The Wilds

The Wilds An off-grid homestead in Palmer, offering cabin rentals, baked goods and a true Alaskan experience.

Just some winter photos of this little wonderland ✨
02/08/2025

Just some winter photos of this little wonderland ✨

We have so many new followers that I thought it was time we introduced ourselves. ✨It feels like we just got to Alaska a...
02/04/2025

We have so many new followers that I thought it was time we introduced ourselves. ✨

It feels like we just got to Alaska and also like we’ve always been here, but there was a lot of life that happened before we made the move.

Boxing up our lives was scary, especially when we didn’t really know what we were doing. But it was worth it, and I know now it was the right choice. It feels really amazing to raise my daughter next door to my dad, and to have such incredible access to nature right in our back yard. This week she looked out the window and said, “Mountains! Pretty!” My mama heart was full.

As the post says, I’m a photographer/videographer. I’ve done a bit of everything over the years: shooting for newspapers, capturing adventure brands, photographing weddings and portraits, etc. These days my work takes me all over the country capturing tourism campaigns for destinations. I’m bad at keeping my social up to date, but if you want to check out my work it’s .

Ben is a full-time graphic designer, and on the side he makes pins and stickers. His social is out of date too 😅, but his Etsy is alive and well.

This property is our passion project, and we’re so excited to see where it goes. Thanks for being along for the journey!

Life lately ✨I stepped outside a few nights ago and saw this incredible, perfect ring around the moon. I made Ben stop w...
01/11/2025

Life lately ✨

I stepped outside a few nights ago and saw this incredible, perfect ring around the moon. I made Ben stop what he was doing and join me and Eloise to see it. It feels like magic in the sky. I guess it’s technically ice crystals refracting through cirrus clouds, but let’s just call it magic. I haven’t been able to stay up late enough lately to see the aurora, and this was a great placeholder.

The new year certainly hasn’t been slow. It’s thrown a lot our way in the past 10 days.

We got our first snowfall today in what feels like months, though I think it’s actually been weeks. Our driveway has become an ice rink, and the snow has created a false sense of security. Just ask my butt. I’ve slipped more times than I can count.

Our off grid system threw us a bunch of curve balls. Nothing new there - but it does seem we have finally gotten some answers and wrapped our heads around solutions. With solutions come big bills, so we’re going to chip away at it little by little. I’ve learned more about batteries in the last week than I ever have before.

It’s easy to get complacent in winter. I am a lover of sweats and cozy clothes and am known to sit around in said clothes all day. I think covid created that habit, and it doesn’t do my mind any good. So I’ve been making myself get ready for the day, even if I’ve nowhere to go. And I have to say, it’s made a difference in my mental health and motivation to get things done.

We’ve entered the beginning stages of building a bigger cabin for our little family. Step one: come up with an idea. I’m finding it hard to commit and have already drawn three floor plans. But it’s fun to dream and step into the space, imagining which walls would go where. Just typing it out here feels like putting the possibility out into the universe. Saying it makes it real. ✨

We said goodbye to my dad yesterday. He’s heading off on a nice warm trip to escape the rest of winter. It’s sad to see him go. In the past, it wasn’t uncommon for us to go a year without seeing one another, now a few months feels like forever. We’ll miss him while he’s gone. 🖤

Anyway, there’s a little taste of what we’ve been doing lately.

Happy belated Christmas! 🎄We had a dark but happy holiday. You may have seen on our stories that we had issues with our ...
12/29/2024

Happy belated Christmas! 🎄

We had a dark but happy holiday. You may have seen on our stories that we had issues with our off grid system. Despite having a tech come out to look things over, we were without power most of Christmas Eve and day. But we made the best of it - we plugged our tree into a battery pack and had our oven plugged into a small backup generator. I cooked Christmas dinner by lantern light and lit up the table with candles and kerosene lamps. We had power intermittently, but had no idea what was wrong or how to fix it. The unknown is anxiety inducing to say the least.

There’s a lot of content here that romanticizes homesteading and off grid living, and in some ways I’m sure I perpetuate that. But it’s certainly not all sunshine and rainbows. There’s a huge learning curve and lots of what ifs.

