Frankenbarn Field Trip

Thomas, Amy and Swintak went to Don Miller's barn and spent the night. He lives in Northern Ontario pretty much off the grid with no plumbing or hydro, but with a phone line, solar panel and wind turbine. His barn is sort of unconventional in that it is made from a whole bunch of other barns that he has torn down and/or collected over the course of his life. During the warmer months Miller lives in the barn and during the winter he sleeps in the smaller cabin, which is warmer. While we were there we ate wild garlic and veggies from his garden (that he picked while we were en route), learned about crops and local climate, exchanged stories, learned about living off the grid, learned how motors and generators work, rescued a frog from Don's well (which would have died and made the water nasty), made pancakes with wild red currants, tried his homemade maple syrup, had a sauna (his method of bathing), swam in a very cold pond and found this crazy carpet.

Images below: frankenbarn, crazy carpet, frog rescue from well, Miller tutorial, Thomas writing in his journal, potatoes and pancakes made without measurements, frankenbarn, Amy and Miller talking, the winter cabin and sauna, the staircase to where we slept, and the insane amount of flies in the highest window.