More Tents to Haiti! Wanna Help?

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Hello,

When the earthquake hit Haiti we, like much of the world, wondered what we could do. It was a relief when we found a small way to help by donating tents made in our shop. After I wrote about the experience of sending five tents down with a group of doctors, I was amazed to find that you too wanted to help in our efforts.

We finally found a way to get more tents to Haiti efficiently and to make your donations tax-deductible. We’ve partnered with an organization called Fireside International. They were operating in Haiti before the earthquake and have a wide network of friends down there.

• How You Can Help – Donate to Fireside International and earmark the funds for Colorado Yurt Tents by emailing arrenner@firesideinternational.org, the accountant at Fireside. Checks can be sent to: The Caribbean Institute of Media Technologies, 3203 Grassy Lane, Anderson, IN 46012. Earmark by writing Colorado Yurt Tents in the memo section of your check. $420 will buy a tent. Donate more or less as you can afford. 
• What Colorado Yurt Will Do – We’ll make eight tents at a time which maximizes the efficiency of our materials and production. The tents would normally retail for $650. The difference represents our donation.
• What Fireside International Will Do – Connect the tents with experienced aid workers who will hand-deliver them to Haitians in need.

 The 1st in our fresh batch of tents (now with built-in floor)

As the quake gets further away, aid into Haiti is dropping off but need is actually increacing.  Haiti is a mere two weeks away from its rainy season.  This means not only that over a million newly displaced Haitians will be exposed to the elements but also that they will face increased risk of contracting disease.  You don't need me to tell you how bad it is down there. 

Photo by UNICEF Sverige

What we're doing is modest but, we think, worth it.  Your donation will buy something real (a tent) and a family will have a place to stay for as long as they need.  The tents are about 7ft by 7ft by 7ft tall at the highest point.  They are made with care and constructed from high quality, waterproof materials. 

We are paying our employees their normal wages so your donation also goes to support local, USA business.

Thank you for your help,

Sam Kigar

sam@coloradoyurt.com

(970) 240-2111

A Yurt for Monster Mountain Snows

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Last week a few of the Colorado Yurt crew were invited to spend a couple of nights in the Fowler/Hilliard Yurt. The yurt is part of the 10th Mountain Division Hut Association, a system of 29 backcountry huts in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, connected by 350 miles of suggested routes. We set the yurt up this past fall on an exposed ridge at 11,300 feet elevation. It is one of our newly designed Winter Stout Alpine Yurts. Unfortunately, once we got above tree line, weather conditions quickly eroded. Faced with a whiteout and hip deep snow, we were forced to retrace our steps back to the trailhead in the light of a full moon. These are the exact conditions the Alpine Yurt is was built to withstand.

The Fowler/Hilliard Yurt on a milder day.
photo by 10th Mountain Division

• Massive snow - in a setting like this, it is not unusual to see several feet of snow on a yurt roof top.
• Unbalanced snow loads - winds and drifts often pile all the snow on the north quadrant of the roof while the sun melts the south side clear.
• Wicked winds - at this exposed elevation, wind gusts can easily begin to flirt with 100 mph. 

Although it rarely happens in normal conditions, when exposed to rugged alpine conditions like this, a typical yurt can face partial to full collapse. Since we live in the heart of the Rocky Mountains we wanted to engineer a yurt that would allow fellow mountain lovers to live where they want to live and play where they want to play.

The fully stocked Fowler/Hilliard Yurt kitchen

The thorough engineering of the Winter Stout Alpine Yurt also adds a couple of other benefits.

• International Building Codes - the Alpine Yurt meets the structural requirements of IBC in jurisdictions across the country so you can document the structural engineering for building officials like you would for any building.
• Seismic activity - the Alpine Yurt can withstand considerable earthquake movement.

So, although we weren't quite up for the challenging mountain conditions on our last trip up to tree line, the Fowler/Hilliard Yurt was. The 10th Mountain Division has graciously invited us back for another go at it and we're determined to spend a few nights in that yurt yet.