2021 Pilot Course: Cabin Building A - Z

A two-week course, taught by and for women, in an inclusive, creative setting.

• When: July 25th – August 7th, 2021
• Where: Steger Center, Ely, MN

This pilot course is an all-women’s course, focused on teaching the basics of building an off-grid cabin, from foundation to roof.

  • Only 4 spots available!
  • Two Weeks – $1,600
CONTACT US TO APPLY

This two-week course will offer eight students the opportunity to work alongside four instructors in rotating work groups. Skills covered include stone masonry, concrete work, conventional framing, square-log dovetail joinery, door and window framing, truss building and roof installation. The cabin will be fully assembled in a remote wilderness location during the course. Students will live and participate in a vibrant wilderness community during their stay. The Homestead has created transformative experiences for students for over 50 years, transmitting skills in an atmosphere of respect for each other, support staff, and the surrounding environment.

Tuition for the course is $1,600, which includes meals and accommodation. Accommodations are in separate rooms in a rustic wall tent.

COVID Precautions
This course will be held entirely outdoors, and students will have individual accommodations. All students and instructors are asked to self-quarantine for two weeks prior to the course, and to not attend if they are experiencing the symptoms of COVID-19 within two weeks of the start of the course.

Media Release
This course and its participants will be filmed and photographed, and all students will be asked to sign a media release prior to the start of the course.

Instructors

INSTRUCTORS

Beth Halverson, has been a Summit Academy Construction Program Instructor for 7 years, with 30 years of professional building experience. She has been teaching construction skills on site at Steger Center for the past 6 summers.

Nolen Sherman has 5 years of experience building dovetail cabins and is currently employed as a finish carpenter. She has spent time living and working at Steger Center and also specializes in building stained glass windows, featured in other cabins on site.

Jenna Pollard first visited Steger Center as a stone masonry apprentice in 2012. Her continued work has included timber frame, round log, dovetail and adobe building techniques.

Aurora Wahlstrom has practiced stone masonry for nearly a decade. Most recently, she’s practiced stone work in San Luis Obispo, California. She currently works as an arborist and is pursuing a yoga instructor license.