Featured in Boston Magazine and CabinPorn, Alder Brook Cottage is an inspired, rustic dream cabin located in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont.
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Surrounded by a crystal clear stream and 1400 acres of forest, it is the perfect tiny house to retreat to.
This is Kyle, one of the builders of Alder Brook Cottage.
We wanted to say Hi!👋🏼 because we’ve noticed a lot of new likes in the past month.
Can you tell us how you found our page?
Are you interested in building tiny houses? What would you like to know about Alder Brook cottage?
Alder Brook Cottage got featured in our friend Derek Diedricksen's new book, Micro Living
Currently enjoying a campfire and the sounds of a moose off in the woods. Ah Vermont.
We are in the "Napa Valley of Beer." This place gets more magical by the day! Hill Farmstead Brewery, Rock Art Brewery, and many others make this place special. (And our friend's amazing taco truck, Caja Madera, got mentioned as well)
A tour through the state’s many craft breweries suggests a wine-ification of ales, lagers and stouts.
Stocking up on firewood for the long winter ahead!
Yep, that about sums it up.
("Green Mountain Farm" by Elliott Merrick)
A video from Deek at Relaxshack's Tiny House Hub—the very guy who urged me to look for land in northern Vermont in the first place! Check out his upcoming hands-on workshops.
Check out Deek's Book "Microshelters" Kyle Woolard built and designed this cabin in Hardwick, Vermont and carried in EACH piece of wood by hand, down a trail...
The magic of tung oil on wood.
Finally got around to coating our countertop with tung oil. These boards were recycled from an old home on a nearby mountaintop.
Part 5: The Foundation (the thrilling conclusion)
To pour concrete piers, I cannot recommend the cardboard sonotube enough. They’re kind of expensive (like $40 for a long piece), but they’re super worth it.
After we’d finished sacrificing our bodies to the gods of bedrock and dirt, we were left with 14 holes along the perimeter of our foundation. These were of varying depths—anywhere from nearly 4 feet to 4 inches. So we began cutting the cardboard sonotube into the appropriate lengths. We had to cut the bottoms so that they’d conform to whatever lumpy, sloping bedrock lay at the bottom of each hole, and so they would rest at the appropriate height above ground.
Our plan was to have the tops of our piers about 18” above the ground, so that our house would sit high above the ground and have a better vantage over the forest. I *highly* recommend this, as it has made all the difference whenever we look out the window.
At long last, after checking the squareness of our lines again, we put a sonotube in and stabilized it. I made a makeshift “hashtag,” lovingly named after the # symbol, that kept them stable for pouring concrete. You can see it in the pictures!
I’ll summarize the concrete experience:
1) it turns out that an 80lb. bag of concrete does indeed weigh 80 pounds
2) concrete is not like a sponge—there’s not much expansion when you add water. So the size of a bag is pretty close to the amount of concrete you’ll end up with.
3) concrete poofs up in a cloud. It’s really not fun having breathed in a bunch of concrete.
4) we carried 2.6 tons of concrete, by hand, from the road up to the building site. THIS WAS ONE TIME WHEN I WANTED A DRIVEWAY
we took to mixing the concrete in a wheelbarrow, using the new hose we had from the stream. Two people attacked it with hoes while another added the water.
Concrete has great compression strength, but very little shear strength: for this reason, you have to reinforce it with rebar. We placed 3 pieces of rebar in each pier (place them about 3” from any exterior surface, so they don’t rust). We poured the concrete in and mixed it thoroughly with another piece of rebar, to ensure there were no air bubbles.
In the top of each pier we placed a large bolt, which we would use to literally fasten the house to the foundation. Then we filled in around the sides of each sonotube, tamping the dirt in to make sure it was stable.
We let the piers dry overnight and went back to the camper to recover. We also made a cool discovery that night, for the first time in our lives: the concrete bo**er.
