Food woes and my mighty, home-made rocket stove

My rocket stove, made out of five tin cans, used a minute amount of fuel to cook my dinner.

Adversity is the best impetus for experimentation. A summer of continuous sunshine would have made my off-the-grid summer very easy. So I guess it was a good thing that we've had a couple of weeks of cloudy weather and a fair amount of rain.

Since at least July 11th, after a very long heat spell, we've had primarily overcast days. For me, that means I have to be doubly careful with my electricity use because I don't know when I'll get a good charge in my batteries again. It also makes cooking - and entertaining - very complicated.

Most of the time I have been eating raw food or cooked food that is cold or luke-warm. Unless I plan to have a raw-food dinner I can't invite friends over because I can't count on enough sun to cook for them. A solar cooker is, after all, a slow cooker and requires hours of sun to properly cook food.

If I did manage to cook something, I would cook enough to have leftovers which I would just reheat - which takes less time. Still, putting meat out for two hours in half-hearted sunshine left me with worries of food poisoning - another reason I wouldn't share with friends.

Photo: Agathe Bernard

On the morning of July 18th I was scheduled to give a solar cooking demonstration for our NCES Sustainable Living Committee outside Big Mountain Kitchen. Luckily we had beautiful sunshine for the event and I was able to cook a sizzling sausage stew, accompanied by raspberry smoothies and home-made pesto on spiralized zucchini.

But then the clouds returned, just as I was wrapping up my demonstration.

Sausage stew before cooking at solar cooking demonstration.

Photo: Agathe Bernard

After so many cloudy days, I was beginning to feel a bit sorry for myself and was madly looking for options. On rainy, cloudy days it's nice to enjoy a hot dish or a hot cup of tea.

My family and friends have been wonderful. They continue to invite me over for hot meals. Applying the potluck rule, I bring a dish - often a Greek or tomato salad as the tomatoes and cucumbers in my garden are plentiful.




I began to experiment with quick-cook options. I was able to make an almost-cooked quinoa dish in two hours of sunshine one morning. I topped that with some tinned mussles, feta cheese and tomato for dinner and it was delicious.

The next day we had an hour and a half of sunshine around noon. I whipped up some eggs with onions from the garden, cheese, peppers and herbs and had a delicious and fully-cooked omelet.

In the meantime I researched every alternative to cooking with solar or fossil fuels (see below) that I could find.

I found the website instructables.com to be very helpful. There were several items that explained how to produce biogas that can fuel a small stove using compost and cow manure (I would use horse manure as that is more readily available). The process takes about 10 days but I would happily eat cold, raw food if I could accomplish that!

The downside is that it doesn't seem to produce much gas and it seems to be better suited to warmer climates. If it were warm here, I'd be using solar. Unless I become very desperate it doesn't seem to be practical for my project.

I also researched other ways of generating electricity such as using a biolite campstove to trickle-charge my phone or building a bicycle- or wind-powered electrical generator. The latter two would help me charge my appliances but they wouldn't help my cooking situation. The biolite requires small amounts of wood (see below) and I need more electricity than it would likely provide.

My cousin, Heather, has been researching fuel-efficient cooking technologies. She mentioned the rocket stove, which uses very little fuel. I like the idea of experimenting with low-fuel cooking techniques, although it meant adjusting my rules a little to allow fire for cooking.

I found instructions for a rocket stove made out of five tin cans on instructables.com. I was able to get an empty big can from the deli section of Cooper's Foods. I raided my neighbour's recycling bag for the other four cans. The latter cans were slightly bigger than those mentioned on instructables, but it was what I had and it worked.

But there was a problem. After a long heat spell the fire hazard rating in much of southern BC is high. In our area, the Southeast region, there is currently a ban on open fires and campfires. I was sure that my rocket stove was safe, especially after so much rain, but would it be permitted? I have a nice stone patio close to a hose bib so I had a good, safe set-up but I also didn't want to break the rules with a public project.

