Uprooted, an eco/travel blog

Madrid, New Mexico: found-art haven, reborn ghost town, and the most photogenic place I’ve ever visited.

So, in my last entry I showed you what a viga run looks like. But there’s plenty I didn’t show you! Including the fact that the entire escapade took place at R.E.A.C.H., the original Earthship community founded in 1989.

R.E.A.C.H. (or “Rural Earthship Alternative Community Habitat” if you favor flavor over brevity) is a PRIVATE community, [...]

Groundhog, originally uploaded by WelshTart

As it turns out, Groundhog Day and today’s Catholic holiday Candlemas were both preceded by the pagan holiday Imbolc, also referred to as St. Brigid’s Day. That’s right, today is an ancient holiday. I’m not much for sacred days, but the pagan ones are usually worth paying attention to: they generally [...]

No two ways about it, good firewood is the most important thing you can have up here. When it gets down to 20 degrees each night and never fully thaws during the day, even a well-built house doesn’t keep you warm— and few things are more frustrating than spending three hours trying to nurse a [...]