Katie & TJ's Treehouse Just Us Adventure Session - The Meadowlark Treehouse at Montana Treehouse Retreat

treehouse adventure sessions

“Katie and TJ aren’t cookie-cutter so they asked us where we thought would be a fun and unique spot for them to stay.  We knew instantly the Meadowlark Treehouse at The Montana Treehouse Retreat would be perfect for them!  We sent them over the Airbnb link praying it would be available for their date, and it was!  Katie and TJ chose to wear their wedding gear from a couple days before to wear during their adventure session so they would get some banger pics while having a chillaxed blast.  The two got ready together in their treehouse immersed in the smell of pine (thank you, live trees inside), ate some leftover chinese dumplings, and we were on the way!”

-Destinie Fouche, Des & Dan Photography

CLICK HERE read more about their magical day and see more photos of Katie and TJ’s adventures in Glacier National Park, captured by Des & Dan.

CLICK HERE TO BOOK THE MEADOWLARK TREEHOUSE

“Elope in Montana” with Des & Dan

Additional Vendors:

@eventsbykillian

@mttreehouse

@honeybeautymt

@planetcowboy

@beyondthe.canvasbyyaya

@livemoreweddings

@beyond_beautystudio

Lauren + Jared's New Years Day Elopement

Lauren and Jared wanted to kick off 2023 right! What better way to ring in the New Year than to become husband and wife in Montana, with the base camp of a luxury treehouse? The Meadowlark Treehouse served as the cozy nest for the couple to get ready, take photos and eventually land back and honeymoon retreat after a very private ceremony in Glacier National Park on the banks of Lake McDonald. We teamed up with our friends at Elope Montana and local musicians Tin Finley for a very special live musical performance for their first look as Lauren walked down the Meadowlark Treehouse grand spiral wood staircase.

Check out some scenes from their very special day. Congratulations to the lovely couple!

Photographer: Lindsey Jane Photography

Celebrant: Erin Sabin

Hair & Makeup: Shayna Achin

Cake: Fleur Bake Shop

Venue: Montana Treehouse Retreat

Music: Tin Finley

Videographer: Alex Donaldson Videography

Outside Magazine Features Montana Treehouse Retreat

The Treehouse Mansion of Your Dreams Is in Montana

The Montana Treehouse Retreat has not one but two spiral staircases that lift you up into the treetops.

by Samantha Yadron

original article at Outside Magazine, online.

The Montana Treehouse Retreat, near Whitefish, Montana, isn’t your childhood backyard treehouse. Its creators, Kati O’Toole and Darin Robison, didn’t want their guests to trade creature comforts for time spent in nature. Their cabin is “the best of both worlds,” O’Toole says. Sleeping four, with two spiral staircases, two full bathrooms, Wi-Fi, and a full kitchen, it’s the home base you’ll need after a long day of exploring the Montana wilderness.

Nestled within 7.5 acres of secluded forest, the retreat offers city amenities like bars, restaurants, and shopping within reach—it’s a five-minute trip to Columbia Falls or Whitefish, Montana. If you bring your mountain bike or trail running shoes, the Flathead Valley provides more than 42 miles of singletrack. In summer, the Whitefish Ski Resort metamorphoses into a downhill bike park. It’s also just 30 minutes away from hiking trails in Glacier National Park via the Going-to-the-Sun Road, a can’t-miss scenic drive with views of glaciers and waterfalls.

The largest trunk in the house’s architecture, incorporated into the spiral staircase at the entrance, isn’t native to the forest. It’s a lightning-struck Douglas fir from the front yard of Robison’s late grandmother’s house in Echo Lake, Montana. When his grandma passed, excavating and repurposing the dying tree was how Robison chose to honor her. In addition to the trunk, the cabin wraps around four living trees. 

“He wanted the entrance to the treehouse to be something really magical,” O’Toole says. John Colliander, a friend of Robison’s and one of the craftsmen behind TreeWorks Log and Timber Construction, a cabin contracting company based in the area, bolted each tread of the spiral staircase.

Both artists—O’Toole writes songs and Robison is a painter, illustrator, and sculptor—put other custom touches on the treehouse.O’Toole handcrafted all the shelving and bedside tables from milled remnants of the cabin’s initial build. “Everything has a story and was made by a craftsman,” O’Toole says. “It’s a real work of art.”

Even hardcore adventurers need a soft place to land. For a place to rest after a day well spent exploring the trails, mountains, and waterways of western Montana, book here for $399 per night.

Room Porn Features Montana Treehouse Retreat!

