A round timber home with a wraparound deck on a hillside, overlooking a pine-forested valley and a lake in the distance.

Under construction

Highland Overlook Round Home

Highland Overlook Round Home is a three-level home built into a hillside above the Athol valley, around a 41-foot diameter with 14-foot walls. A 9-foot basement level follows the site's natural grade — buried on the uphill side, open to a walkout patio on the downhill side — while the main floor wraps in a full-perimeter covered deck facing the valley and lake.

The design is complete and the home is currently being built.

Project facts

Location: Athol, Idaho
Year: 2026
Diameter: 41 ft
Wall height: 14 ft (9 ft walkout basement level)
Round-home system: Smiling Woods Yurts

The challenge and the response.

The site's sloped hillside needed to be built on while keeping the round geometry legible, resolving the grade change between the buried and exposed portions of the basement, and giving the home a strong connection to the valley and lake view from more than one level.

The basement steps into the hill so it reads as fully buried on the uphill side and fully open on the downhill side, with its own walkout patio and glazing. The main level wraps in a full-perimeter covered deck to extend living space toward the view, and the loft is kept as a distinct lounge, reached by a full stair rather than a compact spiral, so it functions as a retreat rather than leftover space above the main living area.