The Manns moved to Northern Ontario and live off-grid after Covid forced lifestyle rethink
KAWARTHA LAKES-A City of Kawartha Lakes couple has chosen to leave the hustle and bustle of city life and are now living off-grid in northern Ontario. Sarah and Daniel Mann said the Covid-19 global pandemic forced them to rethink their lifestyle and their reliance on modern conveniences.
They gave up their jobs, their home and their way off life – something not a lot of people have the guts to do.
They chose to not reveal their exact location but will say they are living in a cabin on a lake in the Timmins – Cochrane area of Northeastern Ontario. They have been there since April after getting married a week before they left. They brought a teenage daughter, three pickup trucks, three dogs and a cat with them. They are chronicling their journey and experience on social media.
The couple, both is their 30s, were both raised in the Kawarthas, mainly in the Fenelon Falls-Lindsay area.
Dan was an AutoCAD technician and a land developer. Sarah was a 911 dispatcher. They said they both came to the same conclusion during Covid that this was not exactly what they wanted out of life.
“I was off on leave before we came north. I had experienced post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to my job,” Sarah said. Covid was part of the reason we started to think about living more self-sustainably. We realized we wanted to be more independent and not rely on the world as much.”
They both described what they have been through so far as an adventure. They live in a cabin on a small lake where they draw their water from. Their electricity comes from a gas-powered generator. They have no indoor plumbing and are using an outhouse. Their goal is to eventually become completely self-sufficient, using solar and wind power.
“There is very limited Internet, obviously no cable and no telephone phone landline. The thing that keeps us the busiest on a daily basis is collecting water. I do have a thousand litre holding tank and I did borrow a pump so that keeps us going for about a month at a time,” Daniel said. “We treat the water with chlorine and we only use it for doing dishes so algae doesn’t grow. We filter our drinking water which we get from the lake. The dogs drink right from the lake. One dog refuses to drink the lake water from his bowl. He will only drink from the lake itself.”
There is a road leading to where they have currently live. But it cannot be used in the winter as it is a private road and no one plows it.
“It’s about a two and a half kilometre walk to where we have to park the vehicles. So that was part of the winter adventure,” Sarah joked.
She added that she works in a town nearby and will continue to work while Daniel will manage the homestead.
They say that homesteading is exactly what they wanted to do when they came to the conclusion during Covid that the regular, conventional lifestyle that most people live was not for them.
“We are on the verge of buying 40 acres up here with a cabin already on it. We can do pretty much what we please with the land with a few limitations. In southern Ontario you have to get a building permit to do just about anything,” Daniel said. “Up here I can build barns for my livestock without any hassles.”
Daniel said this is their first summer so things are just getting going. He eventually wants to have pigs and cows. He said they currently have 13 chickens, two ducks and a turkey on top of their pets. Daniel said he wants to eventually grow his own crops and make his own cheese – things that will make them less reliant on what’s sold in the stores.
“The price of real estate was also very attractive up here,” Daniel said. We all know how the market has exploded in the south. I’m getting 40 acres with a cabin up here for $100,000. It closes in July and that’s why we are not there yet. But we are getting a taste of it now.”
The Manns both agree that they are taking real gamble with their future by taking this move but feel they had to do this. little choice.
“We sold all of our stuff beforehand. We came up here not knowing exactly what to expect but we are enjoying it and making it work,” Daniel said.
The Manns are showing the world their trials, tribulations, good times and challenging times on both Facebook and YouTube.
“Cove Station – the Great Escape” is the site for both because we are in a little cove here,” Sarah said. It’s a small but dedicated group of followers at the moment – mostly friends and family, but it is gradually growing. We are proud to share our journey.”
Exact numbers of how many Canadians quit their jobs during Covid and also chose to move off-grid are not readily available. If you Google “moving off-grid” more than 152 million entries pop up.
One survey indicates that one in five Canadians who did quit their jobs during Covid did so because of increased stress at work. The Manns say they are working harder than ever but that they do indeed have less stress in their lives.