Staying at the Montana Treehouse Retreat

A Treehouse of Dreams near Glacier National Park

Hey all, it’s Roberto. This past week I took Carleigh & Odie on a trip up north to the great state of Montana to visit the Whitefish area. Whitefish, and the surrounding Glacier National Park has been a region we’ve been admiring from afar because of the beautiful Instagram photos our friends Justin & Travis would often post of their hometown. So we decided to visit them.

We reached out to the popular Montana Treehouse Retreat  to see if they had any nights available, and to our surprise, they did – so we booked ourselves two nights to experience treehouse living in the cozy retreat once featured on the DIY network.

Upon arrival, we had to get a picture of Odie standing in front of the treehouse, and to our delight, there was fresh snow on the ground, and the Christmas lights still adorning this magical double decker treehouse.

Nestled on a private, wooded 7 acres, this artistic architectural marvel is truly one of a kind.

As blue hour slowly creeped in, the warm light and details of the exterior came into focus, and a short sprinkling of fresh snow made for a magical scene. 

The interior of the treehouse is as cozy as it looks. Unique decor, art pieces, and fairy lights make for an attractive setting, and the live tree trunks that provide the house with structural support steal the show

The house has all the luxury amenities you need – wi-fi, a big screen TV, a heating/cooling system, dishwasher and a coffee maker. While it’s the perfect place to unwind and unplug, it is nice to have these amenities in case there is some work you need to get done, or a Netflix show you want to cozy up to.

The house has one bedroom, and 1.5 bathrooms. While the home can comfortably host a family of 4-5, we think it’s ideal for a couple looking for a romantic retreat, an artist looking for a creative retreat, or a small group of close friends.

Odie was completely in his element in the treehouse. He was excitedly running up and down the hand-built staircase, and tremendously enjoyed having 7-acres of land to run around on.

For more images of the treehouse, and your daily dose of unique places & spaces, follow Roomporn on Instagram.

Link to original Room Porn Post (with full photos and video walkthrough of treehouse):

https://roomporn.co/2019/01/16/staying-at-the-montana-treehouse-retreat/

Montana Treehouse Retreat featured by Lonely Planet

Escape into nature in this authentic Montana rustic tree house

Who says tree houses are for kids? A stunning tree house retreat in Montana is getting a lot of love from adults looking to explore the nearby pursuits of Flathead Valley, Whitefish Mountain Resort and Glacier National Park.

Built by Kati and Darin Robison, both 4th generation Montanans, who admit they had dreamt about building a tree house for quite some time. Built with the help of buddies and their respective dads, the completed retreat perches among the treetops but is easily accessible by a series of staircases leading up from the forest floor. The grand entrance is a spiral staircase custom crafted around a giant Douglas fir tree. “The tree house can sleep five comfortably but is also wonderful for couples and romantic getaways,” says Kati. “The setting is perfect for a writer’s retreat or romantic getaway with your own private wooded acreage.”

The first floor has a full bathroom with a full-sized shower and sink. Two living trees grow through the actual interior and two living trees are through the tree house decks. The two-storey wooden tree house has a silver spiral staircase that connects two floors while tree trunks run through the middle of the property.

“The master suite loft leads out to the 2nd story tree house deck through a sliding glass door, for the most relaxing space to enjoy a morning coffee overlooking your private wooded setting. The master suite loft also has a private half bathroom.

We used a combination of locally sourced materials and reclaimed materials to give it an authentic Montana rustic feel,” adds Kati. With a not insubstantial  500 square-feet of living space along with two outside deck areas, full kitchen, dishwasher, stove and three lush padded benches to entertain which also double as sleeping quarters.

A stay at the Montana Treehouse Retreat costs $399 per night with a three-night minimum stay required.

Words: Mark McConville/Mediadrumworld

Montana Treehouse Retreat Featured on Time.com!

The 10 Most Popular Treehouses Right Now, and How Much They Cost to Rent

By MEGAN LEONHARDT 

Time.com

November 14, 2017

If the typical hotel stay is too passé, consider staying somewhere extraordinary during your next vacation—like a treehouse. 

No joke: Not just for kids anymore, treehouses are becoming a popular lodging option for travelers looking to create a memorable experience. In fact, the demand for treehouses increased more than 30% over the past year, according to vacation rental booking site HomeAway. 

Many of the most popular vacation rentals, including these treehouses, are near national and state parks, HomeAway finds. “Groups and families want to combine outdoor adventure with the comforts of staying in a home away from home,” Karen Fuller, HomeAway’s senior director of global market research, said in a statement. 

Here, we look at the 10 most popular treehouses HomeAway offers—and how much it will cost you to stay in one of these spectacular nests.

