We are seeking to share our off-grid 20 acres in Okanogan County, Washington with an individual or family. We are two people with goats, dogs, chickens, ducks, and cats.

The cats are enclosed in a deluxe catio to protect the local wildlife, as well as to protect the cats from the wildlife. The dogs are great with other animals but our four-year-old came with a troubled past. She is very gentle and shy, but loud, and she takes some time to get used to new humans. These dogs are excellent at keeping the coyotes away.

We are 5 miles outside of Tonasket. You will need to bring your own housing. We recommend a camper or tiny house – something on wheels while you’re trying it out. You will also need a vehicle with 4-wheel drive.

The ideal land mate(s) will be minimalists when it comes to using water and electricity. We have a small solar/wind system and we haul water from town (5 miles) on unpaved roads. We collect rainwater and aspire to drill a well someday. The land has a seasonal stream, pine trees, sagebrush, lupine, briar rose, serviceberries, wax currants, yarrow, bitterroot, and a variety of other wildflowers. The elevation is about 1800 feet.

This is unceded Syilx Okanagan land, and we respect the governance of the Okanagan Nation.

You can see in the photos how bucolic it is, but don’t forget there are no flush toilets. We’re not idealists and we don’t completely know what we’re doing. We don’t have the wherewithal to save the world. We’re basically just looking to grow our family in a non-conventional way.

The nearby wildfires have been nerve-wracking. Climate change is tragic, and we are sad about it. We don’t like capitalism or colonialism. We’re not wealthy enough to be preppers but we are trying to adapt to all the changes as best we can, trying to be more self-sufficient and do less harm.

Steven (he/him) is a musician, artist, and retired gas man who has hoarded an embarrassing amount of what we euphemistically call art supplies. He is a Vietnam-era veteran.

Laura (they/them/she/her the one who’s writing this) is a 40-something freelance writer and cat person with a Master’s in Social Ecology and Bachelor’s in Sustainable Community Development from Prescott College. I lived at Arcosanti, Arizona for a few years.

We both like to build and fix things.

We would welcome people from any racial background, all genders, sexual orientations, neurodivergent, different abilities, religions, marital status, etc. We might not get along if you talk about conspiracy theories a lot, unless it’s funny. We’re too old to party. Our worst vices are too much sugar and stupid TV. And the art supplies mentioned above. You don’t have to hang out with us if you don’t want to.

We’re hoping to find long-term land mates, not a series of renters. You would probably start out renting a spot for your camper, then after some time, if things are going well, we would write up a contract so that you could establish equity and co-own the land. We are on track to pay it off in 5 ½ years.  The best time to arrive and start to set up would be late spring or early summer (when the living is easy).

You can use our wi-fi if you’re within range, when it’s on. We use solar and wind, and we run a generator when it’s cloudy. We usually turn the electricity off when we go to bed at night.

Our chickens lay a lot of eggs, and we eat a rooster every so often. I’m going to start milking our goat Precious when the kids are weaned if she will let me. We really suck at gardening, but dammit, we’re going to keep trying. Onions do grow well here.

Are you good at gardening and do you enjoy it? If so, we would love to hear from you.

Being able to minimize water usage is a big deal. We do laundry in town. The $4 showers at the laundromat are one of our favorite small luxuries in life. Does that count as a vice too?

If you’re interested you probably have more questions, which we would be happy to answer.  We look forward to getting to know anyone who would consider joining us out here.