Back to the Land Thirty Years Later...

When you think you have reached the wilderness, go 30 miles beyond. On the banks of Lake Imagination (a mowed hay field bordered by northern deciduous woodlands) Gwen and W Hall care for their 60 acres of paradise.

In 1981, concerned with the impending water shortage in the southwest, they quit their jobs with the Southern Pacific Railroad, sold their home and headed north. They were going “back to the land,” fully intending to purchase Gwen’s family farm in the middle of, yes, nowhere, and earn their living by growing and selling food. Now, 30 years later, they are still there but for different reasons.

“We love it here!” Gwen’s face glows with health and happiness. W, born and raised in Tucson, echoes her sentiments. With the exception of a few luxuries, like coffee and bananas, they grow and preserve their own food. Meat and eggs come from cousin Jane’s farm about 4 miles down the road. Wheat is purchased from the Farm Service Coop. They grind their own flour for whole wheat bread. Their home is a peaceful oasis in the midst of hundreds of acres of woods and prairie.

Rain barrels collect water from roof runoff to keep the gardens hydrated. A greenhouse extends the growing season by months. The tomato bushes look like small trees.

Mystified by the sheer numbers I asked, “W, why do you need so many tomatoes?” He looked at me with raised eyebrows, “Salsa!” He may live in Minnesota, but W’s salsa is wicked hot and most of the local Scandinavians simply wave a chip over the fumes and swear it still burns the tongue!

The Hall’s are part of a loose-knit community of neighbors who tend to stop by unannounced for coffee and are always ready to help if something breaks. And speaking of neighbors, they are not what you may expect. Among them is a psychiatric nurse, a pipefitter, an aeronautical engineer, a research scientist with her PhD, "and the families of farmers and loggers who have managed their land for generations," injects Gwen.

Perhaps this is a blueprint for our future. We don’t have to go to the wilderness, however. We can create community in our own neighborhoods. Gwen emphasized the importance of community. “You have to get to know your neighbors. People working as a group can accomplish so much more that one person who tries to do it all alone.”

That’s why MN350 is organizing Sept. 24th as a day when we come together as a group on the State Capitol grounds to let our lawmakers know that we mean business. We need to move beyond fossil fuels. We need to energize the planet with renewable resources and stop drawing on a dwindling supply of oil. We need to show them that we aren’t just one person…that we are many and we want change.



The southern exposure is a wall of glass for passive solar gain.



A screened breezeway is cool even on the steamiest days.