We bought our land in the fall of 1996. There was a 30 gpm well on the property but no other improvements. We chose a site for the yurt, had a road cleared and a trench dug for the water line from the well. We also put in a septic system. Bob spent several months designing and building the interior wall units in our backyard in Seattle. In June 1997, we loaded up a 30-ft truck with the yurt kit from Pacific Yurts, enough wood for a 30-ft platform, the interior wall units (which Bob had built so they could be disassembled and reassembled later), the appliances, the generator and the tools and headed out to Twisp.

We have solar panels for electrical. The panels generate enough energy to pump the water from our well to the tank. They also provide power for lights. We have a propane tank behind the yurt to fuel the refrigerator, stove and hot water heater. And we have a wood stove for heat.