I phoned the fire department to find out if I could use the stove and the answer was no. According to the assistant fire chief, "The prohibition does not apply to cooking stoves that use gas, propane briquettes, or to a portable campfire apparatus with a CSA or ULC rating that uses briquettes, liquid gaseous fuel, so long as the height of the flame is less than 15 centimeters. The use of any apparatus that does not meet these specifications is prohibited."

This means people have no legal options to fossil fuels except briquettes; home-made stoves seem to be out of the question. In my mind, this discourages experimentation and innovation, something we need right now as we try to adapt to climate change.

I'm not inclined to use charcoal briquettes as they are much more process and polluting than what I am proposing. However, the thought of manufacturing briquettes out of waste material is appealing. I might pursue that.

Anyway, after I told my friend Maria-Lynn, that the fire department vetoed my stove, she said she had recently come back from volunteering with a 'Learn to Camp' program with Parks Canada at Mount Revelstoke National Park, right next to our town. She mentioned that the fire hazard rating in the park is low.

It is just a short hike up Mount Revelstoke to the national park and I could just taste the sausages I would soon be cooking.

I phoned Parks Canada and even brought my stove to their reception. The response was
enthusiastic and soon I headed back home with my stove in hand and official confirmation that I could use it at a fire pit in the park.

My dad and I up Mount Revelstoke, probably in the early 1980s.

I packed dinner for three and invited my friends Maria Lynn and Marc to join me for a meal up at the Monashee cabin and lookout. The stove, which is insulated by sand, weighs just over six pounds so the pack, with food and stove, was fairly heavy.

It was an hour-long walk up the mountain to the cabin, up a beautiful trail, past where we scattered my father's ashes only two months ago. Dad and I had walked that trail together so many times that it felt like he was joining me on my adventure.

Unfortunately I had forgotten that the road up Mount Revelstoke closes at 4:30. My friends never managed to join me, despite their valiant efforts. Still, I got to try out my rocket stove and that, and the beautiful view was well worth the hike. Ironically, this was one of the few sunny evenings and I could have cooked at home with my solar cooker.





The rocket stove was really interesting. It uses very little fuel. To say that I used kindling as fuel would exaggerate the size of the wood. I brought up two tiny scraps of wood and some newspaper. I was able to gather some twig-sized pieces of wood at the cabin. I found that if I pushed more than two small pieces of wood into the stove the fire would go out. With this first effort, it did not burn as hot as I hoped but it cooked my sausages and bacon with very little fuel. (Here I am showing a before and after shot of the fuel consumed).

My rocket stove before I lit it.

As I walked down the mountainside the moon was out and the view was spectacular. Despite the hike and relatively heavy load for a simple dinner, I felt that my experiment was well worth it.

I don't think my rocket stove constitutes an 'open fire.' When the pot is on it there is no flame to be seen. I hope that some day soon I'll be able to use it in my back yard.

The moon was shining on my way down and the view of Mount Begbie was spectacular!

Changing habits: Lifestyle and energy use

My neighbour, 96-year-old John Augustyn, still splits his wood and piles it neatly for the winter.

My 96-year-old neighbour, John Augustyn, has a beautiful vegetable garden. By mid-July his sunflowers and cucumber vines reach well above our heads. His trees are heavy with fruit: apples, pears and plums. Cherries, strawberries, raspberries and peas are done. Tomatoes and beans are ripening. His endives are planted in preparation for the fall and winter. 

A huge stack of wood is piled neatly under the spruce tree by his driveway. Each piece stripped of bark and limbs and cut precisely 16 inches long. John’s family helps out a lot, but John does the lion's share of splitting and stacking the wood.

John is the last remaining World War II veteran in our town and he is happy to tell stories of his many narrow escapes. Almost every day, once the ground is clear of snow, he is out in his garden, weeding, watering, planting and harvesting. He doesn’t waste anything: if a rake handle breaks or a chainsaw breaks down he tries to fix it. He uses repurposed electrical cable to tie up his plants. He moves slowly but with purpose and he gets a tremendous amount done.

