Rock Camp: A Classic/Minimal Lake Cabin in Maine by an Up-and-Coming Architect

Tucked into tall, wild woods on the shores of Mooselookmeguntic Lake in Maine’s Rangeley Lakes region is an unusual series of cabins—one cabin, really, made up of many small rooms. The first is what one might expect to find there: an old, classic one-room log house set under the pines. But to one side is a streamlined, Scandinavian-esque extension with two peaks, sided with Eastern white cedar, the work of Maine-based architect Jocelyn Dickson.

As it happens, this place—called Rock Camp—is Jocie’s family’s retreat. “This home belongs to my parents and someday in the future will hopefully belong to myself and my four siblings,” Jocie says. Her parents bought the property next door about 30 years ago, but with the family expanding, they jumped at the chance to purchase Rock Camp when the owners decided to sell.

When they bought it, Jocie says, “it was a historic one-room log cabin, with a lofted sleeping area over the living room and a basic kitchen and bath off the back. My parents’ goal was to create an addition so that a family, or two families, could have privacy and their own space while also remaining in proximity to the main house next door.” Jocie—who, coincidentally, had just moved home to Maine from New York City with her husband and young son—stepped in to design a clean-lined addition. “I quickly decided that I wanted to keep the new space somewhat separate and individual from the original cabin,” she says, “which allowed the log cabin to retain its historic quality, while the addition could be more contemporary.”

The lines are streamlined, yes, but even the extension is a nod to old Maine. The architecture references both the old log cabin “and the local vernacular of fishing camps in the area,” Jocie says, which traditionally have pitched roofs and a line of small cabins looking out at the lake. The lightly updated original log cabin serves as the compound’s mess hall and gathering space, with a dark-wood living area and a stripped-back kitchen redone by Jocie.

The result is just what a Maine cabin should be: old-school and simple, set into the landscape, with quilts on the beds and generous windows looking out at the lake. Join us for a look.

Photography by Greta Rybus exclusively for Remodelista.*

*Photos may not be displayed or reproduced without express written permission by Remodelista.

Take a look inside a few more cabins, redone:

• Unplugged: A Young Couple’s DIY, Totally Off-the-Grid Cabin in the New Hampshire Woods
• Into the Redwoods: A Tiny 1960s Cabin in Sea Ranch, Restored and Revived
• A Catskills Cabin Up the Hill from a Local Favorite, Available for Rent

N.B.: This post has been updated with additional images; the original story ran on September 28, 2020.