Sugar Mountain Farm Treehouse

This is the story of Walter Jeffries and his treehouse at the Sugar Mountain Farm in Vermont.

” This is Will and Ben’s tree house up by the trolley run at the top of the north home field. The view is spectacular. It has been an ongoing Sunday project over the years starting with the platform one year. Another year we did the little house. Then we roofed it and glazed the windows. It is a full family project that we all work on together for the more difficult parts. Most of the work on the tree house happens in the fall of the year with the rest of the months spent enjoying the labors.

The ladder going up to the tree house is an old fire escape ladder I pulled from a trash pile many years before either Ben or Will were born. I knew that someday I would have a good use for it and it was too nice to see thrown away. Admittedly it was rusty but all the metal was straight and the welds sound. Will and Ben spent many hours hand sanding the entire thing down to clean metal. They primed it and painted it in mottled colors to help it blend with the trees. Their labors paid off and now years later the ladder remains in great shape, servicing a new high house access.

The lumber for the treehouse were scraps and left overs from various projects. The ends and bits along with salvaged boards from demolished structures. The kids de-nailed it all and sanded off the rough spots giving new life to old wood. I provided only a few major support joists that the decking sits on.

The walls of the house portion are end pieces of ship lap barn board siding. Very fancy. I was a little worried about the air catching it but in the winter when we get our strong winds they come from the north west. However the back side of the structure faces the wind and is protected by the trees.

Will purchased two pieces of plexi-glass cut to order to fit the window openings giving a view of the road and another view of Sugar Mountain across the length of the north field. This fall we finally put in the road side window. That makes the house more comfortable in the winter winds”.