Lessons learned starting “Off-Grid living “

Heat is very important!

We planned on spending a week in our unfinished cabin during the month of February, 2018. Our cabin is just under 400 sq. feet and currently uninsulated.

The weather started out very mild with just a touch of snow.

At first we were disappointed with the lack of snow, but agreed that at least the weather was mild and we wouldn’t be freezing. The first night we were very cozy with our space heater and electric throw blanket. Our Firman generator worked wonderfully powering both of them.

Loving the heat
Firman generator
Firman generatorhttp://Amazon.com:firman generator

However the weather in the mountains of Oregon can change quickly.

Beautiful but cold

The snow started that night and the temperature dropped significantly. Our little space heater wasn’t quite able to heat that much uninsulated space.
It was so cold inside the cabin, the water in the dogs bowl froze. I feared it would be too extreme for my 6 year old rottweiler.  So I covered him with a blanket which he managed to keep on all night.

Cozy dog



It was truly beautiful during the day.
But we agreed it was not comfortable enough to stay another night. 
We definitely appreciate how important heat is. This was a lesson learned. Next time we stay in the cabin during winter we will need at least a woodburning stove.

Snow covered road

I dislike leaving our future cozy cabin.  But extreme cold is no fun and not cozy.  So we secured our cabin and property and headed back to San Diego.
Fencing and rocks to help deter any intruders.  We plan on installing a proper gate.  But for now this will do along with the watchful eyes from our neighbors.

Thoughts about going “Off-Grid”

Before purchasing the property and the cabin, we considered going “off-grid” and what that would mean. We’ve been long-time campers, using only tents, so we have experience being “off the grid” temporarily– but to live off-grid is a whole different ballgame.

Camping

We researched living off-grid using the internet via Blogs, YouTube, and documentaries. All have been extremely helpful, and that’s one of the reasons I’ve chosen to write a blog: to help others see the possibilities of life off-grid, and our journey to achieve it.

Buying the cabin we chose allowed us to start from the ground up. We started by creating a layout for our future home, and had the windows placed accordingly. Having been campers for a long time, we had already acquired many essentials for living off-grid. This has allowed us to stay in our unfinished cabin comfortably as we complete it.

Camping indoors.

Staying in our cabin this way gave us a glimpse into the future of being off-grid. I was able to utilize our future kitchen space, and get a better idea of how I envision the end result.

Future kitchen space

We have been very fortunate to start our journey this way. We are learning as we go, and making changes along the way. We’ve stayed in our cabin a few times now and every time we learn something new.

First week in our cabin.

Our cabin was delivered on a sunny 74 degree day in October, 2017.   We stayed in the cabin, which is unfinished for a week. The weather changed dramatically the first night.

First we heard the rain hitting the metal roof, so cool. Coming from California and 7 years of drought, we loved it. Then we heard nothing. My husband went outside to check and couldn’t believe what he saw. Snow and it was coming down good.

Our rottweiler loved it.

View from our window the next morning.

It looked like a post card.

Our cozy inside arrangement. Everything we need for now.

If felt very hygge in our cozy cabin. Our space heaters were a life saver. Mr. Heater Portable Buddy

The weather changed as the week went on.

We were able to have our security door installed, thanks to Home Depot, for the door and installation.

We won’t be fulltime just yet so security is important. My husband made wooden shutters to secure our windows from the inside.

Our first week in our cozy cabin was amazing! We were able to experience an array of different weather. And we managed just fine.

Can’t wait to be full time and finish the inside.

But for now it works perfectly. Our dog agrees as well.

So Hygge😊
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Delivery of our forever home.

The whole process was amazing. We were very fortunate with our property as we only needed to remove a couple of bushes and trim a few branches.

Our forever home

We have our property and now begins the search for our forever home.

We never make quick decisions so the process of finding our home was time consuming.

We first began our search looking at Air Stream trailers.

Although these are beautiful and extremely well built, it was not the right choice for us.

Next we considered a fifth wheel toy hauler.

Another beautiful option but again not the right choice.

We thought for sure we found the perfect option when we found a park model. And as much as we loved this home it was not meant to be. Mostly because it was located in Minnesota and the transportation cost outwayed the cost of the home.

So we were at a loss for housing when while driving thru our town we came upon a new lot. It was full of cabins and sheds. My husband looked at me and said we need to check these out. At first I thought he was crazy. But after walking through one we both knew the potential of these buildings.

So now we have our forever home, thanks to Old Hickory.  And the adventure of creating a livable, comfy environment begins.😊

 

The property

It all started the year my son went to football camp at the University of Oregon. We quickly fell in love with all the evergreen trees and knew we wanted property in this beautiful state.

My husband started researching available property until the perfect one was found. It’s 5 acres of multiple evergreen trees in the mountains. Talk about Hygge!!

Trees galore

Living big in a small cabin.

Our journey from living in a big city (San Diego) to living small in the mountains of Oregon is beginning.

The Journey Begins

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton

Join us as we begin our journey to simple, hygge (hugga) living. We have lived in San Diego for over 20 years, the whole time renting. We now own property in the mountains of Oregon. We will be living off grid in a cabin just under 400sq. ft., which we own.

  • It all started with a piece of property.