The Circle: The Benefits of Yurt Living for Anyone Dreaming of an Off-Grid Lifestyle
It was early October when my partner and I packed up our one bedroom apartment into the largest u-Haul we could find, picked up our yurt kit, and drove five hours into the mountains, with three kitties voicing their opinions the entire way.A little background info
The journey to yurt living begins
The entranceway to our yurt. Home sweet dome!
Fortunately we had a shipping container holding all of our stuff while we built the yurt, so we rearranged our belongings and set up home in the shipping container, which wasn’t much warmer than the tent to be completely honest. Our water also froze during this freak cold spell, obstacle number two. And, since we moved in October, we didn’t have the spring and summer months to help prepare for winter, so we are behind on fire wood, but we are slowly catching up. There is something meaningful about cutting wood during a big snowfall. It’s a very humbling, yet happy feeling.
What I miss most about city life are my family and friends. I must admit, I also miss the free list on craigslist. Living in a denser population equates to more free, “disposable” items.
Setting up our yurt. Here we have the frame set up and we’re adding the snow and wind kit made of 31 solid pine lodge poles.
The humble fulfillment of living close to the land
Lightning seen through the toono, the “skylight” in the roof of the yurt.
Some advice for anyone looking to try yurt living
– If you are moving somewhere with four seasons, move in the warmer months. Take advantage of the warm weather to prepare for the winter.
– Do not place items up against the wall in a yurt. Yurts need to breathe since they are not airtight. This will help immensely in minimizing condensation.
– Insulate your water reservoirs.
– Get thermometers. You will want to know the temperatures inside the yurt and of the wood stove.
– Have candles and flashlights nearby.
– Keep track of what is in your moving boxes. If you are like us and did not downsize enough prior to the move, you might have a shipping container full of boxes. It makes life ten times easier if you can locate an item without having to open all the boxes first.
– Rocks are your best friend when it comes to dirt roads. Collect large rocks and place them where it gets muddy and rutty. Then lay smaller rocks and gravel overtop. The large rocks provide a base so the gravel doesn’t get swallowed up by the mud. It also helps immensely for gaining traction.
– We opted for the standard, non-glass windows for our yurt. There is no insulation over them, so in the winter cold creeps in fast. Placing wool blankets over the windows, while impeding your view, will keep a lot of the warmth in. The toono provides all the natural light needed, so the windows can be covered up.
– Reliable internet is hard to get outside of major cities. If internet is important to you, research it before you commit to moving to a location. Also, shipping containers act as giant Faraday cages, so don’t expect to get the best reception or connection when inside of one.
– Try to locate your closest cell tower and/or satellite locations prior to placing your yurt or shipping container.
– Look into the Humanure composting toilet system. It is cost-effective, and brilliant, in my humble opinion. Zero smell, even when I add the cats’ business. It truly amazes me.
– Make sure your wood stove is rated to heat at least three times your square footage. We opted for the smallest Jotul wood stove, and it has far exceeded our expectations. In the future we may opt to get the larger Jotul, for the sole reason of not having to stoke it as often. Since I don’t sleep consistently due to my pain, having to stoke our fire every four hours or so throughout the night isn’t too bad. Though I can imagine it might bother others.
– Make sure your chimney cap is vertical. Ours was slanted slightly and it melted all the snow on a nearby tree, which ran right back down the chimney pipe, creating steam (which we originally mistook for smoke and thought our chimney was broken) and a goopy mess.
– Wood ash is an amazing resource. We use it in our composting systems, as well as on icey and snowy walkways. It provides great traction. We even have a bucket of ash in the car in case we get stuck in the snow somewhere.
– Get a good water filtration system. With the Berkey that we chose, we can melt snow on the stove if we needed to and filter it through. If it came down to it, we could even take river or puddle water, run it through the Berkey, and it would be safe to drink.
A typical day in the life…
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Despite fending off an eagle attack the other day, a sneaky raccoon got into the chicken run early this morning and took out one of our girls.
Having animals die is definitely the hardest part of homesteading, but itās a reality of this lifestyle that everyone must come to terms with sooner or later.
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This is also a great time to plant certain medicinal herbs so that youāve got a personal, sustainable supply of herbal medicine at home, because who knows what supply chain issues are gonna hit next!
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If you're looking to increase production in your own home garden, you know how important bees and other pollinators are to your overall yield.ā
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The seeds we sow now will provide us with food and medicine to stock our pantry and apothecary with in the summer and fall.ā
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The projects we start now will (hopefully) be finished and ready to serve us later in the year.ā
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And the deep cleaning and organizing we do now in our homes will set the stage and the tone for the rest of the season.ā
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The summit officially starts TODAY! If you haven't registered yet, click the link in my bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/bvgs to save your seat and start watching and learning right away!
