarter-mile proximity to a nearby state highway place it in an unusual category as a potential family compound. The house includes 10 fireplaces, 5 bedrooms, including a master with ensuite bath and dressing room, and an additional 4 bathrooms. There is a large renovated kitchen with center island with dining and sitting areas, an inviting library with custom cherry shelving, living room, formal dining room with butler’s pantry, large great room for entertaining and gathering, 1 or 2 offices, and another large room above the two-bay attached garage.
The setting of this 1799 property was an integral part of the writings of the United States Poet Laureate Donald Hall who, from his home about a half-mile away, wrote extensively about the neighborhood in his books ‘String Too Short To be Saved,” “Seasons on Eagle Pond,” and “Here on Eagle Pond.”