3. Luxury Montana Treehouse Retreat

Looking for unique lodgings when visiting Glacier National Park? This perch is just a short, 25-minute drive away. You enter the double-decker treehouse via a spiral staircase built around a giant Douglas fir tree. This treehouse sleeps six, with one bedroom and a large sofa bed in the living room.

Link to original article:

http://time.com/money/5018762/amazing-treehouses-rental-homeaway/

Arboreal Abode in Big Sky: Treehouse Guys Features Montana Treehouse Retreat!

Many have asked where they can watch our episode of "The Treehouse Guys" on DIY Network featuring the Montana Treehouse Retreat.

Click thIS link to watch on Amazon.

Montana Treehouse Retreat Featured in Whitefish Pilot

FAMILY’S TREEHOUSE BUILD FEATURED ON DIY NETWORK

WHITEFISH PILOT: May 30, 2017 at 5:29 pm | By Heidi Desch

Many a child has spent a night camped out inside a treehouse in the backyard. But not too many folks are likely to have spent a night in a luxury treehouse complete with a dishwasher. 

Combining childhood fun with adult amenities is exactly the experience Darin Robison and Kati O’Toole are looking to create with their two-story treehouse constructed on their Dillon Road property. The couple for two years has been talking about, planning, designing and finally constructing the treehouse supported by Ponderossa pines. 

The couple is still putting the finishing touches on the interior, but when completed it will have a full kitchen, a full bathroom with a shower and two bedrooms on the second-floor loft. 

“We wanted to create a little utopia,” O’Toole said. “We wanted people to come and have a real, unique Montana experience.”

The couple had the idea for the treehouse when someone pointed out a listing for a casting call in the newspaper for the DIY network. 

The couple applied and were selected to be part of the TV show, “The Treehouse Guys.” The episode featuring their treehouse debuted this month and will air again on June 2 and June 15. 

For six weeks in April last year, a film crew documented the process of constructing the shell of the treehouse. Collaborating with the stars of “The Treehouse Guys” Robison and O’Toole wanted to make sure the treehouse was comfortable enough to live in including making the loft space with a ceiling high enough to stand in and allow for a sliding glass doors from the loft out to a deck. 

“That upper deck was important,” Robison said. “I wanted a perch where you could sit on and look out while drinking a cup of coffee.”

West Glacier builder John Colliander of Treeworks Log and Timberframe Construction made the 18-foot wooden spiral staircase for the treehouse. The staircase is made of larch treads attached to an 80-plus-year-old Douglas fir Robison salvaged from his grandmother’s woods.

“We really wanted to create a grand entrance,” Robison said. 

The couple, along with help from family and friends, have continued to complete the interior of the treehouse. They hope to be open for rent this fall. 

View more about the treehouse at: http://www.montanatreehouseretreat.com

Link to original article: http://www.whitefishpilot.com/article/20170530/ARTICLE/170539977

Montana Treehouse Retreat Featured in Flathead Beacon

Castle in the Sky

Whitefish couple's new luxury treehouse retreat featured on DIY Network's television show

BY TRISTAN SCOTT // FLATHEAD BEACON//MAY 18, 2017 // PHOTOS: GREG LINDSTROM

Kati O’Toole and her husband, Darin Robison, have transformed their lofty dream into a reality with their new business venture at Montana Treehouse Retreat, a unique backyard escape that spirits guests into the treetops.

Literally.

Campers looking for an outdoor experience that transcends pitching a tent or renting a cabin in the wilderness will get a thrill out of the latest trend of lodging — a vacation rental in the sky.

Located on the couple’s wooded 7-acre property off Dillon Road near Whitefish, the retreat incorporates the growing popularity of custom luxury treehouse dwellings with the mountain allure of Montana.

Professional treehouse designers have capitalized on the trend by building everything from breweries to recording studios, but a rising number of backyard escapes are cropping up across the nation, advertised as guest rentals on the online hospitality service Airbnb.

The couple’s treehouse made its television debut on May 15 on the DIY Network’s show “The Treehouse Guys,” whose crew visited the Flathead Valley to help frame the structure, which spans four trees — three larches and a ponderosa.

In addition to showing the early construction of the treehouse, the segment also features local activities and amenities of the Flathead Valley, and will re-air next month.

From the moment that O’Toole and Robison purchased their property five years ago, they’ve entertained visions of building a treehouse in their expansively forested lot, but with a growing family, full-time jobs and a basket of home projects, they were short on time.

“We’ve always wanted to build a treehouse,” O’Toole said. “It’s been a dream for a long time. But never in our wildest dreams did we think it would look like this.”

