Elizabeth, Colo. — About an hour northeast of Colorado Springs sits a magical treehouse, offering an elevated glamping experience far from the hustle and bustle of the big city.
Owners and operators Frank Sinicrope and Marni Kelce built “Houses High Tree House Magic,” by hand, with the help of a few friends, over a span of four years using fallen wood from their property. The indoor space is just 300 square feet but it offers much more than one would expect.
“I don’t think people expect to see the tree right in the middle of the treehouse like this,” said Sinicrope.
The tree, known as “Pal” is living and acts as a natural heater and air conditioner.
“Pal is a living Ponderosa pine tree; we think 80 plus years old. He’s just a beautiful thing and he sways in the wind and some people don’t even realize it’s a real tree,” said Kelce.
Also packed inside is a sleeping loft, a fully functional kitchen, an extra sleeping space, a composting toilet, and even a shower, complete with hot water.
“You get to take a shower inside a horse trough, how fun,” said Sinicrope.
“You’re seeing something new around every corner and things that you didn’t see the first time,” said Kelce. “And it just makes it fun and it just makes it feel like you’re a kid again”
A 1,100 square foot deck also gives visitors some extra room to stretch out.
“We’ve got a projector that we set up,” said Sinicrope. “There are games you can play.”
The entire space is off-grid but that doesn’t mean visitors have to live without the comforts of home.
“Everything is run by solar and propane,” said Kelce.
“You’ve got a flat screen television, you’ve got a PS4 with about 30 games,” said Sinicrope. “We’ve got backgammon and some other cards and things like that. There’s plenty of things to do in here or you could just sit and relax with a drink or something to eat.”
This is the first summer the treehouse has been available for rent and Kelce said so far the response has been overwhelming.
“It’s been nonstop rented and so it’s really exciting,” said Kelce. “It makes us cry because we’re so excited.”
“We had an event where we had about a dozen kids out here watching movies and things and it was just so great to see,” said Sinicrope.
“I think what I love the most, honestly, is watching people enjoy it,” said Kelce.
Even though more than 70 percent of the space is outdoors, the treehouse is available to rent year round.
“It’s not just for summer,” said Kelce. “Here in Colorado we have awesome winters. It’s fully heated and it just creates a great space for any season.”