(Don't ask exactly where-the Jungwirths won't tell you.)īut they had to make some compromises along the way. The pair's labor paid off: They saved up enough to get married and buy 40 acres of land in the rugged hills west of Marquette. He met Victoria, a native of the U.K., on a farm in downstate Michigan, then spent the next few years bouncing from organic farm to organic farm on both sides of the Atlantic. That was more than three decades ago, and he hasn't looked back.
![off grid homestead off grid homestead](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/7c/22/57/7c225748981ac94ee64d4fb5e193eed1.jpg)
"I couldn't wait to get out of high school so I could get out here and build a life."
![off grid homestead off grid homestead](http://www.ecosnippets.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/off-grid-pallet-wood-homestead.jpg)
"It's all I ever wanted to do," says John Jungwirth, a former Detroiter who lives in the bush of northwestern Marquette County with Victoria, his wife. And though they're keen on protecting their privacy and living as close to the land as possible, these folks are happy to share their stories. Recent advances in communications and energy production, in particular, have made it easier for those who choose to live off the grid to do so in relative comfort, without sacrificing the social contacts most people find essential. And though selfies and social media are just as much a part of life for most Yoopers as for New Yorkers and Californians, one glance out at the big lake or into the woods lets us know where we stand.įor a hardy few, though, technology and nature actually go hand in hand. From majestic Tahquamenon Falls to the lofty Porcupine Mountains, this is one of the few remaining parts of the country where nature dictates the terms of human activity. In the U.P., one doesn't have to venture far to be reminded of humanity's insignificance.