Escape to Black Dog Cabin, less than 2 hours from Boston:
- Gather under the stars by the fire pit
- Relax or grill on the huge back deck & sauna
- Enjoy our pet-friendly working homestead
- Ski at nearby Ragged & Tenney Mountain resorts
- Hike, bike & snowshoe at nearby Wellington, Cardigan Mountain State Parks, AMC Cardigan Lodge
Looking for options? Visit my Airbnb Host Profile to explore our 3 available cabins: Millmoon A-Frame, Black Dog Cabin, Darkfrost Lodge.
The space
**How can we help you?**
Have questions about our amenities, lodging, or things to do in the area? Ask us, we are happy to help you!
**Winter in the New Hampshire Foothills: A Friendly Heads-Up**
We're thrilled to host you during the winter months. Here's what you need to know:
Heat: Our cabins feature eco-friendly mini-split heating systems, which provide gentle, efficient heat that feels different than traditional furnaces in apartments or houses. Bring your coziest layers, fuzzy socks, winter boots, and maybe that favorite blanket—it's all part of the authentic cabin experience. You'll be warm in a rustic-chic kind of way.
Roads: Our unpaved country roads can get icy, snowy, and occasionally adventurous in winter. A four-wheel drive or all-wheel drive vehicle with snow tires (or all-weather tires at minimum) is your ticket to stress-free arrival and departure.
** Ideal for two, "sleepover cozy" for four**
Black Dog is a spacious cabin and sauna experience for two, with or without up to two pets.
The sofa pullout bed downstairs provides additional sleeping (full bed) for up two additional guests who don't require privacy. Ideal for kids or adults who feel like kids!
**Register Your Pet**
Our cabins are pet-friendly and always will be. If you're bringing a pet, please add your pet to your reservation; this helps us notify our cleaners and keep cabins tidy for you and all our guests.
**Life in the Woods**
Black Dog Cabin is on an unpaved country road on a wooded hill in a small rural town that borders Newfound Lake, with rolling hills, and is within view of Mount Cardigan. All-wheel-drive or front-wheel-drive vehicles are recommended in winter and during mud season in late March - early April.
The cabin is conveniently located on a private driveway, about 100 feet from the main road. Our location is not overtly remote and is within walking distance of our two other short rental properties. Black Dog Cabin has parking for two average-sized vehicles and is tucked within a wooded lot.
Our woodmill, gardens, and homestead are further down the driveway, within walking distance but out of sight from Black Dog Cabin.
Our little mountain community is overall quiet. During daytime hours, you may see the occasional pickup truck on the road hauling firewood or hear us milling lumber at our wood mill on the property. Evenings are quiet and very dark, ideal for listening to owls and frogs or stargazing on clear nights.
We are surrounded by a rich and healthy woodland ecosystem. Native wildlife around the property includes migrating birds, owls, turkeys, deer, moose, red and grey squirrels, a diverse range of pollinator insects (and mosquitoes in the summer and for two weeks in April black flies), the occasional porcupine, and in rare instances a shy black bear or bobcat passing through.
During the spring and summer months, please keep doors and windows closed to prevent uninvited insect friends from welcoming themselves inside. We do our best to keep tiny native critters out of the cabin but they may occasionally get in.
**Sleeping Arrangement**
Black Dog Cabin features TWO sleeping areas:
- Upstairs loft with a **King-Sized** bed with memory foam mattress
- Downstairs, a full-sized sleeper sofa. We provide pillows and linens upon request.
**Sauna**
Enjoy our beautiful handmade sauna, outdoor cold shower (warm-weather months only), and cold plunge in an antique claw-foot tub, steps away from the back deck and firepit. Ease those sore muscles after a day on the ski slopes, hiking, or anytime you need deep relaxation!
**Mini-Split and Woodstove**
A mini-split provides instant, easy-to-use air conditioning and heating throughout the cabin year-round. Just one touch on the remote and you can adjust the temperature to your ideal setting.
The wood stove is available to guests, but it is recommended for those with prior experience with using a wood stove.
It is NOT necessary to heat the cabin with the stove; it's much faster and easier to use the mini split.
If you are interested in using the stove, please let us know in advance. We stock the cabin with some fire starters/kindling and paper to start your woodstove fires. Please purchase firewood within the state of NH (this prevents invasive pests from entering our ecosystem). Every grocery store stocks wood, and many homes in our neighborhood offer low-cost hand-split wood for sale in their front yards. By using the woodstove or firepit, you accept full responsibility for your safety.
**Kitchen and Cooking**
Black Dog Cabin’s kitchen appliances are electric-only, including a professional-grade induction burner, Ninja Flip and Fry Toaster Oven (a powerful little oven capable of heating a 13-inch pizza).
*The kitchen does not have a standard-size gas or propane oven or cooking range.* However, our guests have prepared a wide range of meals with our electric appliances.
Outside on the spacious deck, a propane grill is ready for your grilling needs!
**Coffee and Tea**
We provide a Hario gooseneck kettle and a deluxe French press.
We provide ground coffee, decaf coffee, an assortment of teas, and raw sugar and stevia sweeteners.
**Unscented Cleaning Products**
Whenever possible, we use unscented cleaning products, detergents, and hand and dish soap. No weird plugin air fresheners or spray-on fake "air fresheners" here!
Guest access
The entire cabin is just for you, including the sauna shed and firepit. You are welcome to walk down the driveway to the main road. If you’d like to see more of our property, reach out on the Airbnb app and we’re happy to provide a tour if we’re available.
Other things to note
Black Dog Cabin has a unique minimalist yet rustic vibe, built by hand by us! We love unfinished wood that retains the original mill markings, shou sugi ban burned wood accents, old books, country bobbles, and the occasional bit of fantasy or whimsical flair.
The coffee table, hand-burned cabin and sauna shed siding, and much of the interior details are made from wood from our wood mill. We supply camp wood, all of it off cuts from our woodmill on the property.
