Glamping Adventure
They have huckleberries. They also have tents. Cozy, canvas-walled tents with wood stoves, planked wood floors, screens to keep the bugs out, feather (yes, feather) filled mattress toppers on their queen size beds, campfire sites, extra tent pads, permanent camping kitchens at every site and quaint outhouses. Yep, you read that right. You can’t glamp without an outhouse. You’ll get bragging rights for using the outdoor showers. They’re a thing of beauty.
Timothy and Christine Dick, owners of Huckleberry Tent and Breakfast, live an alternative energy lifestyle six miles east of the small town of Clark Fork, Idaho. They live completely off the grid, growing as much of their own food as possible, storing food for winter months and raising and butchering their own meat. The garden produce is available for campers to sample during their stay.
They enjoy the fruits of their labor on their land and want to share their lifestyle with those interested, to show everyone it is possible to live, comfortably, I might add, without traditional electricity.
Their solar system was purchased a short distance away in Sandpoint, and as you drive up to their main house, you can see the solar panels on the roof of the house and nearby shed. They’re more than happy to invite you into their home to see the battery bank and electrical system housed under the stairs. They don’t do without modern conveniences. They have Internet, and maintain a website for their Tent and Breakfast. Just go to www.huckleberrytentandbreakfast.com to check it out. They regularly update their Facebook page with camping conditions and the latest fruits of their labor. They liken it to a modern-day Little House on the Prairie.
Not wanting to sacrifice their simple lifestyle led them on their Tent and Breakfast adventure. Christine Dick explained how their business came about as we meandered down the groomed trails to the three tent sites. They are passionate about sharing with visitors why they live they way they do. They bought bare land and began building in 1992, literally bushwhacking a clearing for what would later be their beautiful, landscaped front yard and impressive garden area where you will enjoy your breakfasts as you camp with them.
The tent sites themselves are hand-crafted with care by the couple. They are open as soon as the snow melts and stay open into the fall. Next to every tent is an old-fashioned camp kitchen, with everything you need to cook for yourself. There is even a system to heat water for the outdoor shower.
From here, you can hike, plan a canoe or kayak trip off-site on the Clark Fork River or Lake Pend Oreille, or just meander through the forest at will, picking wild berries and enjoying some of the most beautiful parts of North Idaho. After staying a night at Huckleberry Tent and Breakfast, you might start to yearn for something a little more simple, as you experience the peace and tranquility of nature and go back to a simpler way of life, if even for a short time.
