The property offers a "park-like" feel with amenities that include dense towering pine stands, perfectly maintained woods trails, a lean-to with fine views of the nearby mountains, and a small stream. It is a great property to park your RV and spend the week, then, over time, build a home upon additional road improvements.
The land is tucked into a classic, narrow Vermont hollow. Formed by Gilead Brook, this valley watershed begins in the Northfield Mountain Range just west of the land. The property is off Macintosh Hill Road, a dead-end road near the end of Gilead Brook Road and 3.3 miles from Route 12, just north of Bethel Village. Both roads do not see much traffic, so this scenic valley is a quiet location.
Bethel is a crossroads town where Route 12 (north/south) meets Route 107 (east/west). Bethel's main street is 8 miles from the land and 3 miles from Interstate 89 and offers basic services. Seven miles to the north, Randolph is a larger, vibrant community bolstered by the presence of the Chandler Center for the Arts, Gifford Medical Center, and Vermont Technical College. Twelve miles east, the Vermont Law School is set in the hamlet of South Royalton.
Via I-89, Burlington, Vermont is 1.25 hours northwest, Hartford, Connecticut is 3 hours south, and Boston, Massachusetts is 2.5 hours southeast.
The access is provided by a 50' wide developed right-of-way road that leads from MacIntosh Hill Road and runs +/-700' to the property's western boundary. This right of way offers a potential driveway suitable for future home construction upon gravel upgrades and a new bridge/culvert over the land's stream. Electric and telephone service cross the right of way, so power hook-up should be a low-cost item.
Directions to the property from the junctions of Route 12 and Gilead Brook Road head west on Gilead Brook Road, 2.7 miles to MacIntosh Hill Road. Then head north along Macintosh Hill Road .6 miles to the right of way on the right. The home address nearly opposite the right of way is 591 Macintosh Hill Road.
The property is currently well suited for recreational pursuits and timber production. With access improvements to the right of way and other internal wood trail upgrades, the land can support a private homesite amongst the tall pines with attractive views to the west of the nearby Northfield Range.
A branch of the Gilead Brook flows through the western end of the land, offering a nice water resource attribute. Any homesite building beyond the stream will require a small bridge or culvert. This access road currently allows a high clearance vehicle to drive to the land's center near the Lean-to.
The roughly 4,000' of existing woods trails that run throughout the land are well maintained and in excellent condition, enhancing the immediate recreational amenity of the property.
Elevation ranges from 1,000' along the stream to 1,280' in the property's northeastern corner hardwood stand. The terrain has a westerly aspect with a mix of gently to moderately sloping land. Nearly all the land covered by the maturing white pine is gently sloping. Soils are mostly well-drained.
The Lean-to is situated near the property's center, amongst the maturing pines and overlooking a clearing of the Northfield Range, a special location and perfect camping site.
The timber resource is exceptional; offering stocked maturing white pine stands and two hardwood stands. The well-stocked white pine stand covers +/-34 acres and can be considered an exemplary example of a nearly perfect stand from a silvicultural perspective. The trees are straight and tall with signs of vigorous growth, given its careful forest management over the last several decades. The property's capital timber value is likely close to $95,000.
Two northern hardwood stands frame the property, one on the northern end and one on the southern end, complementing the central pine stand. These hardwood stands occur on moderately steeper slopes and possess a mix of species and diameters with average timber value.
Forest management last occurred in 2019 within the northern hardwood stand and a pine overstory removal at the northern end of the pine stand. At this time, a small 3-acre clearing was created in the pine stand adjacent to the Lean-to.
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