Crest Mountain

Due to serendipity or perhaps Jungian synchronicity, we were invited to attend the second meeting regarding the formation of a new ecovillage/cohousing community in the Asheville area known at The Villages at Crest Mountain.

The Villages at Crest Mountain is a "developer-driven" sustainable eco-community that hopes to serve as a model for the entire country. Rather than begin with a group of residents who hash out all of the nitty gritty particulars over a number of years (as is done with most new cohousing neighborhoods), this community is being developed and designed by several developers and consultants with input from residents who are buying into the project. Avoiding the endless committees, subcommittees and interpersonal struggles faced by so many newly forming communities, this particular community is already in motion, and new residents will apparently have ample opportunity to influence design and governance decisions along the way, and decision-making will most likely be made using the techniques of sociocracy. 

Impressively, a permaculture consultant (who also happens to be the founder of Earthaven Ecovillage) has been hired to develop the landscaping, orchards and gardens. Rather than high-maintenance lawns, most areas will consist of low-maintenance edible plants and other flora and fauna that provide either food or natural beauty.

The community will also make use of ultra-energy efficient building techniques, including "hempcrete", a mixture of lime and industrial hemp that offers excellent insulation and high resistance to moisture and mold.

We are very interested to see how Crest Mountain develops, and we plan to keep in touch as we continue our search for community. The Asheville area has a great deal to offer, and some of the smaller units at Crest Mountain may prove to be affordable and attractive for those of modest means like ourselves.

Straw Bale Truth Window at Earthaven

Here's another straw bale "truth window" that was just too cool to not photograph!

Earthaven Ecovillage

We just spent two incredible days at Earthaven Ecovillage, which is located in the lush mountains less than an hour west of Asheville, North Carolina.

In short, our visit to Earthaven Ecovillage was mind-blowing. Earthaven is a veritable model for sustainable living which was founded in 1994, and we could see from the outset of our visit that this is a community that truly walks it’s talk.

Combining earth-friendly, sustainable building techniques and a village design including small clustered neighborhoods, Earthaven demonstrates that people of good will and intention can live close to the land, create systems and buildings that have the lowest possible environmental impact on the earth, and provide a safe haven for those who wish to live out of the mainstream, but nestled in the heart of a thriving community on 320 acres of Blue Ridge mountain forest.

The folks at Earthaven seem to promote and foster earthy and intelligent ingenuity, and a number of cottage industries have achieved relative economic success, including the harvesting of local timber, an organic nursery, and an apprentice program.

This geographic area enjoys four distinct seasons, each of which generally conforms to the equinoxes and solstices, as compared to New England where the winters seem to last for four or five months and the summers are unnaturally brief.  There is generally adequate sun and rainfall, with only a small amount of snow that rarely remains on the ground for more than a few days.

The buildings at Earthaven are built using many sustainable and energy-efficient technologies, including cob construction and straw bale, and every building sports an array of solar panels to harness the sun. There is also one Earthship at Earthaven, a home constructed out of old tires that are filled with dirt and stacked one on top of the other. The spaces in between the tires are then filled with glass bottles and other recycled materials, all of which is then covered with a thick coating of natural stucco. Earthships are very energy efficient due to their thick walls, requiring little in the way of heating during colder weather.

The community has its own “stream-powered” hydro plant that converts the energy of a rushing stream into usable power that is stored in a bank of batteries, further supplemented by a nearby group of solar panels. The energy harnessed from the stream can provide power to several shared buildings, including the trading post/office and a nearby residence where a number of members live.

Relying largely on solar panels and passive solar, the sun plays an important part in Earthaven’s energy needs, although generators are used in extreme circumstances. Only one home at Earthaven has a flush toilet, whereas all of the others rely on composting toilets. On-demand hot water heaters, ultra-efficient washing machines and other state-of-the-art technology further add to Earthaven’s endeavor to have the lowest possible environmental impact.

 

The community grows a great deal of its own food, and several members raise chickens, goats and dairy cows. Grass-fed milk, medicinal plants, honey, eggs and biodynamic vegetables are available, and several root cellars assist in long-term food storage.

Our host, Arjuna, carries a wealth of knowledge about both the community itself and its environmental and building practices, and our two-hour private tour was thorough, thoughtful, personal, and very informative. We were consistently blown away by what we saw and heard, returning to our rig to digest it all over a cup of tea and a snack.

Earthaven considers itself “a living laboratory for the sustainable future”, serving as a model ecovillage, a center for education vis-à-vis communication, economy and ecology, a spiritual sanctuary, and a place to foster what they call a “regenerative culture”. The residents of Earthaven use a local currency, barter for goods and services when possible, and continue to build skills in governance, group process, and healing.

Towards the beginning of our tour, we realized that a beautiful (but small) apartment/condo is currently for sale for less than $25,000 in a gorgeous building near the center of the community, and it is very tempting to consider building a life here at Earthaven. If we were indeed interested, there is an understandably involved and lengthy application process for prospective members. We were also happy to learn that our application for membership could indeed include Tina since there is no quota for the number of dogs in the community, thus she would simply be a part of our family application for residence at Earthaven.

