The Cottage at Backwards Bay sits on a Québec island nestled into a hillside amongst boulders, spruces and pines. As you approach the cottage, you make your way to the entrance of this peaceful abode through a quaint outdoor living room that sits below a treehouse bedroom. The bedroom is slung between the main cottage and a cluster of tree-like poles.
The cottage is clad in a palette of prefinished wood siding, Corten steel and natural Douglas Fir. Inside, glassy walls and a high vaulted ceiling blur the threshold between indoors and out. Like the river below, the stairs twist and turn around a rustic shelving unit and eventually lead to a bridge that crosses the space to the treehouse bedroom.
The electrical needs of the 1,360 sq.ft cottage are served by photovoltaic solar collectors on the steep south roof. A propane generator provides a backup for extended periods of cloudy weather. The deer take care of the lawn maintenance.
Principal Architect Gord Lorimer’s design for the cottage was inspired by the playful relationship between wilderness, place and form. The team also included Patrick Bisson, Project Architect, and Wayne Fralic, Senior Architectural Technologist.
The cottage was completed in 2014 and received a Housing Design Award in 2016 from the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association (GOHBA).