By contrast, my life has felt very rushed and complicated. Juggling several jobs and volunteer activities, caring for aging parents and building and renovating several houses while trying to spend quality time with family and friends, I have found myself jumping in my car and dashing from place to place. I always seem to be carrying something heavy or just needing to make every minute count and my car has been my default form of transportation.

I live in a small, compact mountain town with a population of about 8,000 people. Most places can be reached by bicycle within five or ten minutes. I have also been active for several years with our local environmental organization, the North Columbia Environmental Society, and I’m very concerned about climate change.

I know we need to curb our use of fossil fuels significantly. Why, then, was I jumping into my car every time I needed to go somewhere? If I am not cutting back on my energy use, what hope is there that others, who may be less concerned, will do what is needed to help prevent a climate disaster?

I began to look at my other habits. I often turn on lights in my house even in the daytime when I can see well without them. I turn on the computer and then leave to do other things. I leave the radio on all day, even when I’m away from home. And I use hot water much more than I need to – another default.

Food is another area of waste. In the spring I often over-plant my garden and then find I don’t have time to harvest it all – not even to give it away. My fridge is often far too full and too often I find produce that I bought on impulse, with visions of a wonderful dish that I would make, spoiling in the bottom of my crisper.

I notice that when I’m in a rush I spend more on groceries and often buy things that I already have. As a result, my cupboards are jam-packed with food.

The same situation goes with the rest of my ‘stuff.’ After my parents passed away earlier this year, I inherited their belongings and I have a lot of my own that I have collected over a lifetime: books, travel souvenirs, dishes with sentimental attachment, and stationary, art supplies and tools that just might be useful one day. The ongoing challenge of dealing with my family’s and my own possessions was taking up far too much time and energy.

When I looked at my lifestyle I could see the connection between rushing around wasting – wasting energy of all sorts, including my own physical energy. Watching my neighbour work steadily in his garden with such wonderful results, I wondered what my life would be like if I changed my habits, slowed down, and acted more deliberately.

Changing habits

My off-the-grid challenge is helping me come to terms with my habits that lead to wasted energy. Here I will share six changed or changing habits that are, for the most part, saving me time and energy.

Change #1: Stop turning on lights during the day

I started with the simple changes. Even before the project started I stopped turning on lights in the daytime. This was an easy habit to break. I had built my house with nice, big windows. There was no need for extra light when the curtains were open during the day. I only needed to close the curtains or blinds for privacy while changing or to shade the room from intense sunlight. There was always enough light to see comfortably.

Change #2: Stop driving and start biking and walking

Keystone meadows in full bloom, looking back at Mount Begbie
in the distance.

This was one of my worst habits but the change has not been that hard. Once I told myself that using the car was not an option, I adapted quickly to hopping on my bike. I was driving because I'd get places faster but I'm not noticing much difference. Quite often I'm faster on a bike because I don't have to find a parking spot.

I do miss my car when I want to carry heavy things or go longer distances. I always have several projects on the go - like building a flagstone patio at the back of my house. I need to gather some flagstones so I'm looking at getting a bike trailer for larger loads. As I clean out my house, a trailer is also useful for hauling things to the thrift shop or to the recycling depot.

Paint brushes, arnica, anemone and lupins in full bloom on
the Keystone and Standard Basin trail north of Revelstoke.

I have given myself a budget of two car rides a month. I confess that I have borrowed one of my August rides as visitors have come through town and the meadows on our mountaintops are in full bloom. I could not resist joining friends on hikes during the peak of flower season.

 Change #3: Stop being reactive, commit less and plan my days and weeks

When life becomes so busy, I often find myself running around all day and never feeling caught up. Life feels like a race with no ending. So I take short-cuts like driving and buying items because I'm not sure where they are at home. Because I'm rushed, I often forget things and have to make two trips when I could have made one. I'm pretty sure that my neighbour, John Augustyn, doesn't do this.

