On the Market: A Forested Connecticut Villa with an Observatory

Photo by Randal Alquist

147 Whispering Woods Road, Guilford, CT
Price: $1,099,000
Size: 5,870 square feet
Bedrooms: 4
Baths: 5

Of all the pretty lights the city offers, there’s no competing with the countryside when it comes to constellations. If Boston is getting a little too bright for you, this Connecticut estate with an entire building dedicated to star gazing will be your dream escape. The six-acre lot sits at the end of a private road and, as the address would suggest, is surrounded by forest. Bordering the site are hundreds of acres of protected land, serving a COVID-era fantasy: a feeling of complete solitude.

Of course, the home doesn’t dish up all that isolation and leave you high and dry—the premises are packed with luxuries. The open layout floats across four levels, including the finished basement where you can work out in the gym, freshen up in the powder room, pick a bottle from the naturally-cooled wine cellar, and pour yourself a glass at the teak wet bar. Then, play a round of pool in the game room or fixate on a 5,000-piece puzzle in front of the fieldstone fireplace.

In the levels above, you’ll find a living room with 30-foot ceilings, a polished kitchen with slate floors and lacquered wood cabinetry, an office overlit by skylights, and an ensuite bath where a Jacuzzi tub sits next to a window that overlooks woodlands and a seasonal stream. Though the eat-in contains a conservatory-style dinette, the more formal dining area is nearby and sports a sparkling Swarovski Crystalon chandelier. “The chandelier unifies the themes of the house,” explains listing agent Lisa Rollins. “It mimics the constellations one sees from the observatory and interior viewing platform, it is contemporary, and the crystals reflect the changing light conditions throughout the day and across the seasons.”

Rollins also compares the entire floor plan to origami, the way the glass-and-wood railings cut across the flowing spaces like dozens of different micro-folds. The very top crease of this creation is an “interior viewing platform” or a catwalk that looks through a wall of glass out at the night sky. But even this enviable perch is child’s play compared to the neighboring tower: The standalone observatory (connected only by a walkway from the primary bedroom) features a professional Celestron telescope, and is capped with a metal dome that opens to reveal the starry skies above. Given the sheer size of the residence and all of its amenities, the property is really a city in its own right—this one just happens to have stars for days.

For information, contact Lisa P. Rollins, Christie’s International Real Estate, rollinsgroup.pagetaft.com.

Photo by Randal Alquist

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Scott Charette

Photo by Randal Alquist

Photo by Randal Alquist

Photo by Scott Charette

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