Tacansina Ranch

Set on 480 acres of foothills between Calgary and Banff, Tacansina Ranch was designed to put the landscape first. Floor-to-ceiling windows wrap the south and west sides, keeping the peaks of Banff National Park in view from nearly every part of the main living space, so the mountains are never far from mind.

The home blends rustic and mid-century modern design: massive log beams, arranged as two adjoining hexagons, carry the roof above clean lines, 12-inch concrete walls and an open plan built for gathering. A wood-burning fireplace and a 15-foot kitchen island anchor the main house, while an 800 sq ft covered breezeway leads to a four-bedroom guest house for family and friends, and a Rundle stone patio with a fire pit turns the mountain view into a nightly ritual. Set on a ridge crossed by the Palliser Expedition in 1858, this is a home shaped as much by its history as by the people who live in it.