Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Idaho
























Welcome to Nuestro Sueño, my Aunt Lori's ranch, deep in a canyon in Idaho. It is the heart and home of all the dreams she shared with my Uncle Jay, cowboy, cowboy poet, artist and rancher, who passed away long before his time, 14 years ago. My brave, tough and tiny little aunt has continued to run 100 head of cattle and 25 or so sheep almost every year since, all by her lonesome.

Lori's ranch is so far off the grid you simply won't believe it. There are 7 miles of winding dirt road, often on the edge of stomach dropping cliffs, before you even reach the hard-surface road. She has never had electricity and when she and Jay first moved in, they had a crank up telephone that only connected to the operator, a neighbor at the top of the canyon, in the afternoon...on good days. She now has a "real" phone and has solar panels to run what little electricity she uses, often just to listen to a book on tape or turn on a reading light.



The Scale of Things, originally uploaded by maryjanemidgemink.


10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow. Wow to your Aunt Lori, and wow to that chunk of property. My husband and I would love to own a farm just like that some day. That map really puts it into perspective.

Gudrun Johnston said...

That is just wild and very cool!

Petula Darling said...

Sheesh....and to think I complain about midcoast Maine being the middle of nowhere.
Cool house! It looks like a great place to relax on an internet-free vacation.

HomeMadeOriginals said...

Gorgeous photos, what a wonderful spot. Thanks for visiting my blog. The 365 crafting thing was hard at first but has become pretty easy actually. Working interferes,of course, but it's hardest when I'm traveling away from home.

Gina said...

Talk about off the grid and living in nature! It's lovely.

magnusmog said...

That's what I love about mountains, they really let you know how small you are in the greater scheme of things.
Aunt Lori sounds terrific.

Berlinswhimsy said...

I went to college for a time in Idaho (and my in-laws are from there) and I know how far out far out in Idaho is!!! It's just crazy how rural some parts of that state are---it's heartening, too, in that back-to-basics way. I hope you're enjoying it all!

What a beautiful spot...

Green Kitchen said...

Wow! That's spectacular.

craftivore said...

What a cool aunt. Now there's a woman with pioneer spirit.

Angelique said...

Wow, that is simply amazing.