Following is an update from Victoria Whitcher on her adventure to Alaska. This is a reprint from her blog. To keep up with her story please continue to follow Victoria at the Tiny Adventure blog.
We are a family of three. We currently live in Alaska. We built a 200 sq foot house and live in it full time. We live off the grid. We choose to live the life WE wanted. Not the life everyone thought was right. My husband is such an amazing man to make this dream I had come true!
We have arrived in Alaska after a 4,200 mile journey. What an adventure it was. My husband drove the tiny house towed by a U-Haul. I drove the truck towing the solar system and the plow. It was suppose to take a total of 4 days. It ended up taking a total of over a week. All due to an accident we got into right after we crossed the border into Canada. Upon entering the border, we went over a snow drift that turned out to be 4 inches of ice. I did a 360 and landed almost sideways in the snow. The house the same. The accident involved 6 other cars. Thank God no one was hurt. I have to credit the tow company. Removing the U-Haul and the truck from the waist deep snow should have cost thousands. Instead it cost $800. We did rest that night and continued on the journey. The tiny house received some damage due to the accident. The frame was damaged. After strapping it together several times in the Yukon we carried on. Driving the Alaska highway was an experience of a lifetime. Really crappy roads carved onto the side of a mountain is the best way to describe it. I am terrified of heights. So it’s something I will avoid for the future. We probably changed a tire every 45 miles. Plus it was zero degrees out and a snow storm in APRIL! So on top of driving the tiny house damaged, towing on the side of the mountain, the ground was cover with slippery slushy snow. The positive side of the trail, it was so beautiful. I saw every type of animal I can imagine. Wild horses were the highlight for me. We stayed in the house the entire way. I highly recommend that everyone take a large trip across the country. It really shows you that you’re so small in such a large world.
We have been in Alaska for several months now. We are 100% off the grid. We have put the 250 water gallon in the tree. It is gravity feed into the house. With hours and hours of sunlight we have constant power. The vegetables in the garden grew at a very fast rate. Everyone is adjusting to the wonderful weather. We see moose every week. This is the happiest my family has ever been. I highly suggest everyone take their family at some point and move away. We love Alaska. It is a place where so many people think outside the box and do as they please. No one has given us crazy eyes because of the house we live in. As a matter of fact, most people live like this up here!
Some things I have learned in the couple months I’d like to list.
- Do not put your tiny house in the backyard of someone you don’t particularly get along with. They won’t respect your privacy and space.
- Write your list of daily needs you’re not willing to part with prior to the build.
- People will have nothing but negative things to say about everything.
- Don’t let others idea of your life define your decision.
- Canada needs better plow standards.
- Living off the grid has its challenges, but it’s awesome.
- You know your family, live life for them.
- God is great have faith in him.
Here are some pictures.