This project has forced me to plan my days, putting the big and routine things first. I still juggle several contracts but have started to plan my weeks and days so that I'm working on a set project at a set time. I have also started to cut down on my volunteer commitments, doing only what suits my time and interests. This has given me more time to work on my own projects at home or just to read or relax, something I haven't done for a while.

Because I'm cooking by the sun I need to look at the weather forecast so that I can plan my meals well in advance and have a Plan B in case the sun is not out enough. This has been a change and it's not been easy. Cooking exclusively by the sun - other than raw food - has complicated my life. I am working on finding another option.

Change #4: Focus more and turn off appliances when not in use

For this off-the-grid project I deliberately kept my energy production and storage light so that I would experience the energy that I'm using, not take it for granted. With only a 250-watt solar panel and a 12-volt battery I often can't charge my laptop and other small appliances and I always need to keep my small fridge running. 

This has made me very aware of the electrical energy I use. As I write this, I only have 32% of my laptop battery left, the alarm on my solar system went off when I tried to charge it, indicating that I'm very low on power, and it's a cloudy day with no promise of sunshine. 

That means that I need to be very careful about the power I use. I no longer leave my laptop on to do other things. If I'm writing or working on my laptop then that's all that I'm doing. 

I have also become strategic with my appliances. I have discovered that my iPad consumes much less energy because it has fewer programs running in the background. It has become my radio (my solar radio won't run on days like this) and my computer, where I check e-mails and compose articles before I transfer them over to my laptop. I bought a little keyboard that connects wirelessly to my iPad and that works well. My manual typewriter is my ultimate back-up for writing.

Change #5: Get into the habit of reducing possessions

My house is 916 square feet plus I have a workshop, cool room and storage room in the basement. That should be plenty for all my possessions. But over the years, I have accumulated a lot of 'stuff' and I inherited my parents' belongings. 

Over the past year, and especially the past two months since my father passed away, I have made good progress in getting rid of things and using things up, with the help of my sister, Krista, and other family members. We have a good thrift shop in town and a good recycling system.

I find that I'm spending less time looking for things now. I have almost everything that I need and if I buy anything then I have a rule that I must get rid of something or things at least twice the size of the item I bought.

I have also given myself quotas. My mother saved almost every jar that came into the house. I have decided to save only canning jars with set sizes of lids. I enjoy canning but I only need so many jars so I set myself a limit: 40 of one size; 30 of another; and 10 spice jars. That's more than enough.

Change #6: Timing: Working with the elements

Similar to my changed habit of not turning on lights during the day, I'm trying to pay attention to the elements and time of day when I plan activities. I have long used the unheated back porch as a refrigerator in the winter and dried my laundry outside when the sun is hot. Cooking with solar heat makes me plan my meals according to the sun and I can see myself eventually moving toward a mid-day cooked meal because that's when the sun is hottest.

Using solar energy, I seem to be able to charge my appliances better during the day, after the sun has been shining a few hours, than at night or first thing in the morning. I'm not sure why that is if my battery is not full but it seems to be the case. By paying attention to this, I can get more out of my electronic appliances.

I'm only just beginning to explore the ways we can adapt our routines to work with the elements rather than using technology to overcome the elements. 

*  *  *

Almost half way into my off-the-grid summer, I'm finding that these six habits are saving me both physical and other forms of energy. My set-up isn't ideal for perfect comfort but I continue to putter (I'm building myself a rocket stove and bringing in some new lights) and tweak my experiences.

I think many people can identify with my experience of leading a rushed and reactive life. Perhaps some of these habits might lead to the slow and purposeful life I observe in my neighbour.

The dreaded task: laundry

Photo: BR Whalen

One of my least favorite tasks is washing laundry by hand. I have lived at least five years of my life without access to washing machines - in various parts of Africa, India and Nepal - and I have never gotten used to hand-washing. Usually I employed someone locally to wash laundry for me but quite often I did it myself and my fingers feel chafed just thinking of it.

Now, here I am again without a washing machine. What should I do?