Part 4: The Foundation (chapter two)
To recap, our cabin was going to be 12x16’, and the foundation would be concrete piers (basically, columns of concrete that stick out of the earth, and the house sits on them). We were going to set it on 14 of these concrete piers, all of which needed to go down at least 4 feet below the ground. Let me repeat that in case you missed it: WE WERE GOING TO HAVE TO DIG 14 HOLES, EACH 4 FEET DEEP, IN SUPER ROCKY GROUND. The reason is that, in the cold climate of Vermont, the frost line is 4’ deep. If you are above the frost line, the frozen ground can literally lift the whole pier upwards, doing god-knows-what to the house above it.
I’m getting ahead of myself. In order to mix concrete, I figured we would bring buckets of water up from the brook and pour it into the wheelbarrow. Our friend Dale, who is an experienced builder, assured us that we would be doing no such thing. To mix the quantity of concrete that we needed, we were going to want a continuous supply of water. For that, we’d need a water box.
Now I mentioned that there is a cliff behind our land. It turns out that a brook trickles down a gulley next to the cliff, and that this brook may very well originate from a spring on the mountain above. To test this, our man Dale drank straight from it, and when he didn’t die within 24 hours, we considered our brook potable.
In order to get running water, we constructed a 2x2x2’ box out of pressure-treated lumber, which had no bottom and no top. To let water into it, we bored a 1” hole in the backside of it. We dug out part of the brook and buried this box in it, lining the bottom with stones, so that it filled with water—then we took a 300-foot black hose and siphoned water through it, so that it gravity-fed water down to the homesite. Success! (see the pictures)
Now it was time to start digging our holes. We needed 14 of them, so we spaced them out using our carefully placed strings and began digging. Dale had warned us that the property looked “ledgy”—that is, it looked like it had a lot of rock running under it—but we were hoping that we’d luck out and no hit rock on our 56 cumulative feet of vertical digging. And guess what?
We hit rock. We hit rock 14 times.
What ensued were 2 torturous days of digging, crowbar-ing, pickaxing and playing the role of the Miner Forty-Niner right down to the drooping hats we wore to protect our heads from mosquitos. We’d sometimes get down 2 feet and hope that there would be no problem, and then we’d hit rock. Other times we would get down 2 inches and hit rock. Either way, we hit a lot of rock.
Architects told us to do something elaborate involving a hammer drill, a large bolt sticking out of the rock, and other things. That sounded too hard to me, especially given that we didn’t have a hammer drill, the air compressor necessary to run it, or the willingness to spend any more time underground. The solution we came up with:
1) blast through the soft rock until we hit hard granite
2) clean the granite
3) pour the concrete directly on it
To be continued.
Part 3: The Foundation (chapter one)
The old sayings are true: the foundation is the most important part of the house. If you’re off by a little bit here, it’s going to multiply exponentially by the time you get up to the roof. A quarter-inch error at the foundation could mean a 1-inch error or more in your roof.
To properly measure a foundation, we used the old geometric method: we drove stakes into the corners, measuring roughly but knowing our fine-tuning would gain us accuracy.
This part will probably sound confusing by text, but refer to the picture to get an idea of how to square up your foundation. Essentially, each corner has 3 stakes, and two boards are nailed between them. Strings are tied between parallel boards of opposite corners, and where the strings intersect is where the four corners of the house lie.
To get the house square (that is, a rectangle and NOT a parallelogram), you measure the diagonals and make sure they’re equal. This process can be maddening: making sure the strings were perfectly level, then stretching a tape measure from one corner to the other.
“Oops, we’re off three inches.”
“Now we’re off one inch.”
“Okay, we’re down to half an inch.”
“Now we’re off two inches. How the hell are we off two inches?”
“The strings aren’t level anymore.”
And so on and so forth, for a whole day. We were finally down to one corner that seemed to be the problem, then when we adjusted it, it changed everything else with it. So it was back to square one. Jenny and my mom went and worked on the rock staircase up from the stream, since we didn’t have any stable path uphill.
By the end of the day, we got it done, and it was time to move onto digging holes for our concrete piers.
Part 2: Choosing our Homesite
We had plans drawn up for a 12x16’ tiny house with a loft. That meant we needed an area at least that large, preferably flat, and with no protruding rocks. There are many things to consider when you’re choosing a homesite on your property, but I’ll just post a few:
1) are you in a flood zone? What about a 500-year flood?
