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I'm going to admit something about myself that I find really, really embarrassing, but I'm going to say it anyway because I think it's important to get it out there. Over the last couple of years, I've developed this really nasty habit of reaching for my phone the very first thing after waking up. So, I'll open my eyes and I'll just automatically do this and get my phone and start scrolling. Like I'll check my emails, my WhatsApp messages, my Instagram, and that's what I'll do for the first 20 minutes of every single day. And I find it frankly horrific. I hate it. I hate that about myself, you know, but I feel like I'm addicted to my phone. I am. I'm sure
many of us are addicted to our phones. So, one of my favorite things about being here in the Shepherd's Hut is that I don't have internet access here really. So, I can't just do that. There's only a couple of specific spots where I can get internet access around the shepherd's hut. But in here, it doesn't really work very well. So, I spend the first 20, 30 minutes of every single day, not scrolling on my phone, but just laying there in the dark with my eyes closed, letting my mind wander, thinking about the day ahead, thinking about what's happened in the last couple of days. And holy I just realized that's something that we used to do
like 10 years ago before smartphones took over our entire lives and how beautiful that was. But aside from that, whenever I'm done pondering and meandering with my mind, the second thing that I do every single day without fail is that I'll go up to my little camping stove. I'll get my gas canister and I'll chuck it inside my sleeping bag to warm it up after a cold night so that I can actually use it to heat up my water for my morning coffee. To be completely transparent, these are some of the last days I'm spending in the cabin before moving out. I've spent about 3 weeks here and although a part of me brooder wants to stay, there's something else I have planned. I'll tell you a bit more about it in a few minutes.
Okay, buddy. You ready to start the day? It may not exactly sound like an epiphany, but in a way it feels like one. Mornings like this, where you get up whenever you want, where you don't look at your phone first thing, where you get to take a walk with your dog while drinking a cup of coffee. That's serious luxury right there. Because I feel like living in today's world, peace of mind and time freedom are two of the rarest commodities. They're much harder to find than a five-star hotel or a diamond watch. It's rare and a privilege to live in a quiet place. It's rare and a privilege to walk to your home through a forest. It's rare and a privilege to not feel like you have to check your
phone every 5 minutes. So, excuse me while I brag about having the most luxurious life I can think of while living in a 120 ft wooden cabin with no power or running water. Vegetarian pate and pickles. So good. You want a pickle? Yeah. My dog loves pickles. That's so random. Speaking of water, my spring hasn't frozen over just yet, despite the low temps, which is amazing news. If it did, I would have to resort to melting snow, which is really timeconuming. And you know what else I realized? Every single sip of water that I've ever drank on this property has come from this spring. And every single sip that I've dragged on this property has been fetched from the spring by me cup by cup.
Okay. I haven't washed the dishes in a couple of days, so it is high time we did that. This probably looks really dumb. I'm just trying to like scrape off little bits of food with this wooden spoon. They don't have a washing up sponge here. Some things are just that little bit more difficult up here. And I think like keeping all your stuff really clean is just one of those things. Okay, I lied. I do have internet here because I do have a Starlink here. The only problem is that I can't have it running very often because I have super limited power. So, I'm using these batteries here. That's all the power that I have. And every time the battery runs out, I
have to find a way to recharge it. either using a generator or by getting someone to recharge it for me at their house or by using solar panels which are not that much use these days since it's winter. So my mission for today is to recharge my battery because I am running very low. Right, I'm off to see my friends and get my battery charged at their place. I'm also going to put in my laptop, my laptop charger, and a few other little things to charge. And I am going to take my No, I'm not going to take my book. However, you can pre-order my memoir, The Wilder Way, and it goes live. Well, it gets published, I guess, is the proper word for a book.
Publication date is on the 7th of May in the UK. and on the 2nd of June in the US. And I'm so excited. Anyway, link below. That was just a very quick, very shameless plug. Um, let's go. All right, let's go. So, I'm taking a few things that I no longer need back to the car. And as you can see, a lot of the snow has gone. It's been quite warm the last few days, so we no longer have that beautiful fresh powder that we did just a few days ago, but it still looks pretty beautiful and V is happy.
