Have you ever wanted to go back in time and live life as your ancestors knew it? The Pioneer Homestead offers just that—a farmstay in our off-the-grid vacation rental farmhouse in rural Appalachia. Unplug and heal the family as you step back in time. This trip is not for the faint hearted. WARNING: NO TV, NO RADIO, NO WI-FI, NO HOT TUB, NO MICROWAVE, NO BLOW DRYER. And it gets worse: NO ELECTRIC RANGE, NO ELECTRIC LIGHTS-- NO ELECTRICITY AT ALL! The list of inconveniences goes on… NO A/C (NOT EVEN CEILING FANS), NO AUTOMATIC COFFEE MAKER, NO HOT SHOWER, NO INDOOR PLUMBING! OMG! TURN BACK NOW! No wait…if you want to connect with your kids, or your inner kid, read on…
What the Pioneer Homestead does offer: delicious fresh mountain spring water that runs through the “refrigerator” trough in the magical spring room on the back of the kitchen; a wood-fired cook stove that takes an hour and a half to preheat, but then bakes the best cornbread you’ll ever eat; and a fanciful 2-seater outhouse designed to accommodate both Jack and the Giant, which doubles as a mini-museum of farm artifacts: leave the door open for an inspiring view! Located near the farm’s cold mountain ponds and rushing streams, the Pioneer House also features authentic mountain relics and family heirlooms sure to increase your appreciation of life in the mountains after the Great Depression.
Clearly not for everyone (and that's why we offer two other rental houses with modern amenities on the farm: see them all at WilletPondsFarm.com); the challenge of living before the electronic revolution is daunting for most of us. But it can be immensely rewarding if approached with an attitude of discovery. Step across the threshold of this old house and into the shoes of self-sustaining pioneers living off the grid and off the land. Candles and oil lamps are provided for lighting the night, but you’ll soon understand why your grandparents went to bed at sunset and woke at the crack of dawn. There’s firewood stacked under the stairwell, but cooking on the old stove is both an art and a full-time chore that may take a few meals to master. And if you want to warm the house, you’ll need to keep the wood heat stove burning, too.
In pleasant weather take the fire outside to the summer kitchen, a picnic shelter adjoining a huge stone chimney. A spacious Rumford fireplace for cooking over, a spectacular Old-World pizza & bread oven for taking your baking to the next level, and even a one-of-a-kind smoke chamber if you want to slow cook or preserve your meat or fish—all find their way into this one Marvelous Monstrosity.
How does one get clean while living in a house without a bathroom or shower? The spring trough in the house allows for a quick bird bath, but if you want to get serious clean, enjoy the Banya, or Old World (Russian) bath house, available as an upgrade. Just up the meadow from the home is a jaw-dropping outbuilding with a wood-fired sauna large enough for the whole family. Sweat away the grime and slime while your bath water heats. Enjoy a thrilling cold water plunge in the nearby pond when the heat gets over the top. After bathing, lounge in the loft or sit on the pondside porch and contemplate the serenity of the birds-eye view of the homestead. The heart will find it hard to stop smiling!
In short, this is not your typical vacation rental. And it’s not just about vacationing in an off the grid farmhouse. Rather than living in the Pioneer House while on vacation, living in the Pioneer House may very well BE your vacation. The experience will put the wonder back in wonderful.
Many guests ask if they can ride our horses.
While we are not a riding stable open to the public, we try to accommodate your interests and offer custom trail rides, arena lessons for beginners, and lead line rides for kids. Please let us know in advance if you want to book such horse activity. And you are welcome to join us daily in the workings of the farm: caring for the horses and poultry, gathering eggs, mucking barns, mending fences, and the myriad other real life tasks that making a week on the farm so much more fun than an amusement park.
