Shooters Lane, Shaftesbury, Dorset, SP7

A stunning contemporary country house situated in a peaceful location a short walk from Shaftesbury High Street. Far-reaching views to the south towards Bulbarrow Hill over open countryside.

Shooters Lodge is a hidden gem; the beauty of this property is that it offers great privacy and is not visible from the road. The house was built in 2012 constructed of block walls faced in Chilmark stone and oak cladding with a slate roof. The property is entered through an impressive entrance portico with wide double doors into the hall. The open plan hub of the house is the kitchen, dining, sitting room, this is a stunning room with French windows opening onto to the large terrace from which you can enjoy the spectacular far-reaching views to the south over the open countryside looking as far as Bulbarrow Hill.

Internally, the property offers about 4,660 sq ft of light well-proportioned rooms and has been built with great attention to detail including oak parquet flooring, travertine flooring and painted wood panelling. The accommodation has been planned with care and is well laid-out for both entertaining and modern family living. The open plan kitchen / dining/ living room has a hand-built range of cupboards, a central island, all with granite worktops, an Everhot range and is fully fitted with integral appliances. The sitting end of the room has an open fireplace with a marble fire surround and gas log fire. Off the kitchen is a snug with doors leading on to the terrace. Behind the kitchen area is a well-appointed second kitchen/utility area with pantry. This space is mirrored at the other end of the main room and is used as a laundry/boot room. Situated on the ground floor are three double bedrooms, all with doors leading out to the terrace and there are two bathrooms.

On the lower ground floor is an endless Pool, gym, study/office, shower room and an internal door to the double garage.

Upstairs on the first floor is the main bedroom suite with two double bedrooms with fitted wardrobes and a bathroom. The sitting room has doors opening on to a decked terrace area, again making the most of the fantastic views.

For room dimensions and layouts please see the floor plans.

Outside

The property is approached through attractive stone entrance piers with ball finials and wrought iron electric gates. The gravelled drive goes around the house and there is a large parking area to the south for about 8 cars.

The Terraces have been thoughtfully planted with a mix of evergreen, perennials and herbs planted in converted drinking troughs and large terracotta pots.

To the rear of the house is a high hornbeam hedge and an area of woodland. To the south of the house are a variety of wide herbaceous borders, a pergola clad with roses, 3 Portuguese laurel trees flanked by lavender and box hedging.

A series of steps lead to the south west into the hillside which is a charming area of extended gardens and amenity land. Mown paths have been created into the hillside which lead up to the highest point where there is a bench and spectacular 180 degree views.

Within this area, the owners have planted 200 vines in 2015, which are made up of 100 White Sauvignon style grape (Solaris) and 100 red, (Regent & Cabernet Cortes). They usually pick the grapes at the end of September and in a good year make up to 200 bottles of pink fizz!

The gardens and grounds have a terrific array of specimen trees and shrubs including : copper beech, field maple, judas, pittesporum, lilac, cob nut, plum, chaunticleer pear and crab apple.
In all the property extends to about 1.85 acres.

Services Mains water, drainage, electricity and gas. Underfloor heating.
EPC -C

BT Fibre broadband.


Local Authority Dorset Council. Council tax band G

The property is conveniently situated a short walk from the centre of the Saxon hilltop town of Shaftesbury famed for the iconic steeply cobbled street of Gold Hill. With its vibrant community life, this ancient market town offers an excellent local facilities including a range of independent shops, boutiques, cafes, restaurants and inns as well as a large supermarket. There are also doctors and dentist surgeries, a cottage hospital, an arts centre, sports facilities and reputable state run primary and secondary schools. The local road network gives ready access to the other main towns in the region including Bath, Blandford, Salisbury, Sherborne, Warminster and Yeovil as well as to the South Coast whilst the A303 trunk road linking with the M3 makes London accessible for the motorist. Gillingham (4.5 miles) and Tisbury (8 miles) have stations with mainline services to London (Waterloo) and the West Country.

Many families are drawn to this area by the quality of life and excellent choice of state and independent schools including Port Regis, Clayesmore, Sandroyd, Bryanston, Bruton, Downside, Sherborne and St Mary’s amongst many others. This part of North Dorset enjoys wonderful undulating scenery and picturesque villages with many miles of public footpaths and bridleways from which to explore the beautiful countryside whether by foot or horseback. It is also ideal for a variety of other rural pursuits such as cycling, fishing and field sports whilst there are golf courses at Tollard Royal, Blandford, Salisbury and Warminster with racing at Bath, Salisbury and Wincanton and sailing at Shear Water near Warminster. There are several excellent dining pubs in the vicinity as well as many places of interest such as the Longleat Estate, Old Wardour Castle, Wilton House, the National Trust Gardens at Stourhead and the Fovant Badges.