>
A couple who escaped the rat race to live off-grid in the desert in a US national park are now completely self-sufficient — claiming they recycle their own human waste to power their gas stove.
Whitney Newkirk, 33, and her husband, Trent, 26, gave their best and moved from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, more than 2,000 miles away, to Joshua Tree National Park, California, in August 2020.
They now live in a converted yurt on their patch of land, which cost about $30,000 in total, and document their off-grid lifestyle on social media.
After living in the yurt for two years, Whitney said she “never misses civilization” and claimed, “I like people, but I don’t like large crowds.”
After leaving 9-5 life more than two years ago when Trent lost his job due to the pandemic, the couple traveled through US national parks before settling in California.
Whitney Newkirk, 33, and husband Trent, 26, fled the city to live in a desert. The Wisconsin couple has built a self-sufficient life in Joshua Tree National Park
They now live in a converted yurt on their patch of land, which costs about $30,000 in total, and document their off-grid lifestyle on social media.
Whitney and Trent live with their pets in the converted yurt, which cost $20k and took three months of design and plans to assemble
Joshua Tree National Park consists of two deserts, the Sonoran and the Mojave.
In March 2021, the couple purchased 2.3 acres of land for $8,000 to build their new home.
They also bought a custom designed yurt for $20k and invested in a 2300 gallon water tank to get them started.
The yurt took three months of design and planning. The couple had to drive more than 14 hours to pick up the parts from a company in Cottage Grove, Oregon, before spending another three weeks assembling the structure.
It took another year of renovation to convert the yurt into a livable space with a functioning bathroom and kitchen.
Now that they’re pretty much done with their project, Whitney said she feels like she’s on top of the world.
The couple uses solar energy to power their yurt and has also implemented a biogas system, using food and even human waste to make gas.
The couple had to drive more than 14 hours to pick up the parts from a company in Cottage Grove, Oregon, before spending another three weeks assembling the structure.
Whitney and Trent fell in love with Joshua Tree National Park – made up of two deserts, the Sonoran and the Mojave – and bought a 2.3-acre tract of land for $8k in March 2021 to make it their new home.
“The best way to describe the feeling when we finished was that I literally felt like I was on top of Mount Everest,” she said.
The desert-dwelling duo are disconnected from the grid and get their electricity from solar panels they have installed themselves, with the entire system costing $12k.
They also have a home biogas system, using food and even human waste to make gas, which they use to cook with their deep fryer and stove.
Whitney said, ‘I never miss civilization, I like people, but I don’t like large crowds.
‘Now we just feel so much more financially free and closer to nature.’
They say the trip helped them understand so much more about nature and was incredibly rewarding.
“There are still trials and tribulations as we continue to build and continue to bring back a desert ecosystem out there,” explains Whitney.
“But I’ve never been happier doing it. Our happy times outweigh the bad times a million.’
Whitney (pictured) documents the couple’s off-grid lifestyle on social media. Share how they renovated their yurt
It took a whole year of renovation to convert the yurt into a livable space with a functioning bathroom and kitchen
Trent works from home as a mechanical design engineer for a new company, while Whitney manages the couple’s social accounts where they document their off-grid lifestyle.
Whitney revealed that they have had to adjust to living with less water, although they can still shower and wash the dishes every day.
“We plan to dig a well, but it’s expensive and quite dangerous to do it alone,” she explained.
Whitney and Trent have many plans for their off-grid lifestyle and have toyed with the idea of digging a well
After leaving the 9-5 life more than two years ago when Trent lost his job due to the pandemic, the couple traveled through US national parks before settling in California.
The Yurt depicted at night in the desert. It gets very cold at night in the national park and so during the summer heat wave the couple worked at night
They plan to install hot water in the coming months as the desert lifestyle has meant they haven’t needed it all summer.
A weekly farmer’s market in the nearby town of Joshua Tree allows Whitney and Trent to stock up on fresh, “quality” produce.
Whitney says there is also a Walmart down the street for other supplies.
Their hard work didn’t come without its setbacks, however, with Whitney saying there was a time when she thought it would never happen.
“There was a point where I thought we were crazy,” she said, “mainly because a heat wave happened as we started building and brought the desert temperature to 115 degrees Fahrenheit.
“It’s very dry and you dry out very quickly. Our travel trailer couldn’t keep up with the heat.
“That happened for two months and we thought we weren’t going to get this done.”
The couple never gave up, sitting in Trent’s truck during the day and building at night when it was colder.
Whitney and Trent are now focusing on the exterior with plans to build their own greenhouse to begin cultivating and growing as parts of the national park are “green and full of life.”
They believe their move was a sound investment as a neighboring plot of land now costs $65k.