This incredible five level home built into the edge of Khyber Ridge in Whistler, BC is both environmentally friendly with its green roof and large windows to capture optimal natural light and beautifully integrated into the mountain side, looking like an industrial organic outcropping tastefully complementing its majestic surrounding. The home was built for a professional snowboarder (although he goes unnamed) and is the type of design I would encourage for those you brave enough to build on a mountainside. This is what an excerpt from an article written about the home with more technical details:
“Made up of five levels, the lower level, a guest house is embedded in the rock for maximum privacy. Its green roof blends in with the landscape. In contrast the main living volume is formed by a cantilevering roof with a suspended floor projecting out of the slope. The cantilever is anchored by four 3 foot deep steel beams drilled directly into the rock face; its floor is suspended by four, 1 inch diameter stainless steel rods. With its glass enclosure, the effect created is of a floating open platform, revealing when occupied the full impact of the surrounding mountains. One is literally suspended in space and surrounded by the foliage of trees. The upper level bedrooms retreat back along the contours of the mountain producing discreet relationships to the surrounding views. As the inhabitants navigate these volumes, they continuously weave in and out of the terrain.”