This week on the island we set up a winch, cut down a tree with an axe and made a ramp for our debarking station. Basecamp is now complete and we are ready to start felling trees for the log sauna cabin!

We bought an electric atv winch and a 12v battery to make moving trees around the island much easier. We ended up getting it hooked up to a tree and working! This is going to make a huge difference when it comes to moving logs around the island for the sauna cabin.

I forgot to bring the batteries to my chainsaw so I cut down my first tree with an axe. It was not the biggest tree but it ended up working well and was pretty fun. Lastly we build a ramp going from the debarking station to the log drying spot to make moving logs between the two much easier.

Now everything is ready to start harvesting logs for the sauna cabin. I called the municipality and forestry services to make sure we are all ready to go on that side and we are! This means next trip the real fun begins and I am so excited to start on the first building on the Island!

Thank you everyone for commenting and watching us build our basecamp, now it's time to build the log cabin!

More about us, island and the process:

The island is completely secluded, has no electricity or plumbing and currently has nothing on it but trees. We want to turn this island into a fully functioning summer cottage with a log cabin, sauna and other amenities. Most of the work is gonna be done in the summer months as the lake freezes in the winter and the weather conditions are tough.

There's a lot of work to be done as the island is over 2.5 acres (1 hectare) and we have no experience in off-grid living, carpentry or building. So any tips or advice are greatly appreciated, as we are planning on doing everything ourselves and transforming the island into our own little paradise. We’ll document every step of the way, starting from smaller builds to finally - an off-grid log cabin.

Our plan for this year is to put up a platform for a glamping tent, build a floating dock and start cutting down trees to begin the process of building our log cabin.

The island is located in Finland and we bought it in 2024. We are currently both students and we plan to transform the island alongside our studies.

So, subscribe and join us on this adventure. It won’t be fast, it won’t be easy, but it will be fun and challenging. We don’t know what to expect, so be a part of the journey.

📸 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok @off.grid.island

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