After selling my house, it was time to to find a place to live. I decided to build a platform for a small 16′ yurt which I could live in while I decided to and/or officially built the large yurt. Unfortunately, that meant building the platform in days where temps got to a high of 5 degrees (F).

I pretty much followed the platform plans provided by Pacific Yurts. I was fortunate to have a small barn to work out of that had electricity. I know people have built platforms without electricity, but it sure is easier with power tools! I did it by myself in 5 days - if you have help, I’m sure it’s faster. I’m not the best carpenter/builder either, but I manage to get it done eventually. Working in subzero windchills doesn’t help much either!

Day 1 & 2:
Setting the pre-cast concrete piers and attaching the posts. After clearing a foot of fresh snow!

Day 3:
Setting the beams and the outside bracing.

Day 4:
Cross-bracing and insulation. I used the Reflectix underneath because I was worried about critters - I would stick with a standard insulation because the Reflectix sure didn’t seem to do much and I ended up surrounding the platform with straw bales a month or two after I moved in.

Day 5:
Attaching the plywood floor and cutting it to the radius.

And we’re ready for the yurt!

Before Yurt

My yurt idea came about when I was still living in my 2500 sq ft home that I didn’t like to clean in a subdivision that I didn’t like. I had heard about yurts years before but never really knew much about them. After doing some research online, I was really sold. I’ve always liked the unusual homes you see on the diy network but it was hard to find people who actually lived year-round in their yurts, especially in a climate like that in Colorado.

I found 10 acres of property for sale in a great spot next to the national forest. It was a beautiful piece of property with well and electric already on it and a few months later, I bought it. Now with two mortgages on my hands, I really needed to sell my house before I could do anything on the vacant land.

My beautiful 10 acres

I finally found a couple who was living in their yurt outside of Fairplay, CO. I drove out to see their yurt to see if it would really work for me. Their yurt was pretty crowded but still very appealing to me. Another weekend I drove all the way out to Montrose, CO to check the yurts of the Colorado Yurt Company.

When my house was finally under contract, it was mid November. I had less than two months to figure out where to live. My property had water and electric, but it was further back on the property where a mobile home had been, not where I would be building. Still unsure about the yurt decision, I decided to buy a 16′ yurt and live in that for however long it took to decide if living in a yurt was really something I wanted to do. I thought if I can live in a 16′ yurt, I can certainly live in a 30′ yurt.

I had the electric run up to the barn and I started building a platform for the hence-named yurtlet. It would be without plumbing, and I’d have to go down the drive about 40 yards to fetch fresh water. This would certainly simplify my living style by drastic measures. I packed up a few things, and stuffed what I could in a POD storage container and gave away the rest.

Let the yurtlet building begin!