439-Acre Contemporary Mountain Retreat In Colorado Hits The Market For $78 Million

About a half-hour drive from Colorado’s Eagle County Regional Airport is a 439-acre retreat nestled in a forested site between the town of Edwards, Beaver Creek Ski Resort and the prestigious Vail Mountain Club. Getting there can be half the fun because the secluded compound, listed for $78 million, also has on-site helipads for visitors who arrive by helicopter. 

Listing agent Kerry Endsley of LIV Sotheby’s International Realty says a dramatic million-dollar curved steel bridge sets the tone on arrival to the main house. A scenic drive through mountains and forests culminates at the impressive castle-like estate, which captures the spirit of mountain contemporary architecture. Though off the beaten path, the retreat is accessible year-round from a county-maintained road.

“Instead of dipping down into the trees and having to drive back uphill, the owners decided to have this elevated metal bridge run through the trees,” said Endsley. “It’s very impressive when you are driving to the front of the house.”

As you can probably imagine, this is no ordinary mountain property. Casteel Creek Retreat is truly unique and stunning. Built in 2001, the 32,000-square-foot main house is clad in copper, steel, glass and stone and features curated finishes such as imported flamed Vyara granite and exotic marbles. 

“All of the finishes in the home are top of the line, imported from different places around the world,” said Endsley. An artful Dale Chihuly chandelier is visible through towering windows.

The property can easily and comfortably accommodate 40 or more overnight guests. Together with the main house, the retreat includes  21 bedrooms and 34 bathrooms. All structures and living quarters are fully furnished. 

Rustic elegance is on display in the three-level home, which includes eight guest suites, on-site apartments, elevators, a home theater, swimming pool, hot tub, spa and gym “with all the equipment you could ever dream of for workouts,” said Endsley.

The guest suites are spacious and private with dens, theaters, offices and bars. “There may be two suites in one wing, and those two suites will have a common den, bar and TV area,” Endsley explained. 

Additional structures include a caretaker’s home, two Wild West-themed apartments, an additional apartment, three fully equipped and furnished guest houses, and one historic cabin, totaling 13 extra bedrooms outside of the main residence. There is also an ice cream parlor and authentic replica of the Silver Dollar Saloon. The option to build up to five additional homes adds versatility and room to expand.

“The current owner is extended family,” said Endsley. “They wanted privacy and a retreat where they could entertain their family, friends or guests. I see that happening again. But I also believe it would be a perfect corporate retreat for a small to midsize corporation where they are entertaining or schmoozing some guests, maybe making a formal presentation.”

The owners set up the retreat with corporations in mind to easily accommodate a conversion. “They actually bought the Castille Creek ranch and over time added features, acreage and some buildings,’ Endsley said. 

Although Castille Creek Retreat just happens to have Western themes scattered throughout, there are no cattle or horses on it, Endsley said, “It’s not a traditional ranch. It’s really just a retreat for families or corporations.”

The property has a mile-and-a-half-long common property line with White River National Forest, the most visited national forest in the nation, encompassing 2.3 million acres.

“You can have direct access to the White River National Forest and hike, bike and ride horses for days if you want to,” said Endsley. “You’re looking at all of this incredible open space back there in the White River National Forest. The snow-capped Gore Range is in direct view. You have this panoramic view just as far as the eye can see in the national forest. And you have those views from everywhere — from the guest house, the main house, rec building. As you look across miles and miles of wilderness and mountain tops, you don’t see any other homes.”

The retreat, which includes an extensive security system on site, comes fully staffed with a caretaker who serves as a security guard, assistant caretaker-handyman and housekeeper, all of whom are full-time employees. 

Among the numerous amenities are horse facilities, a soccer field, multipurpose sports pavilion that is large enough for full-court tennis, basketball and racquetball, a billiards room, library, butler’s pantry, catering kitchen, in-law suite and radiant floor heating. 

The stocked trout pond is a huge hit, as well as the shooting range, tubing-sledding hill, soccer field and enormous indoor arena for tennis, baseball, and basketball. 

Undulating sloping topography and open green pastures enhance the recreational experience on the property.

 “On one of those hills, they’ve created a tubing hill and their own little single ski run,” said Endsley. “It doesn’t compete with Beaver Creek, but it’s great for entertaining families and small corporations. But more importantly, there are 12 miles of groomed trails inside the property that you can snowshoe or cross-country ski on. In the summer you can hike or ride a horse on it or ATV on it. They’ve got these improved wide trails that meander all the way through the property.”

A massive 25,000 square-foot recreation building features a five-story climbing wall, elevator, full kitchen, authentic teppanyaki bar, meeting rooms, fully equipped guest apartment, exercise rooms, spa, pool and hot tub. A snowcat is equipped to accommodate 10 people, and a German snow plow clears retreat driveways with ease.

The property also boasts extensive water rights and an on-site gas station. “It looks like older gas pumps, but they operate beautifully,” said Endsley. “They’ve got gas and diesel for all the equipment and cars. Any guests, ranch hands, the staff or owner can fill up there.”

Property buyers could expand the compound if they desire to have more space than what’s there now. “There exists the ability to build up to five more guest homes on the property,” said Endsley. “If somebody wanted to increase the size of the compound, let’s say it was a corporation from Denver, and they wanted to host 50 people a weekend instead of 30, they could add up to five more guest homes there if they wanted to.”

To sweeten the deal, the sale includes 12 high-performance snowmobiles, the high-tech German snow plow, snow suits, helmets, boots and riding gear in addition to three ATVS.

For his part, Endsley believes this listing is unparalleled. He said, “I tend to get my share of exquisite, one-of-a-kind, unique listings in Colorado, and I think this is one of the best ones I have ever presented just because of the care that was taken to assemble these assets and features and amenities into a collection of items that I think would satisfy almost any extended family or small to medium-size corporation. I can’t think of anything that you would need that isn’t already there. Somebody could move in the next day if they want to and have the same benefits and comfort that the current owner has.” 

Click here to watch a video. For more information, contact Kerry Endsley at 303-570-0267.

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.