'Off the grid, self-sufficient'

By KRISTI ALBERTSON - The Daily Inter Lake

Far up the North Fork, fruit trees flourish in exercise in sustainability

When Jerry Wernick was a young teacher just starting his career in southern California, he was determined to build a house for himself and his wife, Linda.

?The American Dream today is to own your own home,? he said. ?It used to be to build your own home.?

He had no practical experience with carpentry, plumbing or electrical work. When he went to the store for supplies, he had to describe what he needed because he?d never learned various fixtures? proper names.

To further complicate matters, the Wernicks lived outside Los Angeles, where building codes were notoriously strict. Wernick had no idea how to build a house at all, much less build it to code.

But Wernick refused to be swayed. In college, he?d studied math, chemistry and physics and learned theories he was sure he could apply to building. His work followed the pattern of most of history?s great scientists: trial and error.

Eventually, he succeeded. He finished the house and passed inspection. It was invaluable experience for his next dream: building a country home in Northwest Montana.

The Wernicks were teaching in Ronan when they purchased land up the North Fork. In 1980, they decided to take a break from education and focus on building a home in the woods.

They wanted much more than a cabin on their North Fork property. They wanted a real home, a place they could raise their daughter, Rachelle.

They wanted to live off the grid and be completely self-sufficient. The North Fork ? with no electricity or other utilities ? was just the place.

?It was our dream to have a sustainable country home,? Wernick said.

The Wernicks? teaching sabbatical fell through when the Ronan school board chairman asked them to tutor his children. They accepted, took on more students and ultimately opened a school, which they christened Tamarack Springs Academy.

But they wouldn?t allow the school to defer their dream of building a home. Several neighbors had helped them get settled; when the students arrived, the Wernicks enlisted their help to improve their home.

Students assisted with general construction; Jerry Wernick did most of the finish work. Linda Wernick laid the stone on the first floor of their two-story house.

?She?s the mason in the family,? Wernick said.

Below the house, the Wernicks and their students built a shop, a greenhouse and a solarium. The school?s bunkhouse burned down in February, so this year?s students are helping build a bigger one. They?ve already poured the concrete foundation ? which they mixed themselves ? and begun putting up the studs.

The solarium was one of the more challenging architecture projects on the property. There are stone floors throughout and a stone spiral staircase leading to a loft, which is supported by several stone pillars. A pool sits in the middle of the building and is surrounded by scores of plants, including an olive tree, a lemon tree and a large fig tree.

They planted the trees to expose the students to foods they weren?t used to, Wernick said. Whether they actually try the exotic fruits is up to them; most wrinkle their noses at the figs on the breakfast table.

The greenhouse next to the solarium holds more crops that normally wouldn?t grow in the North Fork. Two peach trees are laden with fruit, and the grapes will ripen in October.

Apples, cherries, apricots, plums, green beans, chives and tomatoes also grow in the greenhouse. This winter, the Wernicks will transplant Swiss chard from the garden to the greenhouse so the school will enjoy salad greens year round.

They plant a large garden every year to augment their vegan diet. This year, in addition to the chard, there are rows of peas, spinach, carrots, beets and potatoes. All told, the Wernicks and their students harvest about 3,000 pounds of produce each year.

Students help Linda Wernick can the fruit, and when it?s ripe there always is fresh fruit on the table. They store what they can?t eat in a root cellar below the house.

Frost-free seasons don?t exist up the North Fork, so they plant hardy plants that can withstand the cold. They use a sprinkler to save the plants from freezing in the summer.

Ten springs supply all the water on the Wernicks? property ? and inspired the name of the school. The water is a constant 40-degree temperature, which helps protect plants in the summer and prevents one of the three hand-dug reservoirs from freezing over in the winter.

The springs power everything at Tamarack Springs. Everything is natural; the hydroelectric power is generated by a gravity-fed system.

Even the stone fountain in the center of the lawn is motor-free.

?I?m a believer in living easy on the land,? Wernick said.

One spring ends in a heart-shaped stone fountain on ?Rachelle?s Island.? It isn?t really an island, but the spring is hemmed in by a pond on one side and trees on the other, making the spot feel isolated from the rest of the property.

A large playhouse sits next to the fountain, with a broad, flat stone serving as a welcome mat and flowers growing in the window boxes. Downstairs, there is a tiny potbellied stove and a small sink with running water. A ladder leads to a loft big enough for a pair of little girls to have a sleepover.

The Wernicks built the house when their daughter was about 6 years old. They told her it was time she had a place of her own, Jerry Wernick said, smiling.

The little girl helped design the house, and Rachelle and her mother laid the stone for the fountain. They hooked up a telephone line to connect the playhouse to the main house.

The main house doesn?t have a normal telephone to keep it in touch with the rest of the world. Instead, the Wernicks rely on a satellite phone. Once a week, the students ride their bikes five miles to Polebridge to use the mercantile?s pay phones and wireless Internet.

A mail carrier delivers mail twice a week, and UPS comes once a week. Other postal services come less frequently, Linda Wernick said.

Instead of watching TV at night, students have an hour of outside recreation time and a two-hour study hall. Most students have their own laptops, which they can use to listen to music or watch movies.

The school relies on wood heat. Fuel is readily available. Linda Wernick cooks breakfast and dinner, the only meals of the day, on a wood stove.

Each fall before the students arrive, the Wernicks stock up on everything they can?t grow themselves. They drive to town about every other week to replace supplies. In the winter, Jerry Wernick stops at a store each Monday when he takes the kids skiing.

For the most part, however, the Wernicks have everything they need at home. They?ve achieved their dream of sustainability.

?It doesn?t cost us much to live, even with the kids,? Linda Wernick said. ?We?re off the grid and self-sufficient.?

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.