Life off grid
Whether you’re attending a workshop here on the farm or are just looking for a weekend away, we offer a variety of accommodations in our unique off grid cabins and cottages, privately located within a 140 acre forest and permaculture farm.
Our off grid accommodations include solar power, high-speed wifi, hot showers, and private kitchen facilities. Cottages are equipped with full kitchens, wood cookstoves, propane stoves, and full bathrooms with hot showers. Cabins are more basic and include small wood stoves, propane stove, privy and bed. In the summer months, baskets of farm-fresh produce are also available. See availability below.
Ironwood Cottage
2 adults, Fundy views
Privately located within our off grid homesteading community, we offer our guests a unique wilderness experience. At the top of the North Mountain, this off grid cottage features locally milled timber and stone construction, wood cookstove, and panoramic sunset views over the Bay of Fundy.
Soak in the tranquil sights and sounds from this cozy mountain perch. Located in a dark-sky preserve, star gazing is second to none. 140 acres of private forest, brookside sauna, and Snow Lake are yours to explore. Local hiking trails, waterfalls, lakes, Valleyview Provincial Park, Hampton Beach and lighthouse nearby.
Stay at Snow Lake Keep
Food & Cooking
Let us know ahead of time and we can arrange a basket of fresh, seasonal produce, chicken and duck eggs, farm-made goat cheeses (chèvre, feta, cheddar) and other seasonal farm produce.
If you’ve ever prepared a meal with a wood-fired stove, you’ll know what a pleasure they can be to use. Our cottages are equipped with Amish-designed cookstoves with ample cooking surface and capable ovens. All accommodations are equipped with small propane stoves. A cooler is provided along with ice for refrigeration in the warmer months, and there is a solar-powered chest freezer on site as well.
Washrooms
Some guests chuckle at our farm composting toilets but soon see the beauty of restoring their connection to the nutrient cycle! Composted ‘humanure’ is used to enrich flowerbeds and fallow crop areas on the farm.
Some cottages feature hot shower facilities. In the warmer months, bathing is often a swim in on of the nearby a lakes.
Power, Lighting & Wifi
Snow Lake Keep is a solar-powered community, capable of supporting reasonable day-to-day use including device and laptop charging and lighting. Cabins are outfitted with (warm) LED lighting throughout. For evening outdoor adventures, we recommend you bring a headlamp or flashlight.
Several Snow Lake Keep residents work online and off grid internet is important to us. A capable wifi mesh network provides high speed satellite internet coverage across the farm and in all cabins. This connection is shared by all residents, and while speed varies with demand, it is generally ample enough to carry multiple bandwidth-heavy tasks like video calls and streaming. Note that cell signal is very limited so guests are encouraged to enable wifi calling on their device during their stay.
A few things to keep in mind
Although our cabins are tucked away in the trees, they are never far from the sights and sounds of farm life — the distant ringing of the bells worn by our goats, rooster calls, and from time to time, small powered machinery. Cabin sites include private outdoor space and your stay can be as private or as engaged in farm activities as you wish.
Wood heat is generally needed during the colder months, from late September to early May. Firewood is provided, as well as a splitting axe for kindling. A knowledge of wood stoves is ideal, but we can accommodate various levels of self-reliance during your stay.
Off the farm
Explore the magical Bay of Fundy, a five-minute drive down the mountain. We are also within a short drive of historic Annapolis Royal, with shops, restaurants, museums, public gardens, and the beautiful Annapolis Royal farmer’s market every Saturday morning.
Located within a short distance of Kejimkujik Park, a designated Dark Sky Preserve, stargazing is second to none. Local hiking and cycling trails, look-off points, waterfalls, and freshwater swimming lakes are all nearby.