The compelling story of one family’s life among the rugged landscapes of British Columbia's Coast Mountains, converting youthful ideals, raw land and a passion for the outdoors into a practical off-grid homestead.

Rob Wood grew up in a village on the edge of the Yorkshire Moors, where he eventually developed a preoccupation with rock climbing. After studying architecture for five years at the Architectural Association School in London, England, he made his way to Montreal and ended up in Calgary. During his time in Calgary, Rob became a pioneer of ice climbing and posted numerous first ascents in the Rockies during the early 1970's.

Eventually, life in corporate Alberta proved unfulfilling and Rob realized that he needed to find a place where he could reconnect with nature, which brought him to the remote reaches of Canada’s West Coast. Settling on Maurelle Island, he and his wife built an off-the-grid homestead and focussed on alternative communities and developing a small house-design practice specializing in organic and wholesome building techniques.

At Home in Nature is a gentle and philosophical memoir that focuses on living a life deeply rooted in the natural world, where citizens are connected to the planet and individuals work together to help, enhance and make the world a better — and sustainable — place.

Rob Wood has been a professional architect, pioneering mountaineer, organizer of ocean-to-alpine expeditions, instructor of wilderness self-reliance at Strathcona Park Lodge, and a founding member of the Friends of Strathcona Park, a protest group that helped stop logging and mining in the park. He is also the author of At Home in Nature: A Life of Unknown Mountains and Deep Wilderness. Rob and his wife, Laurie, still live on Maurelle Island, British Columbia.

Rob Wood's profile page

"This is not your typical 'back to the land' story. There is a richness to the storytelling ... At Home In Nature is a nice alternative to conventional mountain literature made all the more enjoyable by Wood's easy-going and honest writing style."

Canadian Alpine Journal

"...intelligent and passionate..."

BC Studies