A custom yurt located in upstate Dutchess County can now be yours for $1.15 million.
The standout hilltop structure sits on 37.5 acres of land connected to the Appalachian Trail, in the town of Poughquag. The property comes with a saltwater pool, a greenhouse and a chicken coop — not to mention the bragging rights of owning a structure that’s simply jaw-dropping in its look.
The seller is wellness guru Dr. Jamé Heskett, author of “The Well Path,” who moved here with her three kids and former husband in 2017, while keeping her office on the Upper East Side.
“My goal was to build a property by the Appalachian Trail,” Heskett told Gimme Shelter. “My office is on 72nd and Madison and I was looking out onto a concrete jungle, so I Googled land for sale near the Appalachian Trail. I found the property, and it was totally underdeveloped, with weeds as high as our waists.”
The trail itself was a mile and a quarter away. “The seller saw us walk into the forest, uphill, into the woods. I knew it was our property,” Heskett said.
They bought the spread for $270,000 in 2015.
“We built a platform for our tent and fire pit with the kids and pretended we were living in the woods,” Heskett said.
The property started as a weekend spot. But when one of her children got sick, the family sold their home in Riverdale.
They wanted to build a modern farmhouse, but ended up — after a lot of back and forth with the town — constructing the yurt.
“It arrived on a gigantic truck from Washington State,” Heskett said. They hired an architect and builder — and created the interior, exterior and even a basement underneath the structure.
“It’s been an amazing journey to live in a house that you build,” she added. “It’s an explosion of my imagination, living in a circular structure, maximizing space without 90-degree angles. It really makes you think outside the box. We live simply, and shed a lot of our physical property and clothing to live super simply in the space, and our kids learned that as well, which has been a real blessing.”
The three-bedroom home is 2,621 square feet. It comes with design details like window walls, cathedral ceilings and a woodburning stove in addition to a high-end oven in the chef’s kitchen.
The yurt, with the help of architect Matthew Smith, is actually a combo of “two interconnected yurts” that are joined by a curved breezeway to allow for “separate yet connected living,” according to the listing — from broker Christina Weiss, of Houlihan Lawrence.
The main one features a chef’s kitchen with a handmade butcher block island, along with a walk-in pantry, a large living room, two bedrooms and a bath. Large windows in the living room showcase views of a nearby animal sanctuary’s red barns and rolling hills. The main bedroom is upstairs, under a rounded skylight. The yurt is connected to a smaller one currently used as a guest suite, with a freestanding black tub, laundry and a woodburning stove.
The yurt was built by Home Enrichment Company, which boasts an eco-conscious style of living.
Since then, Haskell has divorced, and her kids are now 24, 21 and 13. But now it’s just Heskett and her youngest son, and, she says, it’s time to downsize.
“We want to leave it to someone who will fully utilize the property and maybe bring a family out here and use the land for something purposeful even if it is just for their own recreation,” said Heskett.
She is also starting a new chapter — transitioning into running a non profit in Deming, New Mexico, to help veterans, active military and professionals deal with post-war PTSD.