The Place- LivingWell

Nestled in the center of the Oregon Coast Range, LivingWell (formerly YewWood) has been a dedicated Nature Spirit Sanxuary since 1984 and hosting educational opportunities since 1993.
It is co-operated by three- the landstewards Mark and MaryGold McNutt, and the land itself, which has its’ own opinions and makes them known. While we believe in and encourage land trusts and collectives, our structure is of a family homestead that is deeply immersed in experiential permaculture and  magickal educational opportunities for visitors and apprentices during most of the year. We hibernate in deep Winter.
LivingWell’s 15 acres are surrounded by the Siuslaw National Forest, and we are home and habitat for many creatures seen and unseen, including Spotted Owls, spawning Salmon, Faeries and all that lives in the most natural places of this ecosystem.

LivingWell is a Nature Spirit Sanxuary, as we recognize and embrace the unseen spirit beings as well as the natural flora and fauna. It is a designated crossroads, portal, and meeting place for spirit where magickal communion is common but not always verbal. We renamed it LivingWell when the second new spring appeared thru devic cooperation to help our land and crops flourish.
LivingWell is an ecological forested learning center for environmentally sane living, moving toward sustainability. Some examples include-

Off Grid Solar Electric (not intertie)
We make our own electricity year round.

Microwave free zone-
The distracting buzz of background electrical waves and subliminally stimulating microwaves have difficulty penetrating our rural mountains. This gices an incredible peaceand stillness found only in increasingly rare wild areas. It also means that cell phones don’t work.

Gravity feed Water-
Years of prayer and cooperation with nature has blessed us with several new springs which provide luscious  and delicious water for our needs, physical and beyond.

Deadwood Creek is home to more spawning Salmon than the upper Columbia as it is dam free all the way to the ocean. In most years, dozens of spawning fish may be seen on our stretch of the creek and elsewhere.

Most of our heat is provided by wood and solar, with some propane for cooking. Most of the wood we burn is from here or close by.

Straw Bale Octagon House-
We received the first permit for a residential straw bale building in our county, also the only off grid, and this set many standards for what is permittable locally. It is also an ongoing work of art with many natural features involving cob and local wood. Most of the wood for the Post and Beam structure was sustainable grown and harvested and milled on site. Almost all of the construction relied on ingenuity rather than machinery.

Sustainable Forest management
We have been intentionally increasing the biomass of the forest thru careful planting and harvesting decisions. Thousands of trees have been planted here since 1984m when the young forest was already maturing, and we sing to and gift any trees that are cut down. Mostly, the land chooses.

Wildcrafting Herbs and Organic Gardens-
Always have been and always will be