Meet The Caretaker of Winterfield Pines - Dan Ellens
Dan Ellens is an outdoor enthusiast who is passionate about connecting people with nature. He spends nearly half of each year during all seasons living in The Treehouse on Winterfield Pines Nature Sanctuary while caring for the sanctuary and hosting the sanctuary’s guests. He is retired from a full career in industry and international business and currently promotes the restoration of natural and agricultural land, self-reliant lifestyles, and outward-bound activities. Dan likes to say he is part of a large pool of mechanical engineers with MBAs.
Dan Has Written Four Books That Are Currently Available
by Dan Ellens
by Dan Ellens
by Dan Ellens
by Dan Ellens
Dan is also the author of the email-blog, Michigan Forest Life, which includes more than 850 editions since 2018, each distributed to nearly 100 email recipients located on five continents.
Michigan Forest Life
Dan's Passions
Dan is an accomplished woodworker and carpenter. He is a hobby artist and is passionate about rescuing, restoring, and finding new homes for fine art that has been discarded. He loves exploring the possibilities of off-grid, electricity-free cooking and baking. Guests who
stay at The Bunkee are likely to be invited to The Treehouse for one meal prepared by Dan. Dan uses a sourdough culture originating from a starter used by Richard Proenneke in his wilderness cabin at Twin Lakes, Alaska. (Richard Proenneke is the legendary naturalist and pioneer whose work and wilderness lifestyle is memorialized in the 2004 documentary Alone in the Wilderness.)
