I have a little piece of property up in the Adirondack State Park that has been in my family for a long time. It isn't a lot (16 acres) but it is surrounded by state land and a couple other similar lots owned by family members. We use it for hunting, fishing, general outdoor nature stuff. I am finally getting around to putting a camp on it. I have been thinking about it for the last couple of years because I want to do it right. My opinion of the area is that it is beautiful. It is so remote, no electricity or any other creature comforts; completely off the grid. It is in an area that has seen very little change over the years and much of it is unspoiled. I want to keep it that way as much as possible but have a place where the family and I can stay instead of having to drive home.

I have poured over different plans for camps to build, and then a friend of mine suggested a yurt:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yurt

There are a few companies that make them, by far the most popular seems to be Pacific Yurts (yurts.com). I priced out the one I want and have been saving up for it, but had this nagging feeling that I might spend all that money on it, and be unhappy with it because I have never actually seen one in person. I thought they might be very "tent-like".

Well the McCauly Mnt. ski area just bought one and they are pretty close to me, so the family and I drove up there last weekend to check it out. VERY cool! Even though it was -8 outside, the yurt was nice and toasty on the inside. It felt like any other building, just, I dunno, cooler. It sealed the deal for me. I am hoping to put my order in, in about 2 months and receive it another 2 months later.. If all goes well, get it up by late May, early July before the black flies settle in.

They go up in about a day or two (not counting the platform) and leave an extremely small footprint. I am getting really excited now!

Anyone have any yurt experience they wanna share?

Here are a couple of images from the company:

My family and I have stayed in many yurts in the Pacific Northwest. They are really cool. Most of the yurts in Oregon state parks have power and even heat. I don't think any of them were near as big as the pictures you posted. That one looks really cool. My wife and I have always threatened to buy a piece of land and put a yurt on it.

The ones in the picture are 30 footers. I was going to get a 24' until I saw the one up at the ski lodge.. It felt just the right size so I have to save a little longer. No chance for power at my camp, there are no power lines for miles, in fact, no cell phone signal either. As someone who works in IT, I find something rather appealing about that.

Just put the order in today and am way too excited lol..

Cool! I'm jealous.

I'd never heard of those before. That looks neat. I couldn't imagine being without electricity, tv, phone and internet tho. I like how that one looks. Very nice.

There is something tribal about round structures, I dunno what it is. I guess most of our ancestors lived in round buildings of some kind, tipi's, huts, yurts, etc., that it is probably something in the blood somewhere. Or maybe I should get the rubber walls option too.

I have been doing my IT Consulting from home for the last 14-15 years or so. I know it sounds great, and there are a lot of great advantages to it, but imagine never leaving your job? It is like I am always at the office when I am home. There are the TV's, dozens of computers, phones, cell phones, kids video games, FACEBOOK, forums, etc.. Technology is so pervasive these days that I think we start to risk losing ourselves, especially when your line of work is buried hip deep in it. For years I have wanted to have a place so remote that I could take a break from it all.

I rediscovered this land that has been in my family forever, but we rarely used it because it was so remote. No cell phone service, electricity, etc.. I bought the lot from my father (who bought it from his father). Dad hadn't been there in 20 years and wanted to sell it anyway. There is an old logging road that goes to the heart of the property, right on the Black River. I am having the road fixed up and a small spot cleared out this winter for the yurt to safely reside.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_River_%28New_York%29

Here is the general area:

http://maps.google.com/?ll=43.458682,-7 ... 7&t=h&z=15

Anyway, my plans are to get this Yurt up in the early spring and then spend as much time there as life and wife allows. It took a while to make this happen, so I am getting real excited that the end is so close.

That does look remote on the satellite view.

I stayed in a WeatherPort Yurt when I went camping in Washington State. It was insane. Theirs are more luxurious than others I have seen. You could definitely live there, no joke. See this crazy picture:

Boy that's neat looking. The only thing I wouldn't like is the no electricty, phone thing. What happens if you have an emergency or something? You would be cut off from the world or getting help.

Now if there were places were there were a lot of these and people could use electricity and have them wired for phones, and cell towers nearby, this would be ideal for almost anyone, I think. Very cool looking, though! Good luck!