2) does water drain away from your homesite or pool in it?
3) how many trees/stumps are you going to have to remove?
4) can you orient the long side of your house facing south? (this lets the sun passively warm your home, saving you energy)
5) how accessible is getting to your homesite? (mind that I’m being extremely hypocritical in asking this)
In my opinion, the most important thought to keep in mind when you’re building a home is this: water wants to destroy what you’ve built. It will find its way, quietly and insidiously, into your walls and your ceiling. It wants to rot your lumber, mold your insulation, warp your floors, attract pesky insects, and erode away your foundation. So, when you are building, digging, planning, or grading, the number one question to ask yourself:
Which way will water flow, and how can I direct that flow away from my house?
Well, this question was what led us to switching our locations for a homesite. The first option was slightly closer to the road: a natural clearing, with a monstrous spruce tree towering near the northern end. It seemed perfect! But it wasn’t! The reason was that the ground there seemed a bit soggy. After looking around, we discovered why: everything surrounding this site was slightly higher up.
So we made our way up a little knoll and found another natural clearing. This one was a bit more hidden, but was just the right size for our tiny house and was higher than everything around it. I inspected it from the point of view of water. In most directions was a gulley or drop-off where it would undoubtedly flow.
My family and a few friends were there to assist us in breaking ground, so we started clearing the topsoil with rakes, hoes, shovels, and a pickaxe. You can see in the picture that we strung a tarp between the trees to shield ourselves from the rain. I recommend getting a big tarp and putting several hours into this effort—it’s really nice to stay dry, and if you don’t have a shed for your tools, it’s a downright necessity.
We got the ground moderately level, with a slight slope to the north for water to flow. Next was the foundation…and for that, we will need another post (or two) entirely.
Part 1: The Land
I think it was on a drizzly day in December 2014 when I slapped my desk and angrily proclaimed, “I refuse to spend another winter without snow.”
This may not sound like a complaint you may have—yours is likely the complete opposite—but it was what spurred me to begin this journey. A few weeks later I was in a car, driving the snowy backroads of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom in search for a cabin. My girlfriend, Jenny, and I decided we were going to buy a house and make it our getaway, and my friend Deek (author of the amazing book "Microshelters") had told me about his land in northern Vermont.
Well, things didn’t work out the way we'd hoped. I will spare you the details of all the houses we looked at, the mortgage brokers we called who told us we would not qualify, and the feeling that we were extending ourselves further than our bank accounts would allow. Five months later we were in Vermont yet again, feeling farther from our dream than we had been before, when Jenny found something on craigslist.
“It’s 3.5 acres of land in some town called Hardwick,” she told me. “He’s asking for $12,000 or a trade for a truck. That’s weird.”
So we went and saw the land. The pictures attached to this post reveal what we encountered: just over three acres of knolls, moss, forest, and rocks that jutted out of the surrounding wetlands like a castle on a hill. It sat at the base of a 150-foot cliff that looked very much like something from Jurassic Park, whose submerged rocky veins would render it impossible to dig below the frost line. It was surrounded by a stream that would make installing a driveway a nightmare. Wetlands on either side of it meant that the state would prevent us from touching those areas.
But we loved it. There was something about its jumbled density, its seclusion and inaccessibility, that spoke to us. So we negotiated for a few months and finally bought it for an impressive $6000.
If you’re looking to own your own tiny home and may want land with it, I suggest thinking outside the box. I, for one, did not imagine that I would want land like this. But once I walked around in that forest, something inside me shifted. Jenny and I had not planned on building our own tiny house from scratch, but we fell in love with the idea after we let it sink in. Here are my tips for finding land:
1) make a list of the qualities you want you land to have. Ours were:
- 10-15 acres (X)
- has a brook (âś“)
- bordering state park land (✓ kind of…ours borders 1400 acres of privately owned forest that we can walk around on)
2) look on realty sites
3) scour craigslist
4) ask people you know if they’re looking to parcel off any acres
5) ask people if they KNOW anyone looking to sell land or parcel off acres
6) be prepared to wait. Search far and wide. Drive around a lot and look in places you perhaps didn't think you'd ever want to build in. Make new friends. Don’t rush into anything unless it feels absolutely right.