I pulled out the book called Practical Projects for Self-Sufficiency by Chris Peterson and Philip Schmidt, the one that had the instructions for the solar cooker, and found instructions for making a manual washing machine. It had a hand-pump and it just might work.

I showed my friend, Lawrence Davies, the picture and he called me up the next day ready to start the project. With friends like Lawrence and his wife Sherrin I can't procrastinate! Besides, it was still June and I could still use power tools so there was no delaying the project.

Between us, we found all the lumber and bolts needed, I bought a bucket with a lid at Home Hardware and we were ready to go. We set up operations in Lawrence's carport and brought the tools out from his workshop under the porch. There was a sign on the door that said 'Mancave' and I was honoured to be allowed in. Lawrence was hopping along with his foot in a cast but that didn't stop him one bit.

Let me be clear. I may be going off the grid for a summer but I love power tools. Since helping with the construction of my house four years ago I have learned the value of having the right tool for the job and getting work done fast. Lawrence has an an amazing Shopsmith multi-tool in his workshop that dates back to the 1950s or 1960s. It runs a table saw, a bandsaw and an air compressor that can be turned into a drill press. "My wife thought it would be the most wonderful tool that I could ever have and she was right," he said.

Lawrence's wife, Sherrin prepared us a delicious lunch and plenty of cool
drinks for a very hot day. She also shared her delicious no-cook breakfast
recipes from the days when the couple ran a bed and breakfast.

Photo: BR Whalen

The night before my project started I did a big load of laundry. I held out for as long as I could but within a week, well, the laundry had to happen. The washer works ok but there are still clothes that need to be washed on my Grannie's old-fashioned scrub board.

Drying clothes on a wooden clothes drying rack is no problem for me as I don't own a drier; that's how I always dry my clothes. One difference is that I hang the clothes dripping wet and let them drip for a while before bringing the rack in, if necessary.

Thanks Lawrence and Sherrin. And thanks Grannie. I'll bet you never thought this would ever come back into use.

The dreaded task: laundry

Photo: BR Whalen

One of my least favorite tasks is washing laundry by hand. I have lived at least five years of my life without access to washing machines - in various parts of Africa, India and Nepal - and I have never gotten used to hand-washing. Usually I employed someone locally to wash laundry for me but quite often I did it myself and my fingers feel chafed just thinking of it.

Now, here I am again without a washing machine. What should I do?

I pulled out the book called Practical Projects for Self-Sufficiency by Chris Peterson and Philip Schmidt, the one that had the instructions for the solar cooker, and found instructions for making a manual washing machine. It had a hand-pump and it just might work.

I showed my friend, Lawrence Davies, the picture and he called me up the next day ready to start the project. With friends like Lawrence and his wife Sherrin I can't procrastinate! Besides, it was still June and I could still use power tools so there was no delaying the project.

Between us, we found all the lumber and bolts needed, I bought a bucket with a lid at Home Hardware and we were ready to go. We set up operations in Lawrence's carport and brought the tools out from his workshop under the porch. There was a sign on the door that said 'Mancave' and I was honoured to be allowed in. Lawrence was hopping along with his foot in a cast but that didn't stop him one bit.

Let me be clear. I may be going off the grid for a summer but I love power tools. Since helping with the construction of my house four years ago I have learned the value of having the right tool for the job and getting work done fast. Lawrence has an an amazing Shopsmith multi-tool in his workshop that dates back to the 1950s or 1960s. It runs a table saw, a bandsaw and an air compressor that can be turned into a drill press. "My wife thought it would be the most wonderful tool that I could ever have and she was right," he said.

Lawrence's wife, Sherrin prepared us a delicious lunch and plenty of cool
drinks for a very hot day. She also shared her delicious no-cook breakfast
recipes from the days when the couple ran a bed and breakfast.

Photo: BR Whalen

The night before my project started I did a big load of laundry. I held out for as long as I could but within a week, well, the laundry had to happen. The washer works ok but there are still clothes that need to be washed on my Grannie's old-fashioned scrub board.

