A Slower Couple of Weeks and a Mental Shift in the Wrong Direction
I haven’t written a Cliffside Cabin update in a couple of weeks, and I want to be honest about why.
Part of it is simple: it’s been cold. Not "normal" winter cold, but the kind that makes my fingers stop working. Tools don’t cooperate. Trails glaze over. Even short jobs are challenging and miserable
We also had a couple of cabin rentals land on the warmer days we did get, which is a good thing. When the cabin is occupied, my focus shifts to making sure guests have a quiet, uninterrupted experience—which naturally slows progress on other projects.
And then there’s the third reason.
Losing a Bit of Momentum
Back in the fall, I spoke with two different teachers who both told me the same thing: winter camping sites were incredibly hard to find. One of them compared it to the Hunger Games—everyone scrambling for the same limited options.
Based on those conversations, I invested a fair amount of money into building the new bunkhouse, expecting winter school rentals to help recoup some of that cost.
But when winter arrived and the bunkhouse build was underway, those same teachers who encouraged the build disappeared.
No returned calls. No replies to emails.
I’m not sharing that to complain. Teachers are overwhelmed, priorities shift, and plans change. But it did knock the wind out of my sails a bit. With winter winding down and no bunkhouse bookings on the calendar, I had to accept that waiting for those rentals wasn’t a strategy.
My credit card companies have zero interest in my excuses...
A Necessary Pivot
So I pivoted.
Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been rebuilding the Ark Wedding site, setting up ads, and putting energy into generating wedding inquiries. Not because weddings are the dream—they aren’t, and I hate hosting weddings here and so does Monique—but they’ve proven, near-term revenue. Right now, they help carry the cost of a big build like the bunkhouse while other pieces catch up.
This is the less visible side of running a place like this. You make decisions based on solid information. You commit time and money. And sometimes the timing doesn’t line up the way you expected.
I’ll be honest—there have been moments where I’ve second-guessed the bunkhouse.
Not because I don’t believe in outdoor education. That’s still the core of why The Ark exists and where my energy naturally goes. But belief alone doesn’t pay for materials. If the bookings aren’t there, I have to be open to other options.
Based on the feedback I get from cabin guests—and the fact that those bookings are consistent—I’ve started thinking more seriously about adding yurts or luxury domes to the property. People don’t just enjoy staying here; they talk about the trails, the quiet, and how easy it is to lose track of time once they’re out in the forest. The cabin works because it leans into that feeling of immersion and slowing down. There may be other ways to expand lodging that fit the land—and the demand—better than a traditional bunkhouse in the short term.
And that’s a bit of a shame, because while guests leave rested and happy, youth leave changed. The programs here are easily ten times more powerful, and the impact tends to last far longer than a short stay ever can.
Most things I’ve built here have taken longer than planned and turned out better than expected. This may just be another chapter of that same pattern—adjusting, learning, and finding the right fit over time. But only time will tell.
Ice, ATVs, and Getting Materials Up the Hill
Another challenge over the past couple of weeks has been access.
The trails have been icy enough that getting up to the bunkhouse with the ATV and trailer hasn’t been straightforward. I was especially worried about transporting the doors and windows. Carrying metal roofing by hand is one thing, but doors and windows are heavier, more awkward, and far less forgiving if you slip.
Still, I managed to get four windows and one door up there safely. That felt like a small but important win. There’s just one more door left to haul up.
Once everything is in place, the building finally starts to feel like a proper structure instead of a shell waiting on the weather.
Plans for the Week Ahead
The forecast is showing warmer temperatures this week, which makes a big difference.
The plan is to:
Get back up to the bunkhouse
Install the remaining door and the windows
Start working on the interior siding
Once the doors and windows are installed and the building is closed in, it’ll be much easier to keep working up there—even on days when the cabin is booked. Most of the work will be inside, out of sight, and guests won’t even know I’m there.
That alone should help restore some momentum.
Progress hasn’t stopped—it’s just looked different than I originally planned. And for now, that’s okay.