My dad spent hours checking our batteries and found a few that were bad. Together we spent a couple more hours on the phone with a tech, going through back end settings on our inverter. I’m happy to report that today, things are running smoothly and seem to be working properly. I knocked on wood immediately after writing that.

You just never know what’s going to break or go wrong next. But we have certainly become resourceful, and I know more about batteries than I ever did before. I have a page full of notes about connecting banks in series and parallels, terms I didn’t know existed before yesterday. With every hurdle comes new knowledge, and the more you know…. well, the more you know! As they say, knowledge is power, and we can use more of that. 🙃

I hope your holiday was full of warmth and love. We appreciate you following along on our journey. We’re learning as we go! ✨

Thanks to all who came out to celebrate the Solstice with us yesterday! It was such a beautiful way to welcome back the ...
12/22/2024

Thanks to all who came out to celebrate the Solstice with us yesterday! It was such a beautiful way to welcome back the longer days ahead of us. See you all next year! ☀️

We woke up to a sliver of a moon.The snow clung to the trees, iced over from a long cold night. Thanksgiving prep starte...
11/27/2024

We woke up to a sliver of a moon.

The snow clung to the trees, iced over from a long cold night. Thanksgiving prep started at 7:30 and will continue all day. Loaves of bread are in the oven, the turkey dry brined. I stored it in my dad’s fridge, and the short walk froze my nose hairs.

It’s zero degrees but the ovens are keeping the cabin warm, and the anticipation of a day filled with friends and food has my heart full.

Good luck in your kitchens today, may you have all the ingredients you didn’t know you needed, tucked away in some corner of your cabinets. ✨

We’ve had frost on the ground for the past few days. The garden is dying in stages - the flowers have been gone for week...
10/04/2024

We’ve had frost on the ground for the past few days. The garden is dying in stages - the flowers have been gone for weeks and most veggies have withered away from the cold. There are still a few things left to harvest, and I’m enjoying reaping the benefits from all the work we put in this summer.

So as we prepare to close out another season, here’s a few photos to commemorate some of the bounty that called our garden home. 🥕🌼✨

Only four months til we start seedlings! 🙃

Feeling sad you won’t get to see us at the Fling this week? Turns out we’ve got one more market in us! Come see us at th...
08/14/2024

Feeling sad you won’t get to see us at the Fling this week?

Turns out we’ve got one more market in us! Come see us at the today from 4-7! We’ve got 60 loaves of bread this week 😳 and all kinds of yummy scones, cookies and other goodies.

See you there! ✨

Come and get it! We’re at the Fling from 11-6, rain or shine!
07/26/2024

Come and get it! We’re at the Fling from 11-6, rain or shine!

We’ve been on a work trip in California, where temps are reaching 113 degrees!🔥🥵Needless to say, we are excited to get b...
07/02/2024

We’ve been on a work trip in California, where temps are reaching 113 degrees!🔥🥵

Needless to say, we are excited to get back to these mountains and the cool breeze off of our Little Su.

Our market day at has been amazing! And it’s only halfway through. Ben and I had to head out early to catch a flight to...
06/28/2024

Our market day at has been amazing! And it’s only halfway through.

Ben and I had to head out early to catch a flight to California, but dad is still there manning the booth. We only have three loaves of sourdough left and a couple bags of bagels! Stop by before we sell out. We’ve also got a bounty of veg from the garden, including mustard, chives and lots of delicious greens. 🥬🌱

This morning we found an exceptionally large egg in the coop. It cracked at the market, so we decided to open it up to see how many yolks it had. To our surprise, there was a whole separate egg inside!!! It’s a phenomenon called a counter-peristalsis contraction, and I had no idea it was even possible. But I sure feel bad for the chick who laid it. 😬🥚

So thankful to everyone for coming out and showing your support. It truly means the world. Have a great weekend!

Some of my favorite scenes from bake day. It’s a long day, but it sure was a pretty one. ✨Be sure to come see us at tom...
06/28/2024

Some of my favorite scenes from bake day. It’s a long day, but it sure was a pretty one. ✨

Be sure to come see us at tomorrow from 11-6!

By now, most of you have probably heard that the Friday Fling has been cancelled for the next two weeks. This is extreme...
06/25/2024

By now, most of you have probably heard that the Friday Fling has been cancelled for the next two weeks. This is extremely difficult for all vendors who count on these summer markets. Thankfully, we have amazing community members who are stepping up to help out.

