The Percy Lake cottage of Ingrid and Nesmith Chingcuanco.Tom Arban/Tom Arban Photography
In their downtown Toronto condo, Ingrid and Nesmith Chingcuanco are surrounded by the hum of the city. Through their wall-to-wall windows, they look out at the ever-changing skyline, with cabs, bikes and pedestrians rushing along the streets below.
At their Haliburton, Ont., cottage, three and a half hours northeast, the couple – both business executives – trade car honks and sidewalk noise for a different type of buzz. “From my desk, I see all kinds of bugs,” says Mr. Chingcuanco. “Green ones. Shiny ones. I also see a lot of birds. It’s quite nice.”
Mr. Chingcuanco hardly ever had the chance to appreciate nature up close. “For many years, Ingrid wanted a cottage,” he says. “I didn’t think we would use it. I didn’t think it would be worth it.”
The cottage was designed by architect Michael Taylor.Tom Arban/Tom Arban Photography
COVID-19 changed his mind. During the pandemic, the couple found themselves, like many people, with more flexibility to work remotely. “That was the shift,” says Mr. Chingcuanco. “We decided to look for a property outside the city.”
The couple’s condo and cottage differ in many ways.Tom Arban/Tom Arban Photography
The couple’s condo and cottage differ in many ways. The condo, a remodel of a cramped nineties apartment, has an urban aesthetic, with a rough concrete ceiling contrasting with sleek oak cabinetry. At the cottage, built new from scratch, Douglas fir planks line the rooms for a warmer, woodsier feel.
But there is a common element: architect Michael Taylor designed both. In each, he created open entertaining spaces with expansive views. At the cottage, however, the views take a while to discover – partly because the house itself is quite stealthy, almost hidden.
When the couple were looking for a property, they wanted waterfront within a four-hour drive of the city. “We also wanted something with topography,” says Ms. Chingcuanco. “We wanted to be up high in case of flooding.”
The lot they purchased, just south of Algonquin Park, has a hillside, but the high point is near the road. Taylor sited the house on the crest, making the front façade subtle to maximize privacy. It is essentially a black wall, set back behind a granite embankment, receding into the surrounding forest.
Douglas fir planks line the rooms for a warmer, woodsier feel.Tom Arban/Tom Arban Photography
“A first-time visitor might not even know where the front door is,” says Mr. Taylor. “The idea was that the experience gradually unfolds rather than being revealed all at once.”
Inside, a front foyer with closets and a bench offers a place to remove shoes. From there, a corridor connects a screened-in porch, a guest wing and a central great room. The guest wing has two bedrooms, a bathroom and a laundry area (“the laundry area is where we contain the mess,” says Ms. Chingcuanco). The great room combines the kitchen, dining, and living areas, anchored by a wood-burning fireplace set in a stone hearth.
The primary suite includes amenities for relaxation, such as a soaker tub by a picture window.Tom Arban/Tom Arban Photography
It is in the great room that the spectacular scenery is fully revealed. Through tall panes of glass, the lake shimmers down the hillside, and the city feels like a distant memory.
The view is accentuated by the ceiling, which tilts upward toward the water like a lifted eyelid, drawing the gaze outside. “There are 100-year-old trees, a curving, rugged shoreline and islands in the distance,” says Mr. Chingcuanco. “The landscape is dramatic. I like a bit of drama.”
The couple make the trip north as often as possible, typically a few times a month, year-round. The scenery is constantly changing, with the water receding in the fall to reveal a beach and rising in the spring to submerge the sand. “Winter is my favourite,” says Mr. Chingcuanco. “When it’s snowy, and the moon is out, it’s so bright. It’s different from being in the city, where we don’t often see the moon.”
The cottage is almost 2,900 square feet – twice the size of the couple’s condo.Tom Arban/Tom Arban Photography
The cottage is almost 2,900 square feet – twice the size of the couple’s condo – allowing guests to spread out. “We typically have visitors in the summer,” says Ms. Chingcuanco. “But people come in the winter, too. They are surprised how nice it is.”
Regardless of the season or the number of visitors, the couple can find seclusion. Off the great room, a discreet, glass-lined corridor leads to the primary suite. It is on the opposite end of the house from the guest wing, offering a “nice balance of privacy for everyone,” says Ms. Chingcuanco.
The couple make the trip north as often as possible, typically a few times a month, year-round.Tom Arban/Tom Arban Photography
The primary suite includes amenities for relaxation, such as a soaker tub by a picture window and a bed surrounded by glass. Perhaps less relaxing, a desk tucked is into the closet area. Although the couple no longer have the same pandemic-era flexibility to work from anywhere, the set-up is there for times when they need to take care of business.
It is there that Mr. Chingcuanco looks out at the birds and the bugs. “It’s really handy,” says Ms. Chingcuanco. “It allows us to get things done. But we can still sit there and look out at the lake.”
“We don’t have the noise of the city,” adds Mr. Chingcuanco. “So we’re more relaxed, less stressed all around.”