978 Cabot Rd, Marshfield, VT 05658

This sunny cottage by the Winooski River is nestled amongst 4 acres of wildflowers, forest, hay field, gardens and fruit trees. It is just one mile from Marshfield village center, three miles from Cabot, and a 25 minute drive to Montpelier. This homestead property has great potential to become a tiny farm or market garden. Approximately 1 acre is fenced to keep garden-munching wildlife out and to allow children and dogs space to run around in safety. This fenced area contains a lawn, perennial herb gardens, annual vegetable gardens, perennial pollinator gardens, wildflowers, apple and pear trees, elderberry, grapes, black currants, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries. There is 1 acre of hay field, which we have recently left unharvested to encourage milkweed habitat for migrating monarch butterflies. The property also includes 1 acre of forest on the other side of the river. The house itself is about 800 sq ft, with an enclosed 3 season porch. The concrete slab foundation for the main part of the home has a footprint of 320 sq feet. This home is insulated with spray foam and heated by radiant floors and a one year old wood-burning Morso squirrel stove. Even on those -25 degree winter nights, we stayed toasty in here, and the floors were warm when we came downstairs each morning. The downstairs has an open floorplan, with large windows facing south to the garden and the winter sun. It has a large country sink, with small appliances like a 2-burner induction cooktop and toaster oven. The home is set up for gas (infrastructure for a gas range, dryer, and water heater), but we had plans to set up a solar panel array so we recently upgraded the house to 200 amp service and all appliances are electric. The upstairs is open as well, with one small section of wall partially separating the space into two rooms. We used one half as our bedroom and one half as our baby daughter's play room. Each side of the upstairs partition has its own loft, which we used for storage and as a sleeping loft for guests. The sleeping loft has more than enough space for a queen size mattress and looks out to the river. The upstairs also has the home's bathroom with a cast iron tub and new toilet. The house was built only 10 years ago, so there are no worries about lead paint or rot. The mound septic system was pumped and serviced 2 months ago. The Marshfield library, playground, ball field, and schoolhouse commons are just over one mile down the road - hosting weekly children's programs, summer outdoor concerts, and community dinners. The highly regarded preK-12 Twinfield Union School is six miles away. Groton State Forest and Molly's Falls Pond State Park are beautiful public parks each just a 10 minute drive from the house - offering hiking trails, VAST trails, camping, and ponds for boating, ice fishing, and swimming.