International Wood International Wood 2004 | Page 29

Henry Johnston, architect on the
17,000 sq. ft. Black Bear Lodge in
Linville Ridge, North Carolina
I
Thanks to the
involvement of
Johnston Architecture,
and the use of some
unique exotic wood
species, this mountain
getaway is as
distinctive as it is
expansive.
t’s a rare soul that hasn’t fantasized at
one time or another about a log cabin
getaway in the mountains. The view,
the air, the solitude, the 3,000 square-foot
woodworking shop, the 24’ x 36’ master
bedroom, the exercise room....
Okay, so at 17,000 square feet the Black
Bear Lodge in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge
Mountains isn’t your ordinary log cabin;
extraordinary is a much better way to
describe it. Thanks to the involvement of
Johnston Architecture, and the use of some
unique exotic wood species, this mountain
getaway is as distinctive as it is expansive.
Henry Johnston, with his son and
partner Ian, first met the owners of the
lodge in the late summer of 2001. They
were introduced to the project through
Sexton Construction, the general contractor
already preparing the site for the building,
and with whom Johnston had done
previous work. Being familiar with their
intense attention to detail, Sexton
recommended Johnston Architecture.
The four-bedroom lodge is just across
the valley from Grandfather Mountain in
Linville Ridge, near Linville and Banner Elk.
Originally, the Johnston’s mission was to
give the project, already in the early design
stages, a once-over and clean up the
drawings, but in the end it became a
complete redesign.
The logs for the construction are
primarily Englemann Spruce along with a
few other species. All told there are six
miles of 15-inch diameter logs, up to 60
IMPORTED WOOD
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