A few weeks ago, I traveled to London to record my audio book. While I was there, I stayed in a nice apartment close to the recording studio. The walk to work was super convenient. Nothing like walking to my truck out here. But there was also no grass, no greenery, just pavement and traffic. Even when the sun came out, even if I was doing something I loved out there, I felt completely miserable and the greyness and the noise. I can't believe that was once my whole world. Oh, let's pray that it starts cuz I haven't had much luck with it starting lately. Come on, buddy. Oh, yes. That took just a couple of seconds too long for my liking. But she started, so that's good. Seems like power is a general struggle for me
these days. My car batteries probably need replacing because I've needed a jump start every time I left the truck unattended for a couple of days now. It worked. Amazing. These guys are amazing. I'm driving over to my friend's place nearby to charge my battery. I've previously charged it in my car in the local shop and so on. But today, Kasha and Leashek invited me over to their place. So, of course, I'm bringing the battery. B is going to stay in the car for the next hour or two while I'm at Kasha and Lashek's. Um, that's because he doesn't get along with their dogs and they have three dogs, so we have to keep
them separate. But he's got a bone or rather a cow ear that he's very happy with in the truck. So I think he's just gonna eat and then nap. So I got to Kasha and Leashek's place, had coffee and cake with them and charged all my stuff. While I'm here in the mountains, I'm on a strict power ration and only use my batteries for the most essential things. All of a sudden, being able to plug into a wall socket seems like the height of extravagance. So, my battery is about 60% charged, which should last me a couple of days. So, that's pretty good. I'm honestly very, very lucky to have Kasha and Nash here. They run these beautiful chalets up on the side of the mountain. Yes, you can go and stay at their place if you
like. They've really taught me everything there is to know about this place, about living in the mountains. They helped me navigate buying my land here. So, I'm really happy that we connected a few years back because they really altered the course of my life. Funny story, when I first came here to visit a few years back, I remember sitting in a hammock in one of Kasha and Let's chalet and thinking to myself that one day I'd love to have a little cabin of my own in the mountains. I literally dream of having a place like this, a house like this, land like this, a hammock like this, all of this. And right now, I'm driving to that very place, my own log cabin in the mountains. I'm not sure if I really believe in things like manifestation,
but there's definitely power behind words spoken out loud. Ah, we've got power. Let's make a fire. Oh my god, you guys. I have been eating nothing but carbs, like perogi and sandwiches for the last week. And I also haven't washed my hair in a week, which I think you can see. Oh my god, this is amazing. Oh, I am so excited for tonight's dinner. Oh, hell yes. We've got mushrooms, we've got pyogi dumplings, and we've got the yogurt. Oh my god, it's going to be so hot. Chuch. Wow. Are you a good boy? Is that a happy boy? Let's go. Good morning. I'm just waiting for my coffee to boil. It's a pretty beautiful day out there. I really want to show you the view. Um but priorities this bit here is so slippery just by the stairs
when I went out for a pee last night. I actually slipped and fell right on my butt. Most days living out here, I didn't film anything. I just let time pass off camera. I went skiing, worked on some last bits for my book, and tried to figure out my plans for the coming months. And while a part of me wanted to stay here all winter long, a little nomadic voice in my heart started whispering to me at the same time. I spent most of the morning cleaning up and packing up because I'm about to leave the cabin. I feel like I did not get enough time in the cabin. I got like roughly 3 weeks in total in here and it's not enough, but I need to get going
cuz I've got some travel plans coming up which I think you'll love and I'm really excited about them. But I leave here with a heavy heart. So almost done now. Almost done. That's right. I'm going back on the road. In the next episode, you'll find out all about this expedition I've got coming up. Spoiler alert. Vil and I are traveling to a different continent. Very exciting stuff. So, we'll see you here next week for the big reveal.
