Explore Caya Azul
Caya Azul sits on 21 acres in the mountains of Candler, just outside Asheville, where open land, woods, water, and the surrounding mountains create a sense of being tucked away without feeling far removed.
At the heart of the property is the blue Main House that gave Caya Azul its name. Caya means house in Zulu and Azulmeans blue in Spanish, reflecting the owners’ South African and Peruvian roots.
But Caya Azul extends far beyond the house itself. A pond, stream and bridge, covered pavilion, wooded trails, the Green Cottage, and the Crooked Barn are all part of the landscape — creating quiet places to walk, gather, explore, or simply sit for a while.
Just beyond Caya Azul
Just beyond Caya Azul lies land that is becoming Pisgah View State Park, North Carolina’s newest state park and the first in Buncombe County.
Created largely from the historic Pisgah View Ranch property, the park encompasses approximately 1,570 acres of mountain landscape, including streams, ridgelines, waterfalls, and forest. Future plans include hiking and biking trails, equestrian trails, camping, and day-use areas.
For guests at Caya Azul, having a new state park taking shape so close to the property adds another layer to what makes this corner of Candler special — with even more of the Blue Ridge waiting just beyond the property.
The Crooked Barn
Tucked into its own corner of the property, the Crooked Barn has a character and story entirely its own.
Carefully restored without losing the quirks that gave it its name, the old barn has become one of Caya Azul’s most unexpected spaces — warm, collected, and just a little crooked.
Discover the Crooked Barn →
A Property Shaped by the Mountains
The landscape at Caya Azul is beautiful, but it is also very much alive.
When Hurricane Helene moved through Western North Carolina in September 2024, the quiet creek running through the property became a powerful rapid. The water reshaped part of the creek bank, taking roughly ten feet of land toward the house.
In the months that followed, the bank was rebuilt and reinforced, leaving behind a visible reminder of what Caya Azul — and so much of Western North Carolina — experienced.
Helene also became part of the story of the Green Cottage. Some of the furnishings now inside came from an Asheville River Arts District business whose imported pieces had been buried in mud during the storm. They were later recovered and offered during the shop’s final sale, eventually finding a second home here.
The storm left its mark on the land, while pieces caught in its path elsewhere in Asheville were recovered and given another chapter at Caya Azul.