Barn House: isolated sheep farm Hudson area

A century-old brick barn renovated in 2018, 10 miles from Hudson, close to Kinderhook, now a quiet, secluded, unique residence. Surrounded by gardens, sheep, and ponies, set off a country road, with a converted jungle shower, loft, and woodstove. Waterfall swimming area and Hudson-Albany Rail Trail for ideal biking. Easy drive to Columbia County and Berkshire treats. The farm shares space with nature as it is - country life. There is a queen bed upstairs in the loft (with a secure gate for kids) and queen size, new sofa bed downstairs plus a full-size day bed. The kitchen has a commercial stove. The butterfly piano from Denmark is restored and usually correctly tuned. Skylights and extra doors and climate controls added in 2018. The jungle shower changes over time and the photos here might not be up to date. More plants, humidifiers, etc. We're always working on it. We have a washer/dryer for small loads in the unit. AC and central heat in addition to ceiling fans and woodstove. Another nice thing is how far back from the road the house; even small kids can just wander around. Other things I like here: gently rolling hills, little traffic, and the magnificent Hudson-Albany bike path. We have an open layout with high cathedral-style ceilings. The loft and the main room can accommodate as many as 6 people but there would not be a lot of privacy for a larger group. The house is completely surrounded by pasture. There may or may not be sheep or ponies outside. The animals have babies in the spring and that is lovely. We rotate them in and out of different fields during the year. In the winter, we have as much firewood as you'd like. Please be extremely careful and talk to us about the fire in the house. Quite cozy, but, of course, potentially hazardous. Critters: This is an old house in the country. Mice do come in the house (plan of action 2020 to reduce this problem on the to do list) in the fall. It's possible some ladybugs, nice, and railroad bugs, not nice but harmless, will emerge from time to time. Carpenter bees are harmless and wasps and hornets are a manageable but not eliminated part of the environment. Our own honey bees are far away and harmless. Other flying and crawling things will be in the area, outside and maybe even inside from time to time. If this information about the usually very gentle and harmless but not completely and totally tamed local environment causes you to gawk or be shocked, you should probably look elsewhere for a place to stay. Giant owls, foxes, coyotes, eagles have all visited occasionally but don't get too close usually. Also, this is an agricultural area. We have no control over when the neighbors show up to plant, harvest, or spread manure. The house is isolated and the entire place plus large yard outside eating area is exclusively for the guests. The owner's house is on the same property and the owner's son and his family are next door. The guest house is far from the main house. Plenty of privacy: one other house is visible through the trees and there is a farm far in the distance. There is a small hamlet nearby in one direction, and open farmland in the other direction. Hello and welcome to the barn guesthouse. My family and I (Will) have lived in the hamlet of Stuyvesant Falls since 2004, moving from Brooklyn, and my mother Susanna move here from Vermont in 2015, next door. The barn that is renovated is on the 5-acre property with Susanna’s house and we have 15 acres next door. I have a guest book/guide book I share (and keep updated) with everyone who books including places to visit and options. We have nature areas and state parks nearby, farms, rural roads, swimming holes, and a number of towns. No public transport. You'll need a car. Woodstove and farm animals require some discussion.