Woodsy And Warm -- This Eagle Lake House On Orcas Island Uses Post- And-Beam Construction To Mesh With Its Surroundings

THE WORLD HAS discovered Orcas Island.

Visiting this jewel of the San Juan Islands for the first time in nearly a decade, I was struck by the signs of advancing civilization. Luxury homes dotted the once-pristine hills, and conversation at an Eastsound restaurant centered on movie grosses and ad campaigns. Arriving at the ferry terminal 3 1/2 hours before my return sailing, I learned that the boat was already full. I finally departed seven hours later.

Although there was nothing they could do about ferry lines or the Tinseltown contingent, Seattle residents Scott D. Baker and Christina Koons Baker wanted to find a way of accommodating Orcas' growth without sacrificing its scenic beauty. Teaming up with two other partners, the couple helped establish Eagle Lake, a residential community near Doe Bay on the island's northeast shore.

Developed along the same lines as Decatur Northwest, a 12-year-old community on nearby Decatur Island, Eagle Lake features 53 building sites distributed over 297 acres of bucolic countryside. Each building site consists of a circle 100 feet in diameter. The remaining land - over 265 acres - is held in common and cannot be developed. An additional 17 acres of saltwater shoreline was turned over to the San Juan Preservation Trust.

"We looked at this as a way to do something profitable that also had an ethical side to it," says Scott, who had renovated several historic structures in Olympia and Tacoma before taking on this project.

To build a house at Eagle Lake, you must follow strict guidelines dictating such elements as building height, exterior colors, window configurations and the depth of roof eaves. Property owners are encouraged to preserve as many trees as possible, and to limit their landscaping to native plants. The ultimate goal is to create houses that mesh with the surrounding environment.

The Bakers' own home is a case in point. Woodsy and warm, with a broad front facade and a rear that steps down the hillside, the house commands a rocky promontory overlooking the development's man-made lake. Despite its prominence, the house doesn't overpower its setting. The natural cedar siding blends with the landscape, while the green window sashes echo the color of the surrounding pines. Tapered deck supports lend a craftsman-style flair to the architecture.

Christina, a communications specialist with a background in design, drew up the house plans herself. Timberpeg, a company specializing in post-and-beam construction, cut all the lumber and the mortise-and-tenon joints in their New Hampshire factory. Then the whole package was loaded on a pair of trucks bound for Orcas.

The kit approach worked well for such a remote site. It took the contractors, WSA Construction of Lopez Island, just six days to assemble the home's timber-frame skeleton. Scott figures it would have taken four months to fashion the same components on-site. By the time the 2,200-square-foot house was completed eight months later, the cost totaled $405,000, including site improvements.

The home's stout fir framework is paired with pine-paneled walls and pine floors. "Having two boys - excuse me - three boys," Christina says, eyeing her husband, "we just have a lot of gear and stuff around, and I wanted places that could be bumped and scratched and you really wouldn't hurt something."

Although the pine floors scar easily, they're held in place with old-fashioned triangular nails, so if the Bakers wanted to sand them, the nails wouldn't lose their heads. A radiant electric film secured beneath the floorboards keeps the interior warm, as does a woodstove nestled in the corner of the living room. Incoming dirt is confined to the slate-covered front and rear entries.

The central living/dining area boasts vaulted ceilings and a multitude of windows designed to capture both southwest light and views of nearby Mount Picket. A breakfast bar frames the kitchen, which features butcher-block counters and pine cabinets stained a traffic-light green.

Since overnight guests are a common occurrence at any vacation home, the Bakers tried to include as many beds as possible. "I wanted it to sleep a lot of people without it looking like it slept a lot of people," notes Christina. The house has three window seats, two of which double as full-size beds. (The one in the living room rests within a curtained alcove that can be closed off for privacy.)

Besides the master bedroom, there's a basement bunk room for sons Nicholas, 7, and Carson, 4, and a third-floor family room with two twin beds and a loft big enough for a queen-size mattress.

Although they thinned some of the trees to open up the view of the lake, the Bakers tried to keep the rest of the property as natural as possible. They planted salal and grasses, and confined their flower selection to deer-proof perennials such as day lilies and irises. "We didn't go for a high-maintenance landscape," admits Scott. "The deer eat just about anything, so most ornamentals need to be protected, which is kind of a hassle and often unsightly."

With only five houses completed to date, the Bakers and their partners are eager to see how their dream of an environmentally sensitive community materializes.

------------ JUST BEAMING ------------

Post-and-beam houses (also called timber-frame houses) are supported by armatures of stocky exposed timbers held in place by interlocking wood joinery. Rugged and woodsy but blessed with airy, light-filled interiors, post-and-beam homes combine the rusticness of log with the design freedom of conventional stick-frame construction.

However, like log houses, post-and-beam structures require a lot of wood, making them a drain on natural resources. Fortunately, many - like the Baker house - are framed using timber from naturally fallen trees, lessening the impact on the environment.

Although it's estimated that more than 120 North American companies specialize in post-and-beam construction, some of the best-known firms are:

# Benson Woodworking Co. Inc., Box 224, Pratt Road, Alstead, NH 03602 (603) 835-6391.

# The Cascade Joinery, 1336 East Hemmi Road, Everson, WA 98247 (360) 398-8013.

# Riverbend Timber Framing Inc., P.O. Box 26, Blissfield, MI 49228 (517) 486-4355.

# Timbercraft Homes Inc., 85 Martin Road, Port Townsend, WA 98368 (360) 385-3051.

# Timberhouse Post & Beam, Ltd., 150 Sheafman Creek Road, Victor, MT 59875 (406) 961-3276.

# Timberpeg, Box 70123, Reno, NV 89570 (702) 826-4447.

Fred Albert reports regularly on home design for Pacific Magazine and other publications. Gary Settle is the photography coach of The Seattle Times and picture editor of Pacific magazine.