Drying clothes on a wooden clothes drying rack is no problem for me as I don't own a drier; that's how I always dry my clothes. One difference is that I hang the clothes dripping wet and let them drip for a while before bringing the rack in, if necessary.

Thanks Lawrence and Sherrin. And thanks Grannie. I'll be you never thought this would ever come back into use.

Reality hits

July 8, 2015

7:15 a.m. I've been up since before 6:00 and realize that I have arrived at my true off-the-grid experience. My various batteries, which have given me a cushion so far, are very low, if not dead.

My laptop needs charging but, when I plugged it into the inverter, an alarm went off. I hastily unplugged it and turned off the inverter as it drains power.

My 12-volt fridge is running only sporadically. My cell phone is at 40% battery. I realized I left five programs running in the background of my phone, which drains the battery faster. Darn! I shut them off, went to 'settings' and turned off the wireless feature. I make a mental note to research cell phone battery use.

My lovely little solar radio lost its charge two days ago. I have been using the hand-crank which gives me a few minutes of radio before I need to wind it again. The manual said that one minute of winding gives about seven minutes of radio. A full charge is 100 minutes of winding or 11-15 hours of strong sunlight. I'll leave it in the sun when I go to work today.

At 7:15 I put my oatmeal with raisins in the solar cooker - just as soon as the sun hit the ground. I have to be at work at 9:00 so I hope it will be cooked in time. I notice that the sun is not as intense in the early morning so breakfast cooks slower.

On July 2, the day after I waxed lyrical in this blog about my delicious French toast covered with raspberries, I made French toast again. But this time I had to be at work by 9:00. I put the egg-soaked bread in the solar cooker at 7:30 but it was only 2/3 cooked when I pulled it out of the cooker at 8:40. I smothered it in rhubarb stew (solar cooked in my first solar experiment) and it wasn't bad. I made it to work on time anyway.

My grandmother, Agatha Barraud, in 1929.

Unable to charge my laptop and wanting to work on the blog, I pulled out my grandmother's 1920s Remington typewriter which I haven't used since I left Botswana. I typed many letters on this typewriter in my hut by candlelight after Grannie gave it to me - delivered by my parents during a visit. I love the clack, clack, clack of the keys. Somehow those keys seem to bring more clarity to my writing.

This is me in my first house in Kang, Botswana in 1991. I bought a manual typewriter in Gaborone, the capital until my parents arrived for a visit with Grannie's typewriter. I don't know if you can see that I have a chicken sitting on my left arm. Cosmo, The Wonder Chick, liked to sit on my hands as I typed. I would put him on my shoulder and he invariably would end up perching on my head as I typed. I guess it was a good compromise.

July 9 updates

The oatmeal never did cook on time and I'm really starting to pay attention to the time of day that I cook.

The solar radio works very well if I just make sure it's out in the sun most of the day when I'm not using it.

My hot water strategy for dishes and showers - hanging a black solar-heated shower bag in the sun - is working splendidly. Most days I can enjoy a hot shower by carrying the heated bag to a hook in my shower. On cloudy days I'll simply have a bucket bath, which is refreshing in this heat.

Today's challenge: laundry. Stay tuned.

Camping with the sun

Showing off a cheese melt with salami, home-grown tomatoes and cheese melted on top.

Photo: Tuulikki Tennant

Last weekend my friends Cindy and Tuulikki went camping north of Revelstoke. We had been planning this trip for more than a year but something always came up. I couldn't let my summer project make us postpone it again. That was one motivation for having a budget of two car rides (return) a month.

Even though we took Cindy's vehicle, this still counted as one ride. Carpooling is always better than driving alone but it still consumes fossil fuels.

View from campsite.

We had a wonderful, private campsite by the lake and within view of a stunning glacier and the iconic Frenchman's Cap peak.

Unfortunately, there is a campfire ban in place due to the extremely dry conditions. Though I couldn't have cooked over a fire, a campfire is always a treat.

