12 homes for winter fun

Raymond, Maine

• $249,900
• 4 bedrooms, 1 bathroom
• 1,696 square feet
• View this listing

Spend your winter in the small community of Raymond. This town had fewer than 5,000 people living in it at last count, and you can invite quite a number of them over to your 10-acre property, which has its own ice-skating pond. If you don't want people traipsing through your home after their time on the pond, your guests can warm up in the barn, which is wired with electricity. You'll stay cozy inside the home during the chilly months with your new furnace and windows. When the weather warms up, you have mature fruit trees and raised garden beds for growing your own fruits and vegetables.  

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Heber City, Utah

• $21.9 million
• 6 bedrooms, 10 bathrooms
• 13,536 square feet
• View this listing

For some people, winter means skiing by day and warming by the fireplace in the evening. With this home atop Little Baldy Peak in a private gated community, you'll have ski in/out access to Deer Valley Resort, and you can warm yourself by any one of 15 fireplaces. If you have friends who aren't into hitting the slopes, they'll find plenty to do in the "chill room," with a DJ booth, dance floor, wet bar, plasma screen, pool table and 550-gallon native trout aquarium. The home also has a theater room, golf simulator, fitness room and outdoor pool and waterfall. If you're thinking this home sounds like something out of a dream, that's because the Ski Dream Home was in fact designed to encompass every possible amenity a skier could desire.

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Wichita, Kan.

• $509,900
• 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms
• 2,939 square feet
• View this listing

Sometimes all you need for a cozy winter is a cool fireplace. This three-level condo in Wichita has a unique fireplace that's perfect for winter get-togethers with friends and family. The open-floor-plan unit has plenty of room for guests, custom design work and paint and a beautiful kitchen with stainless-steel appliances and granite countertops.

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Darien, Conn.

• $1.599 million
• 7 bedrooms, 12 bathrooms
• 12,000 square feet 

This spacious home in the bedroom community of Darien overlooks Goodwives River and has a secluded terrace for ice-skating parties on Gorham's Pond. The home was recently renovated and has an open floor plan, perfect for entertaining. The kitchen has granite countertops and stainless-steel appliances, and the family room has a fireplace and windows on three sides. A game room in the basement will keep the non-skaters busy with foosball and air hockey.

Note: This home is no longer on the market.

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Big Sky, Mont.

• $995,000
• 5 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms
• 6,008 square feet
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With two large ski resorts nearby and plenty of cross-country trails in the area, Big Sky is about as good as it gets for winter fun. This home is between Big Sky Resort and the Meadows, but has plenty of privacy — and lots of wildlife. When you're not out on the slopes or trails yourself, you can overlook them from your 294-square-foot deck, cook up a hearty stew in the gourmet kitchen or kick back in the entertainment room with surround sound and a pool table.

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Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.

• $22.5 million
• 11 bedrooms, 15 bathrooms
• 16,500 square feet
• View this listing

Not everyone wants to spend the winter amid snow, ice and ski poles. For some, winter fun means 60 or 70 degrees and a barbecue by the pool. If that's you — and you have millions of dollars burning a hole in your pocket — this is the home for you. It's on eight acres, has a guest house, European-inspired spa, tennis court, 10-car garage, wet bar, caretaker's quarters and dog-grooming station. But wait, that's not all. There is an underground path, complete with stone walls and candle sconces, that leads to a two-lane bowling alley and game room. And in case the temperature drops below its usual 60s and 70s (year round), there is an outdoor fireplace and fire pit to keep you warm. 

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Mashpee, Mass.

• $1.395 million
• 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms
• 4,067 square feet
• View this listing

Here's another option for the ice skaters: This home on a half-acre is in a gated community and has views of a fountain and a pond that offers you skating in the winter and fishing in the summer. The home itself has two large master suites, a study/library and a large sunroom.

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Greeley, Colo.

• $325,000
• 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms
• 4,435 square feet
• View this listing

Invite all your friends to come over and keep warm by this beautiful suspended fireplace. This uniquely shaped home is environmentally friendly, with a water heater and furnace powered by the sun. New windows will keep all the heat from your furnace and fireplace inside, where you'll need it in the chilly Colorado winters. Plus, there's space to park your RV next to the oversized garage, and you're adjacent to a golf course for a quick trip to the green when the snow melts.

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Truckee, Calif.

• $839,000
• 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms
• 3,552 square feet
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This custom log home was constructed with hand-scraped logs from Zion National Park. The home has panoramic views of the Carson Range and Northstar ski resort, with four decks to take advantage of all the views. The inside of the home has custom hickory cabinets and hand-scraped maple floors, plus a woodstove for the ultimate in coziness. There's plenty of room in the oversized garage to store all your winter gear.

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Paradise Valley, Ariz.

• $4.69 million
• 6 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms
• 8,320 square feet
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Here's another sunny spot to find respite from the chill of winter. It's called Paradise Valley for a reason: Winter highs are in the 60s and 70s. This home, in a gated community, has a lavish master suite, gourmet cook's kitchen, theater room, private office and formal dining and living rooms. But the whole point of spending winter in paradise is to spend it outside, right? Real-estate agent Cindy Adair says this is the place to do it: "The resort-style backyard has a lavish diving pool, large putting green for the golf enthusiast, sport court, outdoor kitchen with expansive patio areas great for dining or entertaining, full guest house and, finally, an oversized hammock to enjoy the incredible Arizona lifestyle."

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Ridgway, Colo.

•  $649,000
• 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom
•  953 square feet
•  View this listing

Here's another log cabin, this one on 13 acres in Colorado with a creek running through. The cabin has been remodeled and has a covered porch, but you could always tear it down and build your dream home with views of the San Juan Mountains.

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Cedartown, Ga.

• $1 million
• 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms
• 7,524 square feet 
• View this listing

For a cool million — recently reduced by $400,000 — you can buy this home about 60 miles from Atlanta, and spend your winter evenings in front of its beautiful fireplace. The home's price includes a carriage house and a log cabin on the 20-acre lot.

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