Sleeps 8 (ask us about accommodating larger groups on this property):
Downstairs Bedroom #1: 1940s deluxe double bed
Downstairs Bedroom #2: 1 1890’s ¾ bed (sleeps 2 small adults) + 1 old-timey child’s bed (narrower & shorter than a twin)
Upstairs Bedroom #1: 1 1930s metal springs double bed w/ futon mattress (limited privacy; ideal for 2 kids)
Upstairs Bedroom #2: 1 1940s double bed
Extra cots available for larger parties, or sleep in the loft of the corn crib (bring sleeping bags)
No Bathroom: the charming outhouse, 18 paces from the house, will be long remembered
Non-smoking
No pets: you’re surrounded by horse pasture and our many farm animals live nearby
No electricity: unplug and heal the family
Extreme peace and quiet in house –refrigerator hum replaced by babble of spring water
Fully equipped 1930s kitchen. Bring a camp stove for convenience cooking
Linens, towels, and paper goods all provided.
Picnic Shelter (summer kitchen) with fireplace & pizza oven
Firewood provided for cooking, heating, and enjoyment
Corn Crib as kid’s Pioneer Playhouse
Cold-water creek and ponds for bathing, swimming, fishing, playing
Access to miles of private hiking trails & rest of farm, just a short walk away.
FAQ'S
Is there a fire hazard living with candlelight?
YES! We’ll be trusting you (and your kids) to manage candles, oil lamps, as well as fires in two stoves. The fire danger is constant and life threatening, and will require your constant oversight.
Is it safe to drink the spring water?
Most likely. Drink at your own risk. Generations of folks in this community have lived on untreated mountain spring water. It has been tested and found not to have common impurities, but naturally has the unharmful bacteria in it that might be found in any living waters. We drink from the spring. We have friends who regularly fill up jugs of it to take home to drink. But that is no guarantee that it won’t affect you adversely.
Does the house need air conditioning in summer?
Maybe. While folks flock to us for our cool summers, short hot spells occur during which one might want A/C in the Pioneer House, or at least ceiling fans. Living through them will deepen your appreciation of what your forefathers experienced, as well as the modern amenities we enjoy. You may think of it like camping or glamping in summer, only the house does provide lovely shade and plenty of windows open to refreshing mountain breezes. Fortunately most summer days here are lovely without climate control.
Will the wood stove keep it warm in winter?
Maybe. You should be comfortable throughout the house during much of winter, but during the coldest spells, you’ll need lots of blankets (provided) to keep warm in the back bedrooms. Sleeping on the day bed in front of the stove will grow in appeal. This was the original meaning of “central heat,” and through practical means brings the family together. Don’t be surprised if you find snow blowing through the cracks of this uninsulated house.
Was there really a movie filmed there?
Yes! The Mountain Minor movie was filmed extensively at Willet Ponds Farm in 2017, and the Pioneer House was used as the main set. It proved to be the perfect depression era farmhouse for the movie, in part because the house had never been altered or updated over the years. The old farmstead provided a backdrop that is increasingly difficult to find these days—a stunning viewshed without any signs of modernity. Watch the movie to deepen your understanding of what it might have been like to live in Appalachia, in the Pioneer House, back then. Then come live in the movie set yourself!
How do we make coffee in the morning?
Ah yes, the vital question… The house does have an antique coffee maker that works quite well. Put in your favorite coffee grounds, and if you can figure out how to get water boiling, pour it in and you’ll be able to enjoy a memorable cup of joe.
Should we bring flashlights?
Imagine waking up on a moonless night and needing to go to the outhouse. You could feel about to find the matches and light a candle lantern to carry with you. But a flashlight might come in handy, too.
Are we allowed to bring and/or use only tools and devices available in the 1930s?
While that may be a fun, educational standard to hold, we’ll allow you to make such rules. You might try to observe that one on your second visit.
Is it true that many people in the developing world still live without electricity?
Indeed it is. A few nights in the Pioneer House might deepen your appreciation of their experience. In vast stretches of the world people read at night by kerosene lantern light. To be honest, it’s not too hard to find people around here who live this way today, mostly by choice.
Who lived in the Pioneer House?
Brother’s Noah and Roby Greer built side by side in the our valley back in the 1930s or 40’s. Roby’s house is now our Old Farmhouse, and Noah’s is this Pioneer House. The Greers lived in the house for 2 generations, the last of them dying in 2004. They did add electricity when that became available circa 1960, but never added plumbing or a bathroom. The house lay abandoned and decaying for a decade, during which the wiring got stripped, stolen, and presumably sold for scrap metal. It came into our hands in 2013, at which point we began the long, slow process of restoration as a historic farm structure.