For anyone interested in community, sustainable building, ecological living, or models of living outside of the mainstream, a visit to Earthaven is something not to be missed. We know that there are other ecovillages out there, but Earthaven is the first one into whose orbit we have floated, and we definitely leave feeling entranced. 

 

The Straw Bale "Truth Window"

Straw bale homes, which are built with super-thick walls filled with straw, are eco-friendly and energy efficient, and we were blessed to spend the night in just such a home at the Common Ground intentional community near Lexington, Virginia.

In her infinite wisdom, Mary decided to do a photo essay in order to capture a unique tradition in many straw-bale homes--- the "Truth Window". The Truth Window is a way in which the inner workings of straw bale construction are revealed, allowing visitors to see just what's inside those enormously thick walls. So here is a revealing series of photos by Mary of the "truth window" of the straw bale home where we recently spent the night.

 

 

 

Common Ground, Part II

So, dear Readers, today we bid a fond (and sadly wistful) adieu to the good folks of Common Ground, an intentional community where we were incredibly well-received, cared for, and generously hosted for three days.

Common Ground, as mentioned in a recent post, is a community which has been in existence since 1980, and the families and individuals who live there have created a sanctuary for those who wish to live close to the land and in close proximity with like-minded people of good heart and intention.

Using passive solar, solar panels, composting toilets, and alternative construction techniques like straw bale and double envelope homes, the community also offers many acres of beautiful wooded land, a pond for swimming and a stocked trout pond for fishing. There is also a schoolhouse originally used as a center for local home-schoolers, and a pavilion and outdoor kitchen for summer adventure camps for children and teenagers. There are plans to improve and expand the schoolhouse for further development of educational programs and activities, and Common Ground is excited to welcome new families with children to join the community.

We felt wonderfully at home while visiting Common Ground, and our hosts, Tony and Kari, went out of their way to welcome us for meals with them and their beautiful children. We even had a movie night, watching the film "Commune" about Black Bear Ranch, one of the original hippie communes in the 1970s. We played games with the kids, had time alone in our rig, and were generously offered the use of one of the community's lovely straw bale homes while two kind residents were on a meditation retreat. With hot baths, clean laundry, a woodstove and an expansive home to stretch out in, we were seriously happy campers!

On day two at Common Ground, we were blessed with almost four inches of snow, which challenged us to feel safe being in such a cold environment with our poorly insulated and non-winterized rig. Luckily, with the furnace running round the clock and only one night of temperatures in the 20s, we experienced no ill effects from the cold. The snow was resplendent, and we actually enjoyed trekking up and down the hill between our rig and the other homes.

Our final night at Common Ground was marked by a memorable meal with the community's founders, Peggy and Glen Leasure. Glen is a shoemaker who is about to leave for the West African country of Sierra Leone on a project geared towards teaching the women of Sierra Leone the craft of shoemaking. The women will be given micro-loans to enable them to start their own shoemaking businesses and teach others to do the same. Meanwhile, community members will also be taught how to build and use composting toilets, a green technology that will vastly improve sanitation and hygiene while also providing a means of economic and business development. Glen is fired up about the project and is pleased to accept donations from anyone moved to send him a check, and we were quick to buy raffle tickets to support this worthwhile and exciting venture! Even local churches are holding gatherings, potlucks, concerts and other events to raise money for the project.

When leaving Common Ground today, we made it not more than a mile down the road before coming across a downed tree partially blocking the road. Keith had to scramble up a tree with his handy saw in order to take down branches that could have sheared off the air conditioner or solar panels, and Mary deftly maneuvered the rig under the low-lying limbs.

 Following that adventure, we made our longest drive in a day---299 miles---since leaving Western Massachusetts, arriving in Old Fort, North Carolina just after sunset. Ensconced in a cozy campground next to a rushing stream (and with awesomely fast Wifi!), we are poised for a visit to Earthaven Ecovillage tomorrow, which will be followed by visits to several other Asheville-area communities in the coming week.

We are grateful to our new friends at Common Ground for such a wonderful visit, and we want them to know that we felt so taken care of and welcome while staying in their midst. Common Ground wins an A+ for hospitality, kindness, warmth---and natural beauty---and we truly hope to visit again (perhaps when there's no snow and the pond is open for swimming!)

Meanwhile, stay tuned for more updates, some personal entries from both Mary and Keith, and maybe even an update from Tina the Dog! Thanks for reading, and please keep those comments and emails coming!

With love from Mary and Keith. 

Sunday Sunrise in Virginia, Common Ground Community

Here's a photo essay by Mary---a Virginia sunrise.

Welcome to Tennessee!

So, what was the first thing we saw as we crossed the border from Virginia to Tennessee, on our way to North Carolina? A giant guitar, of course! What else could we see in the land of Dollywood? (Except, perhaps, for Elvis!)