BIRD HIDE
Photos: Daniel Karp
This portable birdwatching shelter - the bird hide - is circular in plan with curved domed framing and cedar shingled window flaps.
Two flaps operate within every other structural bay - one positioned at a height to accommodate a seated birdwatcher using binoculars and leaning on the perimeter shelf with their elbows, and one for a standing birdwatcher using an upright viewing device.
The bands of weathering shingles around the domed form are inspired by the many shaggy beaver dams piled around the pond. Single flaps or pairs of flaps can open around the shelter’s perimeter.
With all flaps open, the central band of the bird hide flares out to the landscape.
The flaps are continuous with the shingle siding, becoming invisible when closed.
Steel rods slotted into receiving holes in the framing keep the flaps open, and simple hooks latch the flaps in a closed position when not in use.
The flaps share the curvature of the bird hide’s perimeter.
The curved entry door is also shingled with matching siding to disappear when closed.
In section, the bird hide walls are vertical until the door head, above which the framing tapers inward.
The bird hide nestles into its surroundings, able to be repositioned and gradually weathering into a textured gray.