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Ever since Mike and I “discovered” this rural section of southern Colorado in 2013, we’ve been wondering why others aren’t moving here. Come to find out, they are! The realtors in the La Veta area and here in Walsenburg are having record months lately. And why not? The beauty of this place in spring is astounding!
Also, as the county has begun to allow more marijuana grow operations, business has certainly picked up. In fact, we should have quite a few more jobs here in the next few years, and they should pay well.
At present this county is such a mix of welfare cases and hard-working families, rundown and well-kept homes. But the homes west of Walsenburg have fantastic mountain views, and with land and home prices so reasonable at present, I cannot imagine that it won’t grow quickly.
Since moving to Huerfano County in southern Colorado last June, I have heard various references to the Libre Community, established here in the late 1960s as an alternative to traditional American life. Some call it a hippie commune, but Libre is a community of families or individuals who have been invited to build their own homes. These structures as well as the land they are built can never be sold. Which is why Libre has endured since 1968 while the communes of northern New Mexico and southern Colorado are long gone. New members were required to build their own homes and then homes were traded between members as needed.
We enjoyed her hospitality, wonderful stories and a cup of tea on her back patio while looking at tremendous views of the distant mountains. She referred to her bird feeder as her television as they have no TV or Internet up there, and the phone gets hit by lightening sometimes! Sibylla is an artist like many who came to Libre.
After a few hours of fascinating conversation, Sibylla took us next door to meet her partner Dean Fleming, a founding member of the Libre Community. Dean lives in a larger dome house which he uses as his art studio. The views of the Wet Mountains were amazing from here.
We’re newcomers to rural southern Colorado, so after a few years I decided to compile a diary about my life after moving here from Fort Collins. We chose the foothills west of Walsenburg to build a passive solar home. Please share this blog with your friends if they are considering similar life changes. Contact me directly to discuss any of these challenges, and to order your own signed copies of any of my books. Email me at: MidlifeCrisisQueen@gmail.com
We found an excellent local man, Ron Pino, to do our drywall. He started out working with his Dad when he was only six! He works alone and is doing an incredible job for a very reasonable price. He’ll start texturing the walls today and then we can begin painting the interior.
In the meantime we met a woman who is one of the original members of the Libre Commune north of here. Libre was established in the early 1970s as an artist community, with lots of unusual dome homes. There are still some members in the area. If you have any interest in this topic, check out the book Huerfano: A Memoir of Life in the Counterculture.Yes, we are keeping busy meeting new people everyday, and enjoying a different view of life on the long and winding road into rural America…
Things are looking rather chaotic up at construction central this week. We finished the spray insulation on Monday. Think of it as dried up marshmallows pumped into your exterior walls…
Now we’re working on the drywall installation, ceiling first. And yes, it is quite tough holding up those boards to secure them. Can’t wait until the drywall is up, taped and textured!
Then we can begin the fun part, finishing the kitchen and baths with cabinets and tiling!
We picked some nice charcoal-colored tile for the main floors. It should absorb the solar heat beautifully in the winter, and then our insulated 6 inch slab should hold the heat a long time.
In spite of two sets of back problems and two cases of bronchitis, Mike and I are still up to the task of completing this house! Mike is nebulizing here, with Rasta’s help…
Yesterday was my 60th birthday and yes, I know I look older than when we got married in 2005. Suffice to say I no longer believe that 60 is the new 40! We celebrated my birthday by clearing the land below our new home to mitigate fire danger.
Here are the men clearing the land down below. So sorry to see a few beautiful trees disappear… Mike even killed a pack rat as it ran out of one of the big old dead ones!
But we must have our views after going to so much trouble to get them!
To get some idea of the layout of our house, you enter from the door on the left and are immediately in the great room with a kitchen, dining room and living room. The kitchen cabinets will be along the back wall seen here. The curved island will hold the kitchen sink and dishwasher. What a phenomenal view from there! The east end of the house (seen here) will hold the master suite and office.
The west end holds two smaller bedrooms and a bath.
This picture gives you some sense of the view from the great room. It faces directly south and is all sliding doors and windows for maximum passive solar gain in the winter. There is a large overhang outside to keep out the sun in the warmer months. The roof of that overhang is the correct angle to hold photo voltaic panels, providing enough electricity to completely power our new home.
As you can see, we are high on a hill with only a few houses down below, and an unobstructed view of the Spanish Peaks, the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and Mount Mestas. We own a couple acres below our house. No one can ever obstruct our view!
Adventures of the NEW??? Old Farts 