off-the-grid Getaway

Building a family retreat in remote Alaska

Story by Jamey Bradbury • Photography by Asenath White of Ana White Omnimedia

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Building a lakeside getaway is challenge enough. Now imagine building such a cabin
off the grid, four hours from the nearest town, with no electricity or bathroom and a
baby in tow.

The obstacles were more than worth it, says Ana White, who, along with her husband, Jacob, designed and built their family’s dream cabin in the Alaska Range on a piece of land they bought pretty much sight unseen, since every inch was covered in deep snow.

“We’re Alaskans, and I think if we didn’t have kids in school or need to be close to town, we’d be living remotely year-round,” Ana explains. “The next best thing is to have an off-the-grid cabin you can escape to.”

Remote challenges

Just hiring someone to build the cabin wasn’t Ana’s style, though. A seasoned carpenter who launched her own DIY woodworking site (anawhite.com), there was no question in her mind that she would design the cabin herself. Meanwhile, the difficulty of getting heavy equipment to such a remote site meant she, her husband and a small crew would hand build this timber frame.

It took six weeks and the help of Valley Saw Mill to create the Sitka spruce beams, all of which had to be hauled to the site, one load at a time, by snow machine – trips that were meticulously planned. They also transported a generator to keep power tools running and had a “blue room” brought in to serve as the bathroom.

“A project like this would be so simple if it were done in town,” Ana says. “Off the grid, it just takes a crazy amount of planning. You can’t just run to the store if you forget something.”

Without the benefit of large equipment, the Whites and their crew raised every beam by hand, battling the cold weather and malfunctioning nail guns. There was little rest: Long days spent putting on the roof system were followed by evenings of camping and feeding the crew.

Baby on board

Ana’s previous experience on job sites was an asset as she made crucial decisions. But it was also her “Achilles heel” because she was more than the project forewoman; she was also a nursing mother.

“There were times when I just couldn’t work,” she shares. Other times, she “wore” her 1-year-old son while she hammered and painted, or bundled him in snow gear and ear protection so he could nap.

The baby, it turned out, was the easy child, logistically speaking. The couple’s nine-year-old daughter was still in school during the build, but driving her back and forth every day was impossible. “She ended up spending most of the week with grandma in town,” describes Ana, who would pick her daughter up for weekends. “Trying to minimize the amount of time she was away from us was very difficult.”

When her daughter was on site, though, she was a mini of her mother: “She painted and helped build the stools in the loft and was a big part of the art table we made. She definitely has a creative voice and insists on being heard.”

Locally minded

Ana has always valued the use of local and reclaimed materials, which is why she opted not to simply order a pre-made timber frame kit. Her design also incorporates locally grown and milled Sitka spruce for flooring and wall planks inside, while on the exterior she used rough-cut spruce siding for a natural look. Foam insulation for the ceiling was brought in from Anchorage.

Relying only on what’s locally available saves on shipping, Ana says, but it also acts as a creative catalyst: “It would have been nice to have beautiful stonework on our cabinets, but not having it means I need to figure out something equally as beautiful. It’s really the Alaskan way. We’re inventive people, always trying to figure out a way to do more with less.” Especially when it came to furnishing the cabin.

Ana built beds, end tables and cabinetry mostly from leftover scrap wood. With a deadline looming over her, she admits, “As the furniture got less important, the projects got simpler and simpler.”

She put together a coffee table for the living room, for example, in about 30 minutes, using only framing studs and leftover siding. Still, the table ended up being one of her favorite pieces.

End results

Originally conceived as two cabins connected by a breezeway, Ana’s design had to evolve as she got to know the site. “Build to suit your property” was one of many lessons learned throughout the build. She took her family’s wish list – a small footprint, two covered decks, access to the lake view – and created a home away from home that looks like it grew from the landscape surrounding it.

Today, the family enjoys every minute they can at their off-the-grid getaway. With a woodstove as the only source of heat, they spend winter visits cooking and baking in the kitchen, where light streams in through a huge window over the sink. Upstairs, a loft is divided into two sleeping areas and a playroom for the kids. Downstairs, the den’s high ceiling gives the cabin a light, airy atmosphere and affords the family breathtaking lake views.

It’s all a little astonishing, even to an accomplished woodworker like Ana. “Every time we walk into that cabin, we still can’t believe we made it,” she marvels, adding that the timber frame beams and woodwork may be her favorite parts of the home.

“Our big goal was to create something we could treasure forever,” she adds.

The final product of the Whites’ hard work is more than a vacation home. It’s a cabin built of memories the family will recall years from now as they sit before the wood stove, remembering the years they spent living off the grid, raising their kids and building the perfect Alaskan cabin.