Both fourth-generation Montanans with a passion for the outdoors, their passion project was sidelined as they worked to keep up with their 3-year-old son, Rowan, and newborn baby, Ry.

When a friend pointed them to a casting call for the television show, they navigated a series of lengthy interviews and were selected for an episode.

O’Toole and Robison applied for and received a conditional use permit for their property, with the county Board of Adjustment granting approval for up to three high-end treehouses available for nightly rental.

The build crew with the Treehouse Guys — B’fer Roth and his team of “tree muskateers” — completed the frame of the treehouse in about six weeks and provided their expertise, while Darin and a crew of friends and family helped build a giant log spiral staircase, milled the siding and interior paneling, and anchored the structure to the trees.

Because it’s not connected to the earth, the house moves with the trees during high winds and as the trees grow.

The 18-foot wooden spiral staircase leading up to the entrance of the treehouse wraps around an old Douglas fir that had been struck by lighting on Robison’s grandparents’ property. The top blew off in the wind, leaving a 60-foot stub that Robison thought was perfect for his treehouse.

“It was definitely the right one for the job,” he said.

The maximum size of a treehouse is determined by the number of trees available to serve as its foundation. A single large, healthy tree can support a 350- to 400-square-foot treehouse, according to the builders, while two or more trees can hold a 700- to 800-square-foot structure.

O’Toole and Robison plan to begin renting their treehouse in November once they’ve completed the finishing touches, and construct two additional custom treehouses on their property in the coming years.

The two-story treehouse features all of the amenities including septic and sewer, a small kitchen on the lower level, as well as a living area and full bath. It rents for $500 a night, with a minimum of three nights and discounts available for weekly rentals.

O’Toole said she has already begun receiving inquiries, and predicts an uptick in interest following the airing of the show.

“It is a luxury experience. There’s nothing primitive about it,” O’Toole said. “It’s nicer than the home we live in and I think people are really going to enjoy staying here.”

For more information and to book a getaway, visit http://www.montanatreehouseretreat.com/ and to learn more about The Treehouse Guys check out http://www.diynetwork.com/shows/the-treehouse-guys.

LINK TO ORIGINAL ARTICLE IN FLATHEAD BEACON: http://flatheadbeacon.com/2017/05/18/castle-in-the-sky/

Staircase Featured in Hungry Horse News!

NOW THAT’S A TREEHOUSE

May 11, 2017 at 7:04 am | By Chris Peterson Hungry Horse News

John Colliander of West Glacier built the spiral staicase for this treehouse that will be featured on the DIY Network next week.

A West Glacier man played a part in a treehouse project that will soon be featured on the DIY network show, “The Treehouse Guys.”

Builder John Colliander of Treeworks Log and Timberframe Construction, made the 18-foot wooden spiral staircase for a treehouse the show staffers built with homeowners Darin Robison and Kati O’Toole on their Dillon Road property.

Colliander began work on the staircase about a year ago, which is made of larch treads attached to an 80-plus-year-old Douglas fir Robison salvaged from his grandmother’s woods.

Colliander, 37, is a fourth-generation builder. He grew up in Polson and worked trail crew in Glacier National Park for several years before striking out on his own. Trail crews make do with what’s around them, and Colliander brings that style to his own work.

“In trail crew, we use nature to accomplish our building needs,” he said.

He designed the staircase using a freeware program from Google. The four-foot treads are hewn from his own small sawmill and attached to the Doug fir with 1-inch, 6 1/2-foot bolts.

He used a four-foot long drill bit to make the holes and crafted the mortise and tenon joints with a chainsaw.

The end result is a staircase that looks like something out of Lord of the Rings.

Colliander also milled the siding for the treehouse as well. It will be featured on the DIY network on May 15th at 9pm PST. and then as a re-run after that.

O’Toole said eventually the couple would like to have three treehouses on their property as vacation rentals.

“The treehouse has all the amenities of a luxury rental up the trees in your own private area,” O’Toole said.

The couple is still completing some of the interior and finish work and is in the process of getting the necessary county approvals for a water supply system for the structure. They hope to open by this fall, she said.

The house is supported by several Ponderosa pine trees as well as other timber beam supports.

Colliander, meanwhile, is onto his next project. He said he plans on spending the summer living in a tepee with his wife, Michele, and their sons Mason, 9, and Miles, 7, while he works on a home up the North Fork on a plot of land they recently purchased.

View more about the treehouse at: http://www.montanatreehouseretreat.com

LINK TO ORIGINAL ARTICLE IN HUNGRY HORSE NEWS