"I used to come up and watch this place and felt I could live here for the rest of my life. I loved the feel of it-the layout of the old buildings. I dreamed of owning it one day, and knew that I'd want the buildings to look like the old men had built them. There was a lot of care in the way they built."
The newly engaged Tom LaChance drove by his dream property, an old log homestead at the head of Whitefish Lake with his fiancé Cindy to gauge her response. It looked a little rough in those days, with weathered buildings, sagging, leaky roofs and an old wire fence. But the ranch's inherent appeal and sturdy construction, which had enabled it to withstand nearly seven decades, was enough to charm Cindy. It was only after Tom received her nod of approval that he confessed that he had just bought the place.

Tom LaChance builds homes for a living-grand, rustic homes, many hewn from logs. This is the story of Tom's falling in love with one piece of the valley, and of rebuilding it with a deep respect for the area's past.
The Craine family, the original homesteaders, wrested a home from raw wilderness at the head of Whitefish Lake in the '20's. They cleared fields with a stump puller that now keeps company on the grounds with a 1906 steam tractor and threshing machine. Back then, when machinery of any sort was required, it had to be barged up the lake or hauled in by rail.
The self-sufficient Craines raised livestock and grew an extensive vegetable garden as well as many varieties of berries and apple trees. They hunted wild game, and ground flour on their gristmill for all their baked goods.
In the early '80's Tom became acquainted with Lloyd, who still lived at the homestead. Never married but entirely self-sufficient, Lloyd, at 92, still wielded his ax to chop firewood, and baked bread in one of the house's two wood stoves, the only source of heat.
"I walked up here to see if I could lease some pasture for my horses," Tom said, and that was the day Lloyd decided to move, so I wrote up an offer."

In 1987 Tom became the new owner of the 10-acre spread, heart of the former 110-acre homestead. Being nearly 70 years old, the house and outbuildings had fallen prey to the natural ravages of time. But like their predecessors, the LaChances realized that old-fashioned muscle power was required to build the home of their dreams, and they set about infusing the time worn homestead with a new vitality, while being respectful of its history and integrity.
Tom's skills as a building contractor and craftsman enabled them to perform most of the renovations themselves. The LaChances spent their honeymoon gutting the interior of their abode. They scraped peeling paint from the log house, replaced old white mortar with new white chinking, built river rock gate pillars and erected the split rail fence.
Upstairs, they bumped up the roof to make room for two dormers, which provided a comfortable bedroom and bath. One dormer overlooks a pond spanned by a log-trimmed bridge. Tom dug the pond and constructed the bridge, which allows access to Swift Creek, which runs through the front yard and spills into Whitefish Lake only 1,800 feet beyond. The other dormer provides a great view of Werner Peak, which was named after an old mountain man friend of Lloyd and Giles.
Their pristine surroundings offer the tranquility and beauty the couple craves. "You can look in every direction and see mountain peaks and trees," Cindy said. "Tom loves the wildlife. Elk winter across the road, and he's seen cougar and even a timber wolf."
"This is exactly what I want," Tom said. "I'd like to be a 92 year old man rocking on the back porch like Lloyd. He led a wonderful life."