We’ll be at this Friday, selling our breads, cookies and other goods. We also have some new recipes coming to the booth this week, so don’t miss out. We’re not sure where we’ll be the week of July 5, but we’ll keep you updated.

Please come out to support all of us vendors. It really means the world to provide our community with baked goods and garden grown goodness. We appreciate your continued support! ✨

It’s market day! Come see us at the Friday Fling in downtown Palmer! We’ve got bread, bagels, cookies, rhubarb and more!...
05/24/2024

It’s market day! Come see us at the Friday Fling in downtown Palmer! We’ve got bread, bagels, cookies, rhubarb and more!

Ever been interested in trying fiddleheads? We’ve got those, too! Foraged late last night, so they’re fresh and tasty. They’re like asparagus, but wild!

See you soon! ☀️

One of the amazing things about Alaska is how quickly things turn green. One minute everything is brown, and the next, i...
05/20/2024

One of the amazing things about Alaska is how quickly things turn green.

One minute everything is brown, and the next, it’s sprouting up reaching for the sun. (Aren’t we all?) ☀️

We’re checking the soil temp in the garden every day and getting excited to move things from the greenhouse into the ground. Here’s hoping we have more sun this summer than we did last. IYKYN.

We are so excited to share that we will have a booth at this year’s Friday Fling! We’ve been so busy testing recipes, gr...
05/14/2024

We are so excited to share that we will have a booth at this year’s Friday Fling!

We’ve been so busy testing recipes, growing seedlings, prepping garden beds and building out our booth. It’s been a big undertaking, but we’re excited to see it all coming together.

The first market is this Friday from 11-6 in downtown Palmer. If you’re a local, we’d love to see you. We’ll have fresh baked goods, sourdough bakes, goose and chicken eggs and much more. Let’s cross our fingers that the sun will be there, too!

We have been pretty absent from social media lately! We visited Arizona for a work trip/mini vacation, and then came hom...
05/04/2024

We have been pretty absent from social media lately! We visited Arizona for a work trip/mini vacation, and then came home to some pretty serious health issues. All is well now, and we’re excited for spring!

Soon you’ll be able to smell the cottonwoods on the breeze- one of my favorite things about Alaska. We found of of these seed pods on our morning walk. I had no idea it was a cottonwood!

The greenhouse is full of seedlings. They’re well on their way and itching to get into the soil in the next few weeks. We were so fortunate to find a bunch of planting trays at our recycling center. For free! If you’re local, it’s such a wonderful resource. We always leave a donation to thank them for their efforts.

We adopted some pullets from and they are quickly becoming my favorite chickens. They’re so sweet and don’t mind being handled. One of them reminds me so much of Buckbeak from Harry Potter, so that is now her name.

The sun is out, and all the birds are soaking it up! We brought in a little kiddie pool for them to swim in, and they are loving it.

We had some shirts made, as we’ve got some exciting things happening this summer! Crossing our fingers it’s a warm, sunny one. Happy May!

Address

Palmer, AK
99645

Telephone

+17278101413

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Who else is getting excited to get their hands in the dirt? 🍃👩🏻‍🌾

When we bought our property, it was just me and Ben in one cabin and my dad in another. Each cabin was built very similarly - basically a 500 sq ft box divided into four sections. Five hundred square feet was small for the two of us, but doable. We’d lived in tiny apartments separately and together, but when we moved out of Washington, we left behind a full-sized house. We got rid of so many things to make it work in a tiny cabin. And even still, we found ourselves getting frustrated by the lack of space. And then we had a kid. 😂 Needless to say, that small cabin got a whole lot smaller once she entered the world. The living room serves as our dining room, play room, tv room, office, etc. There’s just one closet in our bedroom, and it’s very small. We have very little storage space as a whole, so we have to get creative. But for all the times I’ve cursed the lack of space, it’s pushed us to be pickier about what we buy. And that’s never a bad thing. I’ll be grateful when we have a larger cabin, but I also know I’ll look back so fondly at the years we spent in this little house with our tiny Christmas trees and cozy spaces. It’s not perfect, and it’s not the influencer-chic space that usually fills the feed, but it’s ours. It’s home, and I love it.

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