As it turned out, all the meals I enjoyed were fossil-fuel free - except one coffee, which I rationalized using the pot luck rule. Cindy prepared a lovely first dinner with Greek salad and locally-made, cold sausages.

I made us cheese melts for lunch - local bread topped with salami and tomatoes from my garden with melted cheese on top. We found that putting a dark metal dish in my solar oven bowl worked well for making several sandwiches at once. They took about 20 minutes to cook and then we topped them with fresh slices of cucumber from my garden.

Raspberry smoothie.

Smoothies made from raspberries from my garden, yogurt, milk and a dash of maple syrup were a special treat. I mixed it in a nifty hand blender/food processor that I'm finding to be very useful.

The spiralizer turns any hard vegetable into spaghetti-like strands. The vegetables can be tossed with any sauce.

For dinner I made a sausage stew with almost all local ingredients: chopped onions and sausage from the farmer's market, and tomatoes and herbs from my garden from my garden. I think there was a pepper from the store. I let it all cook for about 4 hours in the solar cooker until the flavour was nice and rich. I did worry during the last hour when we had a bit of cloud cover but it was well cooked by the time we ate it.

Sausage stew and zucchini with pesto.

I served it with a spiralized zucchini dish, smothered in home-made pesto and chunks of walnuts from Cindy's tree.










For breakfast, Tuulikki prepared muesli for me. The night before she mixed oats, vanilla yogurt and dried fruit and nuts. By the next morning it was a delicious oatmeal treat.

I had my infused coffee both mornings, though I must confess that I accepted one hot coffee, cooked on the propane stove, on Sunday. Thank heavens for my potluck rule.

*  *  *

On Sunday we headed up to the Keystone Valley which is always spectacular. The meadows are full of wildflowers: rhododendrons, paint brushes, asters, arnica and anenome are visible well before their usual grand display. They will be at their peak in about two weeks.

The first time I hiked in this region the flowers were at their peak the first weekend of September.

With the haze in the air from forest fires and the unseasonably early wildflowers we talk about climate change as we hike those beautiful trails.

Tuulikki and I are well covered because the horse flies and mosquitoes were

plentiful.

Photo: Cindy Pearce

Day 1

Last night I switched off the electrical panel in my house. I came upstairs just as the last light of dusk faintly lit my kitchen. This is how my evenings will be unless I figure out some lighting for my kitchen and bathroom that fits within the strict parameters I set for myself.

It was almost 10:00. My off-the-grid project had not quite started so I lit a candle - forbidden under my project rules - and enjoyed the last bath of the summer. For the next two months it will be sun-heated showers or bucket baths, depending on the weather. I turned on the electric radio and sank into the bath, enjoying the flickering light in the small, dark room.

Candles are so beautiful. Do I really want to deprive myself of this lovely luxury all summer? Yes, I've lived by candlelight for a whole year in my hut in the Kalahari Desert in Botswana. As lovely as it was, it's time to move on and take on new challenges. I unplug the radio, pick up the candle, and put them both away.

My off-the-grid summer has begun.

*  *  *

I woke up to a beautiful, sunny day. I poured myself an infused coffee - something suggested by my sister, Krista. Just put a cup of coarsely ground coffee in a jar and add 4 1/2 cups of water. Let it sit for 24 hours and you have a rich and fragrant cup of coffee. 

Before I went out to the garden I cut up some French bread that had gone dry, dipped three slices in a bowl with two beaten eggs. I let the bread soak and be fully covered and then I popped the bread into my solar cooker to cook while I worked in the garden.

One more early-morning task was to fill two solar shower bags with water and hang them in the sun. They will be nice and warm when I want them for a shower and washing dishes in the evening.

As my breakfast cooked, I headed out to the garden to putter and harvest. The raspberries, peas and even a few tomatoes are ready to be picked. 

After an hour in the garden my breakfast is ready. Solar cooking is slow cooking and it is forcing me to slow down. For someone who is always rushing, that is a very good thing.

Happy Canada Day!