Disconnect to Reconnect: My Stay in an Unyoked Cabin

I’m a sucker for a little cabin in the woods. 

It’s a dream of mine to someday own my own little space, secluded somewhere in a forest, in walking distance of a lake or the ocean or a waterfall that I can go swim in on hot days.  So, when I had the opportunity to visit and create with Unyoked in the Blue Mountains – there was no chance I was going to pass that up!

I learned about Unyoked sometime in 2023 (probably through a targeted Instagram ad) and was immediately obsessed – not only do they have stunning marketing, but they’re challenging the way we think about taking a visit to a secluded, remote cabin.  Their message and driving purpose for creating these little oasis’s around Australia, New Zealand, and the UK is to encourage a place for connection to self and the land.  They break everything down to the essentials but make it beautiful, they bring back classic entertainment (cassettes and board games anyone?), and encourage time spent outdoors.

What got my attention the most when I first learned about them, was their collaborative study in partnership with AllTrails, based on studying the mental health benefits of time spent outdoors.  If you know the purpose behind Golden Hour at all, it’s pretty self-explanatory as to why I became obsessed.  As an architectural graduate with a fixation on sustainability and efficiency, turned vanlife-nomad whose key driving factors are environmentalism and mental health advocacy… how could I not?!

I thought it might be interesting to run through my post by sectioning it based on Golden Hour’s principles:

Connection

Connection looks at a few things: connection to self, to community, and to place.  A driving factor for my time at Unyoked was the desire for intentional connection to self and nature.  As some big changes were coming up for me at this time and I was being confronted with some challenging decisions.  For me, I feel most clear-headed when I get time on my own, in places that feel grounding.   Unyoked provided just that.  Even though it was 40 degrees (Celsius), with no wind, no AC in the cabin, a shower running off a rain water reservoir that doesn’t exactly go ice-cold on a hot day, and I thought I was going to physically melt away like the witch in the Wizard of Oz… the physical and emotional discomfort I was experiencing forced me get really clear on what I was wanting, and what I was going to do about it.

A large part of me wanted to keep melting, because it felt easier to sit in discomfort rather than move in discomfort.  BUT.  I was told there was a secluded river with a bit of a trek to get to.  I knew that if I didn’t at least attempt to find it, I would find myself regretting not at least giving it a chance.

I had a partner in university whom I honestly owe a lot of thanks to for getting me into all the outdoor activities I enjoy regularly now – but one thing I often struggled with was how much further he could push himself.  It often involved us going a lot further on trips than I would’ve done on my own, and definitely pushed my physical limits more than once.  But we always made it out, and often came across some of the most stunning places and having our most favourite experiences, all because we went that little bit further.

It’s because of him that when I’m in moments of discomfort, or questioning whether it’s worth it to keep walking, I always think “just go that little extra bit further.”  And nine times out of 10, it ends up being the best decision I could’ve made.

SO many times on this hike I thought about turning back… I went in circles for at least 30minutes before even finding the trail head, there were no trail markers or even a clear path, I’d lost the google maps path due to no service, and felt like I might evaporate into thin air from the heat… but I kept going… all  to end up at the most stunning river, that was the perfect temperature and depth, with no one around.  You best believe that swimsuit was coming off.

I think I laid in that river, periodically dunking my head, for almost an hour before the evening storm clouds started to make their appearance.

Healing

I’d be lying though if I said my time here was perfect bliss.  While there were many elements that contributed to this being a beautiful little getaway, my state of mind was in scrambles before I arrived, and the little bit of service I still had made it all the more challenging to practice self-restraint from checking for that little red notification circle on the apps;  I had challenging conversations on the go that made just “turning off the phone” not fully realistic, and I was in a massive state of “what the f*ck* do I do about my life?!” (specifically referring to considering not getting on a flight back to Canada…). And realistically, I was also there for work – so there was always that element of being mentally turned on and thinking about what needed to be and should be captured, and then capturing those shots on your own (a lot more tedious than some people realize lol).

It's a lot easier to have a “perfect relaxing getaway” when your life is in a more peaceful state, you’re not working during it, and you have absolutely no service to pull your attention away from the beautiful place you’re at.  

What this trip did remind me though is how important it is to invest time into experiences that allow you to intentionally connect with yourself.  Taking time away from social media, emails, messages… and being truly present with yourself and your surroundings.  No just through vacations, but also in your day-to-day life.

Healing doesn’t come from watching inspirational videos, but from confronting the challenging emotions we’re often trying to avoid.

I’d say my time with Unyoked did just that.  Between the wildly hot temperatures and limited ways of dealing with it, to there being *just* enough service to load a video or two on Instagram and allow the odd email or message to come through, I had to make a conscious effort to be in the present moment.  For me, this involved journaling – a lot, going for a hike to the secluded river, (frequently) turning my phone to airplane mode, and practicing yoga + meditation.

Impact

One of the things I love most about Unyoked is their efforts to build fully off-grid cabins.  The tiny homes are built on movable trailers – so there is no digging of the land required to build them; they are fitted with composting toilets; the water supplied to the cabin is filtered from rain reservoirs; the electricity is generated through solar panels; cleaning products provided are non-toxic; and they make an effort to source as much of their building materials locally.

Overall, my time with Unyoked was a great reminder of why I love this lifestyle of travelling/living on the road and making time in nature a priority and why Golden Hour is such a special project for me; it was also a great affirmation for my goal of finally going full time with my photography/videography and writing – Something I’ve always wanted since I was a little kid, but never believed was possible until the past year.  I definitely hope to return to these little gems, and work with more brands with shared ethos.

If you or anyone you know has a brand or a project aligned with the mission to highlight environmental and/or mental health advocacy, comment the name’s down below!

And if you’re curious to read more from my time at Unyoked, visit the article I wrote for their website: Intentional Solitude vs Loneliness.

Stay passionate and curious,
Hunter 💛