At Saddleback’s The Nest, architecture opens up to nature

RANGELEY HIGHLANDER • March 9, 2026

Saddleback reopened Dec. 1, 2020, after five years of closure. Of Saddleback’s 6,300 acres, only about 600 are developed. A new lift debuted that season, and three years later The Nest opened. Davies Toews Architecture designed the modern, utilitarian structure with environmental sensitivity in mind. Architects were aware of the rare Bicknell’s thrush, a small bird inhabiting dense alpine forests at high elevations, like at Saddleback. Bird-deflection screens protect the thrush from collisions with The Nest’s expansive sliding doors.