Creating an Earth Centred Oasis
A big part of what the Forest has become for me is to eventually have some more earth centered, environmentally friendly and creative options for accommodations set away in a private forest. A kind of oasis to reset or stop time, at least for a couple of days. Our plans and future goals include adding a campground by the tipi from a local Indigenous craftsperson, crafting new, well marked trails back in the woods. There are traditional Anishnaabe medicines in certain places in the forest that we have been told about too and are important pieces to being good stewards of the land. I plan on adding a yurt, a geodesic dome and a few decks for yoga and meditation when funds will allow. I’ve been told to try a hay bale house or a cordwood home, we will see what we get up to first!
A big project has been putting in new roads so you can walk around and even bicycle around the property, and check out the new, unique amenities. The sailboat is being finished for stays, the vintage 1970’s trailer has been done up nice in a south west décor with a deck and twinkly lights to welcome you to a mostly off grid spot for your group away from the cabin.
We are proud to have added an environmentally friendly compost humanure toilet hut we call Darby's place. It’s there for those of your group who are staying at the vintage trailer, sailboat, or tipi campsite and is based on my explorations in southern Arizona and New Mexico while staying an earthship in Taos. We really do not need running water as much as we think. Of course, that’s just an option, your group can use the washroom in the house as well.
In keeping with the theme of small environmentally friendly alternative accommodations for you to try, I also hope to put a tiny house or pod or two back out on the trails for you to visit and even stay a night if you choose, which will be completely off grid and rustic. And again, just for you and your group to also book if you like. Year by year, we are adding new and creative options for your group. We love small and non ostentatious options for groups to stay and take in the forest.
THE VISION OF THE FOREST
We wanted to offer a really cool place like what you see on Airbnb from other places in California and New Mexico without having to travel so far. I couldn’t find the same kind of weird, interesting and low footprint kind of airbnb’s here in Manitoba, so I wanted to create it.
The vision was to make things like the vintage off grid trailer in the desert near Joshua Tree national park, a hut in the desert near Slab City, CA (out of this world), an adobe home in Tucson, Arizona, a sailboat in downtown Vancouver, a yurt in the mountains of northern Arizona, a tent on the Navajo Reservation at Monument Valley, Utah, a float home in a marina on Salt Spring Island, a school bus and a tiny house in Portland Oregon, an off grid Earthship in the high desert of Taos, New Mexico, and various more standard type accommodations all using Airbnb.
I think it is perfect for your escape or staycation if you are intending on retreating to a forest escape and not going anywhere at all for a few days, just like Thoreau. A place to belong and a place to just sit, listen to the aspen and poplar trees. A place to watch for birds, look at wildflowers and listen for the coyotes or wolves at night. A place to catch the beautiful sunsets above the trees, stargaze and be amazed by the sky, and if you’re really lucky see some northern lights. A place to take it in for yourself, by yourself only choosing to bring other folks if you want to. We all know how those provincial park campground experiences can take us out of the intention to be with nature and the energy of a forest. And, you might also spend your days on local trails, drive to the lake, go to Hecla or numerous other beautiful destinations or go to Gimli for a bit, yet at the end of the day restore in a quiet retreat in the Forest. Our vision continues to grow as our love for sharing it with others grows. We hope you love it as much as we do.
