Avery, CA 95224

'Golden Eagle Manzanita Oaks' (GEMO) house for Sale at $825 K in Calaveras County off State Highway 4 in scenic “Angels Camp to Bear Valley” corridor: an off-grid solar-electric (photo-voltaic) 3-story custom contemporary home, with active/passive-solar space heating using an innovative ‘Seasonal Sunroom’ heat collector & circulation design with 3 wood stove backup, 14 rooms, 2,950 square feet, 3 or 4 bedroom, upstairs/downstairs near-duplex style eclectic “country solar mansion on a hill” on 5.74 acres above River Canyon adjacent to Stanislaus National Forest near Avery, CA 95224. It’s 3½ miles from Highway 4 (last quarter mile on gravel) with solar-tempered south addition; large garden-level workshop & storage complex; upstairs one-bedroom apartment with full kitchen & large deck; downstairs ‘master suite’ featuring large party/event/dance/video/surround-sound/media room, 2 bedrooms & all-electric ‘Cantilevered Kitchenette’ … & much more. House & property are located on east side & near top of Dowd’s Hill (4,000 ft. elev.) with exciting panoramic views of Love Creek ridge, Big Trees State Park, Stan. River Canyon, long views of Dodge Ridge ski area 30 miles out & Yosemite highlands. New solar-powered 8 gal./min. deep well (1,200 gallons per day during recent drought), land phone line, Verizon cell tower link, Hughes Satellite Internet, full sinewave 4 KW electric power inverter (Trace SW4024), no-maintenance 36-unit cell-tower battery pack, legacy Wedgewood propane cook stove & hot water with full-sized electric refrigerator. Beautiful quiet private rustic lifestyle on acreage with older orchard trees and gardens in park-like setting 15 minutes from Arnold, CA, just above historic Murphys, CA (“Queen of the Sierra”) and Ironstone Winery & Amphitheatre, with Sonora, Angels Camp, Bear Valley Ski Resort, etc. within an hour’s drive. Golden Eagles nesting in canyon are often-seen near the house on this uphill property—possibly the best location in its rural Dowd’s Landing Subdivision—with RV & car parking on private lower road. The house is on an excavated flat on sloping hillside land & has now been fully remodeled & expanded by owner, a retired architectural design engineer. It’s all-wheel or 4WD country with winter snow, numerous Ponderosas, Cedars, Manzanitas and oaks (Black, rare White and Valley). This temperate banana-belt, river-canyon site offers Sierra living at its best—robust power (100-amp charging) from 30+ 250-watt flat panels on power-towers and metal rooftops of the new large event room, all reliably automated without the winter power outages of grid-connected houses along nearby Love Creek Rd. Year-round, remote-work or weekend turnkey retreat living—coming partially furnished—fitting for anyone working in hectic urban California, esp. the San Francisco Bay Area hustle (3-hour drive), or Central Valley heat (half that). (Possible contrary conditions: gov’t backed mortgage loan money not available for off-grid purchase; house & property insurance coverage becoming more expensive; steep driveway; no garage or carport; 3 parking spaces next to house; no ducted fossil-fuel furnace, dishwasher, garbage disposal--or green granite counter tops {:-). There’s winter snow on the private road. GEMO ‘concept house’ has large windows needing insulation panels to be covered for winter heating & summer cooling & uncovered for spring & fall viewing: adjoining viewable property downhill to the north, although below a fascinating walkable lava dome, is abandoned and in bad state of repair—but may soon be for sale.) It’s an ideal situation for self-financed and somewhat knowledgeable person(s) regarding off-grid solar lifestyle perks, or possibly seeking to arrange finances (‘22-23 annual prop. tax = ~$2,500), etc. for spring 2024 move-in. More, incl. Custom ‘Operations & Maintenance Manual’ for existing equipment for owner-managed water and power systems available. One never tires of the amazing views from windows on the upper two stories of the GEMO house but walking around outside in the park-like setting at 4,000 feet about halfway between Tahoe & Yosemite, is equally impressive. The house is spacious & comfortable, now with enough panel-produced electrical power to operate a full-sized refrigerator and AC/coolers on both floors. Once here one doesn’t want to leave the beautiful near-wilderness ambiance in the privacy of one’s own indoor/outdoor living space. An afternoon or after-dinner meditation walk on trails to the oak grove across the driveway, the lava dome just beyond or down the hill to the solar well/RV flat, is nice—or indeed, the longer uphill hike to the top of Dowd’s Hill for the full high-country view is never disappointing either. The upstairs apartment with its inviting tiled art-piece floor in the “Solar Sunroom” adjacent to the main dining room makes for an impressive entry into the house for dinner guests. The white roof decks & cladding of the southern addition, make the house now appear a bit resort-like—which it is … a ‘solar mansion on a hill.’ The large studio & party room at the south end of the master suite with its 12-foot vaulted ceilings, dancehall floor & mirrors, audiophile stereo system, surround-sound screening room with private kitchenette & deck over the adjoining idyllic meadow, solar-heated hot tub or summer cool tub are all hard to beat for a relaxing single or couple. The upstairs/downstairs living space split offers the flexibility of 14 lovely rooms including the master bedroom with its private entry at the north end of the lower floor. The double-wide master-suite tub/shower always feels luxurious & refreshing. Finally, the meadow next to the house with its huge old white oak & stone circle below with views to a ghostly old oak snag at the top, is a magical vista that always seems striking ... & the rock walls.