Coming soon: we will be posting a picture a day showing how we built the tiny house. We welcome all questions. For now, we're enjoying the finished product!
Photo credit: Sally Cooper Photography
Getting some love on Sally Cooper Photography's instagram:
1,119 Likes, 41 Comments - ❤ Sally () on Instagram: “Had the pleasure of meeting the coolest people who built this Tiny House by hand. I took pictures…”
We all love tiny houses, but what would you use yours for? Personally I like writing.
We were so sad last weekend that we couldn't make it up to Vermont for the snowstorm. Our friend Dale sent us these amazing pictures from his snowshoeing adventures.
It's another world up in the kingdom! This is our friends Bob and Burt's house, where we stayed several times while building.
Spring is coming.
"I can't say enough great things about this place, and Kyle himself. Kyle was so incredibly easy to communicate with, and was exremely quick to reply to any questions I had. He even extended our stay at the very last minute, which really saved us from some potential driving issues due to snow. The place itself is amazing. Such a cozy little cabin with everything you need to have a fantastic stay. Me and my stayed there on very, very cold days, but once we got the wood stove going, we were so warm and comfortable that we would open windows periodically to let a cool breeze through. Beautiful surroundings. A cool little walk across a creek and wood bridge leads you to the cabin itself tucked inside the woods. I recommend this place highly to anyone who is thinking of making the trip, and we will absolutely be back to this spot in the near future." 5 out of 5 stars, Everett
"Our stay at Kyle's place was excellent. The area was scenic, secluded, and all together beautiful- exactly what we were looking for. The place was well stocked with anything you'd need for a weekend away. The wood burning stove did an excellent job of keeping us warm, even in the zero degree Vermont weather. Kyle was very helpful through communications leading up to our trip, especially the day of when we needed help with directions. The house itself was beautifully built, and it is clear that Kyle built his cabin with care. We would absolutely recommend staying here!" 5 out of 5 stars, Hannah
"A great little get away. Easy to get to but a world away. I would highly recommend checking this cabin out if you are in need of some solitude. The woods surrounding the cabin are ripe for exploring and several areas invite you to stop for a bit and take in all the beauty." 5 out of 5 stars, Jorden
"This is a wonderful little cabin, clearly a lot of thought was put into building this space. It's very comfortable, and the town nearby is adorable. It's so quiet outside, which makes it the perfect place to escape city noise (which is why we went). It was an excellent weekend, and I highly recommend putting away screens and enjoying the beautiful natural environment, and also, the wood stove is more powerful than you might think, so be patient with letting the place heat up in the winter, because the loft will get toasty very soon!" 5 out of 5 stars, Roksi
"Your cabin is clearly a labor of love; it is well built in a beautiful, hidden spot. We were able to "try on" the type of cabin we are building on our land, which was great. We enjoyed snowshoeing out the back door and exploring the k***s and headwaters behind the cabin. The wood stove worked easily, safely, and kept us nice and warm. The cabin had everything we needed to relax and enjoy our time away." 5 out of 5 stars, Christina
"We had a great stay in this cozy cabin in the woods. A real inspiration for anyone thinking about building their own cottage. We skied at Crafstbusry Commons and toured around the area hitting up lots of great little villages." 5 out of 5 stars, Heather
"I don't know where to start. This place is honestly one of the best places I have ever been. The owner is so true to his word about the cabin. Clean, cozy with everything you could ever need. I went on one of the coldest days, when we arrived, to our pleasant surprise there was rock salt down for our safety. Little things like that stand out to me as a guest and Kyle thought of everything! I look forward to my next trip up there." 5 out of 5 stars, Tara
2599 Craftsbury Road
Hardwick, VT
05843
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It's another world up in the kingdom! This is our friends Bob and Burt's house, where we stayed several times while building.
