Back

What do I do When I Arrive?

It doesn’t take much effort to get things set up, here we’ll tell you how

  • Use the code we gave you on the door. Enter the code, turn the deadlock bolt, and you’re in! Open the other door from the inside. When you leave, just do the opposite procedure.

  • There is no potable water at our cabin. We suggest you fill our blue jugs with water from the VHJ water treatment building located at 99 Willow Acres Road.

    For wash water, we usually use snow melted on the wood stove, or water collected in the rain barrels. We collect snow from the driveway, so please don’t pee there :)

  • The fridge and stove are powered by propane. There are propane tanks behind the cabin, and a line that supplies propane inside. Supply propane by opening the valves at the top of both tanks, and then open the gas valve above it. Once this is done, you will have propane for the duration of your visit.

  • The fridge is a bit tricky to start, and takes 8 hours to really start working. There is a plastic panel at the very bottom of the fridge that is accessible below the fridge door. Once the propane has been turned on, open this panel carefully, and look inside.

    1. Turn the dial at the right to “Gas”

    2. Ensure the other dial is at approximately 1.5 on the coldness scale, we find this is perfect even in summer;

    3. Press the red button and the black button for around 10 seconds;

    4. Look at the small black square with the red line on it. If the red line stays in the centre, or goes to the green side, then the fridge is working. If the red line remains on the red side after this, wait 10 minutes and perform these steps again;

    5. In winter, you can verify that the fridge is working by checking the gas discharge outside. If there is steam rising from it, then the gas is being burned properly, and everything is working.

  • Water drained from the kitchen sink drains down below the cabin. This can freeze in the winter. If that happens, just put a bunch of really warm water down the sink.

  • The wood stove has a catalytic converter for greater efficiency. To start a fire in the wood box, load it with kindling and wood, and light a fire starter beneath it. Make sure the lever is pointing towards you at this time, and that the stove door is closed while the fire is lighting.

    When the temperature dial rises to approximately 1/3, flip the switch on the right of the stove to the catalytic converter side. This will provide greater efficiency. We find the cabin stays warm all night, and is even too warm most of the time :)