Wicklow: €950,000A three-bed cottage on 35 acres in a hidden Wicklow valley captures Kevin O'Connor's imagination

Taking the Glendalough Road and passing through the villages of Roundwood, Annamoe and Laragh and nestling amidst the beautiful valley of Glenmacnass in the Wicklow hills, is this substantial three-bedroom cottage with 35 acres of mixed pasture and woodland.

The carefully restored house is now for sale by private treaty through HOK with a guide of €950,000.

The main elements of the house date from the 1790s, with a large and sensitively designed extension at the back, built in the past 10 years. This incorporates a large and gracious livingroom with a minstrel's gallery, galley kitchen, main bedroom and bathroom.

On a late summer morning, the valley of Glenmacnass is captivating as shafts of light dart through the lush ash and birch trees that line the road through the valley.

The hills are covered with a blanket of magenta heather, bathed in light that is ever-changing. As you approach the cottage you get glimpses of the Sally Gap at the end of the valley.

Many families have lived in the valley for generations but, in the past 20 years, Glenmacnass has become a haven for many well-known people from the film and entertainment world. Mia Farrow had a home in the valley for many years.

The cottage is approached by a winding stonewalled driveway surrounded by tall oak trees. The main house, with its quintessential flagstone yard, whitewashed exterior, red door, blue Bangor-tiled slate roof and lattice period windows, resemble a scene from a John Hinde post card.

The main part of the original house with its vaulted tongue and groove ceiling and 4 ft thick walls has not changed for decades. This room in times past incorporated the entire family's living space, with the large hearth at its core.

The main part of the house is flanked on each side by two period stone buildings, one used as a bedroom, bathroom and utility space, the other for fuel and storage. Both buildings need updating but have potential for a variety of uses.

The water supply comes from a spring well on the grounds; there is also a newly installed septic tank.

A large extension was built eight years ago; all the windows are double glazed, and the house has oil central heating. This space is perfect for entertaining: it has a tall ceiling, a large open fireplace with ornate cast-iron surround and a Victorian mirror; a minstrel's gallery is overhead.

Off this livingroom is a small but well-equipped galley-style kitchen with dishwasher, gas hob and fridge freezer. The diningroom has aged terracotta tiles, beamed ceiling, large family dresser and whitewashed walls; a small conservatory off it is infused with the scent of jasmine.

Off the livingroom is the back hall and main bathroom with built-in linen presses and a period bath from Laragh Castle, where it has been said, Maud Gonne, bathed.

The main bedroom in the original house has underfloor heating and built-in wardrobes. The second bedroom has many period features with a beamed ceiling and windows looking out to the front of the house.

Most of the 35 acres are a mixture of lowland and mountain pasture, and give uninterrupted access across a mountain to Laragh west.

The views from some parts of the mountain to the rear of the house are majestic and breathtaking: on one side is the Sally Gap, on the other, the entire Glenmacnass Valley with its woodlands and rivers.

On an August morning, with the sight and sound of a peregrine falcon swooping overhead in the bright blue sky of the Wicklow hills, it is a very special and spiritual place.