SANTOSHA (PART ONE)
Backwoods Blog;
in the woods and on the road…
Santosha on the Carrabassett (part one)
Linda and I recently spent three days and two nights at Santosha on the Carrabassett, a yoga and mindfulness retreat center located in Kingfield, Maine. JennyBess (JB) Chaim is the founder of Tadasana Ventures which includes The Inn on the Hill, Santosha on the Carrabassett and From the Fishouse, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting emerging writers through publication opportunities and workshop residence. All of these entities are housed at Hillholm, a grand turn-of-the-century Georgian Revival mansion located on the hill overlooking downtown Kingfield with scenic views of Maine’s western mountains. Santosha has only been open since July of this year, but the history of Hillholm is long, full of fanciful stories and now, with the new venture undertaken by JB and her partner Matt O’Donnell (founder of From the Fishouse), the uncapped legacy of Hillholm continues. In part one of “Santosha on the Carrabassett,” I’d like to share a bit of its history and then in part two I’ll include more about the retreat and our amazing stay.
Hillholm was built in 1895 on Winter’s Hill for Amos G. Winter, a local grain merchant and owner of a general store in Kingfield. Winter was close friends with Freeland and Francis Stanley (inventors of the Stanley Steamer) who were also from Kingfield. As the story goes, upon returning from a hunting trip, Freeland asked Winter if he had anything planned for the afternoon, and when Winter replied in the negative, Freeland said, “Let’s build a house on the hill.” And this is just what they did, although it took more than a couple of afternoons. The house project coincided with Winter’s attempts to woo Julia Magdalena Roesch, a young New York socialite, to marry him. Winter’s plan included building a suitable estate with modern amenities, a Chickering box grand piano from Boston for the music room and professional clay tennis courts on the grounds. His plan was successful on all counts and the story of the house on Winter’s Hill began. Two notes of interest were the full-sized railroad boiler in the cellar that pumped steam through a series of immense radiators in the house, making the mansion the first private home with central heating in the State of Maine and the Stanleys also designed a steam-driven elevator in the home which was never finished. The railroad boiler remains in the basement (although it’s not operational) and way-cool future plans include a prohibition era bar and speak-easy built around the boiler. Winter’s son, Amos G. Winter Jr. also left his mark on the Kingfield area as the founder of Sugarloaf Mountain Resort. In 1950, he cut the first trails up Sugarloaf Mountain with a group of friends fondly known as the Bigelow Boys. Ever heard of Winter’s Run? The full story of Hillholm is on the Santosha website and you may want to check that out. I’ll include the link below.
A visit to Hillholm connects vestiges of the past to current innovations of our day. I lost count of how many electric heat pumps that have been installed on the main house and the barn (which also includes additional rooms.) A new outdoor sauna and hot tub were also being installed during our visit, although it wasn’t quite ready to use. That just means we’ll have to return and experience a steam and hot soak on a future visit. According to Wikipedia, “Its front facade is symmetrical, with rounded two-story bays flanking the center entrance, which is sheltered by a portico supported by groups of fluted columns, with a dentillated cornice beneath its hip roof.” Linda and I stayed in the upper left, rounded bay bedroom suite which opened to an over-view of Kingfield and the front grounds of Hillholm. We soaked up all the old mansion ambiance that we could. I took a few photos that I’ve included below. Next time I’ll share more about our experience at Santosha on the Carrabassett and introduce you to JB and the special place that she, Matt and the staff are creating. To explore more about Santosha on the Carrabassett you can visit their website at santoshamaine.com
Back in the woods,
Dave
November 30, 2022
