Yurt: a portable dwelling of
nomadic Mongolian tribes traditionally constructed of a wooden latticework
covered by animal skins.
The yurt above, true to the
classic design but draped with canvas and furnished with a mattress and
boxspring, is my abode for these two weeks at Feathered Pipe Ranch. And check out its name!
It sits at the top of a hill
at 5,000 feet (1500+ meters) abutting on a million acres of Rocky Mountain
national forest. It’s got no running
water, no electricity, no heat, no Internet connection. I’ve bear-proofed it (removing all food and
sweet-scented lotions) but the moths are impossible to keep out. There are reportedly also moose, mountain
lions, coyotes, bats, packrats, and skunks roaming the area. The temps at night plummet to around
10 degrees C (50 F) and even with three thick wool blankets, I need my fleece
cap and hiking socks to keep warm.
And I’m here in remote
western Montana voluntarily? Yes, and
it’s awesome – it’s overnight summer camp for grownups! There are the usual dirt trails through the
woods, the rickety dock on the pond, the canoes with splintered oars, the smell
of pine needles and clacking of cicadas permeating the air. We are called to
organic meals by the blowing of a conch and eat together at round communal
tables in the dining hall. We soak up
the sun in Adirondack chairs on the lawn or doze in the hammocks hung between
aspen trees. Those of us in the yurts, tipis and tents share a cedar bathhouse
where we keep our toiletries in cubbyholes and have to take turns showering.
Ok, the hot tub and sauna are probably not common features at camps for
youngsters, and we are not making lanyards or potholders, but otherwise it all
feels familiar and comforting and fun.
The only thing missing so far is s’mores around the campfire....
Pristine!
ReplyDelete