āWhen I think of self-reliance, I think of any ability to rely less on āthe system.āā
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Be sure to check out the full interview in the latest issue of Modern Homesteading Magazine!
Subscribe @ modernhomesteadingnmagazine.com
Iād love to know, what are you currently doing to become a little (more) self-reliant? Let me know in the comments!š
What self-reliance skills do YOU want to learn most??
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Let me know below š
I hope to see you inside!
Iāve been thinking a lot lately about what it really means to be "self-reliant."
We talk a lot about self-reliance (or self-sufficiency) in the homesteading community, and outwardly it may seem as if the goal of "achieving" self-reliance is what ultimately drives many of us to live this lifestyle in the first place.
But what does self-reliance look like in the 21st century? Is it actually achievable, or just a pipe dream?
Is it even possible to be truly self-reliant?
A few years ago, Forbes published an article titledĀ Dear Homesteaders, Self-Reliance is a Delusion.
In the article, the author arguesĀ that "self-reliance is for the most part a myth. Unless they live in an extremely remote region, use all homemade tools, and will refuse the safety net if they need it, most homesteaders are far from self-reliant."
While he makes some compelling points, but I've always felt as if he missed the point of what self-reliance actually means in real life.
No man (or woman) is an island. None of us can ever be 100% self-reliant without ever relying on anyone other than ourselves. But that doesn't mean that we should give up trying altogether.
Even one small step toward being more self-sufficient is a step in the right direction.
Maybe the point is not to everĀ BECOMEĀ self-reliant, but rather to becomeĀ MOREĀ self-reliant as we progress on our journey. Maybe self-reliance isn't a destination, but a pursuit.
Like just about everything that's worth doing,Ā working toward greater self-reliance and independence is worth doing imperfectly.Ā It's better to take a single step in the right direction than no step at all.
I decided to unpack this in more detail on the blog this week. (Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to thehouseandhomestead.com/what-is-self-reliance to read the full article).
With the doors to theĀ Society of Self-RelianceĀ opening in just a couple more days, I wanted to be sure I can confidently provide an answer to the question "what is self-reliance?"
But Iād also love to hear what YOU think!
Is self-reliance just a delusion? Is it an achievable goal? Or is it more about the journey than the destination?
Share your thoughts in the comments below!
š± Have you started any seeds yet?
If not, NOW is the time!
March is a great time to start tomato seeds, peppers, lettuce, brassicas (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, etc.) and direct sow peas in most gardening zones.
Starting from seed is exponentially cheaper than buying starts from the nursery, especially is youāre growing on a larger scale. But seed starting supplies can add up quickly if youāre not careful.
In the spring issue of Modern Homesteading Magazine, contributor Kayla Adams of @oatsandhoneyhomestead shares her best tips for finding cheap or even free seed starting supplies. From pots and lighting options to soil and the seeds themselves, Kayla covers everything you *actually* need to start your edible garden completely from seed (and not break the bank).
Check out the full article, along with a preview of the spring issue at modernhomesteadingmagazine.com
Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead to SUBSCRIBE or login to the magazine library and read the full issue (for current subscribers).
What are you MOST excited to grow in your garden this year??
Let me know! š
#seedstarting #seeds #springgardening #growyourowngroceries
What an awesome article! I’m currently in a big city, that gives me regular panic attacks from the noise, but this year we are starting our search for rural property. I would love to set up a yurt like you did, but my husband isn’t as excited about circle living.
I’d love to know more about yurts in winter. Obviously, they originated in cold climates, but most of the off-grid yurt info I find out there is for warmer, dry climates. Can you insulate them so they have better heat retention?
Hey Melissa,
I totally hear you about the noise and the panic attacks. That’s one reason why we moved out of the city too. The property we live on now is still just off the highway and the traffic noises still give me anxiety and I suffer from panic attacks too so I totally understand. Our ultimate goal is to find a quiet, rural property off of a country side road (preferably a dead end!).
I’m not sure what the options are for insulation… This post was written by a guest contributor so I will pass on questions to her. But I do know she mentioned putting blankets over windows in the window to help insulate them. I’ll see if she might be able to provide a better answer.
All the best and hopefully you’ll be out of the city soon too!
Anna
I have never heard of a yurt, so this was interesting!
Hi Ruthie,
I had once stayed in yurt when I was travelling but had never considered living in one until Jade shared her story with me. With the whole “tiny house” movement along with more people looking to move off-grid, I think yurt-living might just gather steam too!