This year, the Summer Solstice fell on June 21 at 5:15 AM. At that moment, the Northern Hemisphere made its closest approach to the sun, yielding the longest day and shortest night of the year. Six months earlier, on the Winter Solstice, days were seven hours shorter, and nights seven hours longer. In northern Maine,...Read More

Over the weeks since my last post, spring has slowly transformed the woods around my cabin. The melting of winter’s snow and ice has had two major practical impacts on my life. First, my graywater system has thawed! You may recall that, as of January 25, it was frozen solid, and my sink drain had...Read More

Today, April 8, has been a typical early-spring day in the Maine Woods: gray and showery, with a high temperature around 41 Fahrenheit. My cabin sits on land that slopes gently southward to the shore of First Roach Pond. As winter’s snow gradually melts, the expanse of sodden bare ground around my cabin expands a...Read More

In Little Women, Louisa May Alcott famously wrote that “Housekeeping ain’t no joke.” These words were spoken by Hannah, the March family’s maid, who labored to maintain a clean and comfortable home without benefit of modern appliances. In my off-the-grid cabin, washing dishes and doing laundry often feel like major projects. Before I even get...Read More

When I dreamed of living in the woods, my fantasies did not include generator operation, maintenance, and repair. But living alone in my cabin, with no road access and no cell service, far from my nearest neighbor, I need some way to communicate with the outside world. My little generator powers my satellite Internet and...Read More

On this first day of March, it’s still definitely winter in the Maine Woods. I noted a low of minus 7 on my porch thermometer shortly after sunrise. Yet spring is approaching. We’ve gained nearly two and a half hours of daylight since the Winter Solstice. Last night about 8:30, I went out for a...Read More

I love the tranquility of my cabin in a winter storm. I try to bring in plenty of firewood and water before the new accumulation obliterates my well-packed paths to the woodshed and pump. Then I settle into my warm cocoon. Through my windows, I watch the snow drift down onto my woods and the...Read More

Seven of the past seventeen mornings have dawned in the range of minus 10 to minus 30 Fahrenheit. The snow cover – 12 inches or so – is less than usual for this time of year. Put those two factors together, and they translate into the ground freezing more deeply than usual. Unfortunately, this deep...Read More

Since December 29, when I returned from spending Christmas with friends in Greenville, I’ve settled comfortably into winter solitude at my cabin. For those of you who would like a quick tour of my abode, here’s a video I recently posted on YouTube: A friend recently commented that my cabin is “very hygge,” using the...Read More

Wishing my blog friends a happy, healthy New Year! Here’s a brief video of my celebration at my cabin. May you all find opportunities to get outside and enjoy the wonders of winter, Wendy  Read More