People either love us or they hate us. Look at the reviews.
We are an atypical airbnb, a simple (primitive) treehouse overlooking a forested valley of the Siskiyou Mountains, 5 miles deep in Northern California's Six Rivers National Forest, part of a remote, off-grid ecovillage that includes a few other cabins, chickens, goats, dogs, frogs, cats, permaculture gardens. You kinda have to be into this kind of stuff.
The space
We offer a unique experience in a beautiful wilderness, off-grid, sustainable, permaculture-focused ecovillage.
Our 160-acre property is about five miles from redwood Hwy and we're surrounded by about a million acres of National Forest. Our neighborhood is all made of trees, huckleberry bushes and animals. The closest neighbor is a Buddhist Hermitage about a mile up the forestry road. We love it here and enjoy sharing it. It is very remote, peaceful, and functionally sustainable in its focus. Also, supposedly, Sasquatches live around here! (it is the epicenter for documented sightings)
Most visitors to the area are interested in spending time in the redwoods – we are about 30-45 minutes from the nearest entrance to Jedediah Smith Park, home of Stout Grove and other beautiful redwood hikes. Driving into Crescent City, about 45-60 minutes, winds you right through the "gentle giants" on your way to or from Redwood National Park.
The Smith River Complex Fire happened in August 2023 and you'll see a few places of hard burn on the way in, although it is very green here thankfully. Mother Nature rocks. You can view updates on nature's regeneration and our post-fire renewal progress at sustainable ecovillage do tc om.
We're still on track for full permaculture farm function with chickens and goats returned as of recent. Our natural water systems are back and better than ever.
THIS PLACE IS NOT FOR EVERYONE-- with gravel/forestry roads, summer mosquitos, bees, early morning roosters, communal living, composting toilets, etc IN THE WILDERNESS. Remember, we are living in THEIR space. Our cabins are always clean, but probably have mix-a-match sheets from a thrift store. It's very basic. Rustic. No chocolates on your pillow, nothing like a hotel or resort. So please be sure you've read through the full description and are prepared for certain elements of "roughing it" and adventure travel. The Village is also a work-in-progress so we are likely to be working on something, especially after the fire we had. Cell phone service spotty (one bar sometimes, some places) and NO Wi-Fi
Amenities:
---Two beds are small (Twins) so yes, four people can squeeze in, but more appropriate for two. You're welcome to bring a air mattress and fit as many as you like : )
---•Lighting / Electricity / Heat: The treehouse does not have electricity or a heat source-- it's in a tree; we recommend that you bring your own lights. There's plenty of blankets and sleeping bags to keep you warm.
The Great Outdoors:
•Wild animals: City people ask us about this.... of course there are wild animals here. It has happened that a chipmunk, mouse or squirrel may visit the treehouse -- there's a hole on the middle of it that a tree come though. If this will be frightening, better opt for the Motel 6. Since we have dogs and people around, the wild animals tend to keep their distance from the areas that we use. If you are lucky, you might spot a black bear on a hike; they are basically like big raccoons and prefer to run away from humans.
If you are looking for a unique experience and up for rustic accommodations with a few off-grid perks, we welcome you to join us in our mountain paradise!
Guest access
Getting here -- the road coming in is just a forestry road -- thousands use it ever year without mention. It's incidental. But you may notice some will comment about it being scary for them. It's in the mountains (1000 ft elevation to 1500 ft) so steep terrain, gravel roads. Any vehicle gets here fine (no 4wd needed). So if you're a city city person OR you might be scared of mountainous forestry roads, better to book a motel six in town.
Besides your own cozy cabin, you'll have access to the shared/community spaces. You're a part of our community while you're here.
--Community Kitchen, welcome to our pots, pans, stove, utensils, etc
-- Sunrise Bath House with composting toilet, bidet, sink, (cold) shower that is n the wood-fired steam sauna.
There are plenty trails to hike, a swimming hole, and garden benches and porch swings to enjoy the view.
The host (Dan) is sometimes around, sometimes not, often busy doing stuff, so it's all pretty straight forward check in yourself (no key or lock) make yourself at home, community areas are obvious. But there's usually someone around (other residents, intern woofers) to answer questions if you have them.
You are welcome to wander at will amongst our 160 acres of mostly steep, forested land, and enjoy the streams and waterfalls leading into Little Jones Creek.
Other things to note
Driving here: You do NOT need 4WD or any special vehicle to reach our property. We drive in and out regularly in our small Honda hatchback and have had hundreds of visitors drive up in their "regular" cars. Indeed the forestry road has a few potholes worth slowing to 10mph, but otherwise can be driven at 20mph. Pretty easy. City people used to flat paved roads will review otherwise.
Note: Plenty of people have very relaxing, enjoyable satisfying experiences here in our sustainable culture experiment, but this happens only when reality exceeds expectations. This is where I try to talk everyone out of coming to stay with us -- Our Sustainable Ecovillage is NOTHING like a resort or the Marriott hotel. Think some crazy combination of camping/glamping at a rugged, mountainous, off-grid, remote farm and sustainable community. There may be a compost pile outside your cabin after we weed the the beds around it. Our goats, chickens or dogs may wake you in the morning. There are all kinds of critters here including but not limited to spiders and bears and all in between. We live here and make messes, undertake all kinds of projects including big building projects sometimes. It is NOT polished, not always tidy (although we really try) convenient or even (sometimes) comfortable. You may have to split your own firewood. There is plenty of raw beauty and these aforementioned functionalities are how it is here as we continue working towards Shangri La!
