Tree House Tips

 Camp Wandawega Tree House

My husband has been in serious planning stages of a tree house at our lake home for our youngest family members, and by serious planning I mean constantly studying designs on the Internet and reading various books over the past few years.

When I first approached him about the idea, I should have known he would take the job very seriously...So serious, that when it is finished, I am fairly certain we will be able to reside in it full time :) We are now entering the execution portion of the planning phase and I can't wait to see where it goes from here.

The tree house above is located at Camp Wandawega in Wisconsin and it's just gorgeous.  It is actually built around the tree instead of using the actual tree for support which I love. We've learned that a tree house doesn't need to harm the tree and here's how you can ensure that:

1.  Use light yet strong materials over heavier materials.  This will impact the tree less.

2.  Figure out ways to keep tree house materials up in the tree without impending the tree's growth.  Use as few nails as possible so you don't pierce the tree trunk.  Rely on rope and knotting techniques.  Look for natural supports within the tree so you can lean the tree house on those rather than cutting branches or digging into part of the tree.

3.  Instead of hammering a ladder into the tree trunk, use a rope ladder. Bit more challenging but a lot more fun.

4.  If possible, build the tree house around the tree branches, but support it independently on its own legs or stilts.  

Do you have a tree house or future plans for building one?  Would love to hear your ideas.  

Thanks for stopping in and have a great weekend.  

See you for Grill Tuesday!

                                                                        LakehouseLyn