If you know the street or general vicinity where Ron and Alys Moubry live, it’s not really necessary to ask for the exact address.
It’s the home with an observatory jutting more than 20 feet up in the back of the house.
“You won’t get a better view of the stars than from up here,” says Alys, walking up a spiral staircase toward a tiny space eclipsed by a huge telescope. “We don’t get too much light pollution.”
It’s just one impressive piece of an incredible house. The Moubrys moved to a quiet street in Golden to build their dream home five years ago. They opted to relocate here after the homeowners association in the neighborhood they had lived in refused to allow them to build their stargazing paradise.
The observatory that appears to guard the house features huge telescopes that are connected to a computer tucked into a corner. When it rains, the domed ceiling can close up. Another observatory down in the garden is where Ron takes his photos.
“He’s an amazing photographer,” says Alys, 54, pointing to a photo of the moon, Mars and Venus.
Ron says the opportunity to have the house designed gave them a chance to put their personalities into the structure. Architect Barb Shepler was a genius, says Ron, 56. “She managed to do exactly what we wanted in an artful way.”
Alys, a radiology nurse at Boulder Community Hospital, laughs when she explains how she met her husband, a radiologist at the VA hospital in Denver.
“I took care of him when he came into the emergency room I was working at,” she says with a grin. Women love diamonds and other stones, she says. “He had a kidney stone. I told him that was the best stone he could have had.”
The opportunity to design their home also afforded the couple several other options.
“We wanted a ranch house, so we can grow old in it and not worry about stairs,” says Alys, a petite woman who is a passionate runner and skier. While it’s hard to imagine either of them having difficulty darting up the spiral staircase to the observatory, they have considered putting in an elevator someday.
For now, Alys walks quickly around the house with the energy of a teenager, one minute showing off a vibrant glass dining-room chandelier purchased in Europe, the next holding back a pup who likely weighs more than she does.
“She’s amazing,” Ron says. “I’ll be exhausted, and I know she’s been on her feet all day, but she’ll say, ‘I’m going out for a run.’ “
The house is also a clue to another of the couple’s passions.
Emma Rose, a 6-month-old German shepherd, is doing quite well as a show dog. Emma, Alys explains, comes from noble parents. This does not stop her from doing a bit of damage to one of Alys’ other interests: her garden.
“I’ve had to replant this two times,” she says of a small vegetable garden surrounded by xeric plants.
“I had a tomato that was ripe the other day, and off she went with it,” Alys says with a shrug as she wanders through yarrow, iris and butterfly bushes. A shade area holds coral bells, bleeding heart and hostas.
Alys has a Colorado Gardener Certificate — earned by attending 60 hours of training from Colorado State University Extension experts — and her home was recently featured on a garden tour. The sound of a burbling water feature is audible from both bedrooms at the back of the 2,800-square-foot home.
“I plant fragrant plants in places where I like to sit,” she says.
And there are plenty of those places around the house. From a wraparound porch out front, the couple can watch the parasailers launch from Lookout Mountain. The back of the house offers a view of North Table Mountain.
Inside, the feeling is more European.
From the great room, an archway reveals the den that leads to the observatory, as well as the home’s two large bedrooms.
“We love to travel to Europe, so we wanted that feeling inside the house,” she says, pointing to textured walls and artfully painted designs near the ceiling. “We also love to entertain, so the kitchen had to be large.”
Alys decided that the cherry cabinets were somewhat heavy, so she decided a few stained-glass panels would brighten up the room. She pauses on her way to the great room to pat a Devon Rex cat named Gracee. Cody, an Abyssinian, glances over at Alys from the back of a chair, hoping for a little attention.
“I say we designed this house for the observatory and for the animals,” Alys says, pointing to a textured wall with a table that fits perfectly into a niche. It’s another find from Italy.
“We also wanted a great place to have people over,” she says. “That’s why we have the martini bar, and I grow mint for mojitos.”
The open feeling to the house, she says, also makes it a great place to entertain.
And the observatories, both above the house and in the garden, offer built-in entertainment for guests.
“I’ve always enjoyed astronomy, even when I was a kid,” Ron says. “I’m technology- driven, so I love the gadgets.”
He also likes the fact that even amateurs can contribute to the field, making discoveries that wow even the pros.
“It’s satisfying that you have the opportunity to do something worthwhile,” he says. “But most of all, it’s nice to just look up at the sky. Because really, it’s very beautiful.”
