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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
POSTED:
May 14, 2003
SUSTAINABLE BUILDING WORK EXCHANGE PROGRAMS IN COLORADO, USA
WHAT: three-day to three-week long programs
WHEN: summer and autumn 2003
WHERE: Slickrock Basecamp, near Dove Creek, CO, elevation 7,200
feet (2,200 meters).
WHO: Workshop leader is Philip Mirkin, Hybrid Adobe builder and
experimenter
COST: Registration is required. Contact for details.
CONTACT: Philip Mirkin, email
or leave message at 866-305-1403 (24-hr message service), or after May
25th call 970-677-3600 between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM Mountain Time. The
earlier you apply the better lodging choices you'll have.
WEBSITES:
www.hybridadobe.com
Last
year's work exchange programs in Sustainable Building saw over 20 people
join us for an average of 10 days each. We had a lot of fun and got creative!
We will continue these programs with Avant Garde Travel and Hybrid Adobe
from late May until September.
INTERNSHIPS,
WORKSHOPS AND WORK EXCHANGES
Come
to the beautiful Southwest and learn how to build with Hybrid Adobe, working
on an actual house building project and new experimental design buildings.
These
three-day to three-week long programs will cover many applications of
this revolutionary material. This is our fifth year of work exchange programs
in the Four Corners region, and 16th year offering wilderness and humanitarian
aid relief journeys. For more info on the travel programs the Custom Travel
section of the hybridadobe.com website.
Last
year we offered about 18 workshops all over the west coast and in Colorado
and the Caribbean. They were fun! Children plastered the walls with fanciful
figures created of fibered adobe while lively music and conversation filled
the air, with dance parties and barbecues afterward.
The
response to our work exchange programs so far has been great. Over 600
people have come to seminars and hands-on workshops since we began offering
them two years ago. More workshops will be held in California and Colorado,
The Caribbean and Bali in 2003. Please watch the website for actual dates
and locations as they are announced.
The
work gets more creative and experimental from here on out, so join in
the fun (no building codes in these parts!). You can experiment with your
own ideas and designs, too. Just let us know when you are free to come
so we can integrate you into the program.
There
are plenty of shady campsites for tents, a small teepee and spots to sleep
in the new building, but lodging is on a first-come, first-served basis.
Philip Mirkin will be unavailable by email from June 20th to 26th, 2003
to lead a weeklong adventure in Utah at Zion National Park. If you are
interested to join, please contact Philip as soon as possible. Last summer's
weeklong Native Culture Adventure took the group to four different New
Mexico Pueblos for ceremonies and dances.
Thank
you in advance for not sending huge emails or attachments that fill our
email storage (anything above 40K) without first letting us know.
We
have some fun excursions planned as part of this summer's programs: Arches
and Canyonlands National Parks are only a 90-minute drive away and offer
endless backcountry adventure. Then there is local exploration in the
deep Dolores River Canyon just a few minutes away, mountain hot springs
and ancient cities. Of course we will be offering programs on the Navajo
Indian Reservation and traveling to Mesa Verde, Monument Valley, Hovenweep,
Canyon de Chelley, Chaco Canyon, Natural Bridges, Anasazi, and the other
National Parks nearby.
DETAILS:
Healthy
people are invited to assist wilderness expedition leader and designer
Philip Mirkin to finish the construction of an experimental house addition.
It's being built out of Hybrid Adobe (similar to fibrous cement or papercrete),
hybrid bale, cedar, willow and more. Help is needed, both skilled and
unskilled.
This
high mesa forested base camp is the locale where you can also experiment
with hybrid adobe making sculptures, pottery, furniture, building materials
and do your own artwork. You are free to sell what you make in Durango,
Santa Fe, Taos and Telluride, the major art markets nearby. You'll also
learn how you might create a business with these low-cost and sustainable
materials.
WORK
EXCHANGES:
In
exchange for part-time work (20-30 hours a week, as you like), you'll
learn all about building with Hybrid Adobe and papercrete, gain hands-on
experience (the best way to learn is by doing) and have the chance to
live and travel in the stunning Four Corners region (where CO, UT, NM
and AZ come together). Most food, lodging and local transport is included.
Some
people will also be trained to be workshop leaders and earn an income
back home leading workshops.
WORKSHOPS:
Some
people only have a weekend or so to spend in Colorado. We have offered
26 workshops in the last two years, so people can learn to build their
own low-cost, sustainable homes and much more during a weekend.
THE
FOUR CORNERS:
The Four Corners is a land of 14,000 ft elevation Alpine peaks and canyons
up to 3,000 ft deep. Visitors will also travel to places of natural beauty
with a 15-year veteran guide (at little or no-cost), and may visit Native
American culture centers, ancient cities, hot springs and hike to some
of the most stunning scenery in North America.
It's
a relaxed atmosphere, where having fun while working on the project is
our focus. The work is concentrated into 20-30 hours a week or 4-6 hours
average per day for five days of the week. That way we have ample time
for hiking in the mountains, bathing in the river and hot springs, exploring
the canyons, making artwork and music and enjoying the peace and quiet
away from noisy cities.
Frequently
asked questions:
What
kind of work will I be doing?
We
need help finishing our experimental 550-sq. foot addition and keep our
base camp running. This means, running the mixer and pouring blocks, hand-plastering
the finish coat on the walls (and adding mosaics!), cutting and weaving
willow for the sweat lodge-style roof), carpentry, forestry protection,
landscaping, cooking, stone work and keeping the hot tub hot! The work
is varied and the schedule and projects flexible depending on your interests,
the weather, etc.
How
long can I stay?
A
minimum of two days, but we prefer that you stay for five days or more.
Most people average 10 to 14 day programs (or even more if it's a good
match), so you get the opportunity to enjoy the region and really learn
these creative procedures.
How
do I get there?
You
can drive to our project and base camp yourself or we can pick you up
if you take public transport (ask us for details and carpooling info).
We are located 85 miles SE of Moab, 100 miles NW of Durango, 90 miles
west of Telluride or a five hour drive from Salt Lake City, Santa Fe,
Albuquerque or Flagstaff, AZ, and six hours west of Denver. The small
town of Dove Creek, CO is 14 miles south and the basecamp just seven miles
east of the Utah/Colorado border. We can help with travel arrangements/carpooling.
Where
will I stay?
You
can sleep in a tent, our tipi, in the new building, perhaps in the cabin,
in a hammock, your own truck or under the stars. There is plenty of room
and many beautiful campsites on our two-acre wooded slice of paradise
(lots of trees here, 7,200 ft elevation). We have well water, electricity
and phone (with limited Internet time) and a hot tub or cold plunge (depending
on the weather).
Our
Slickrock basecamp lies at the very top of the Dolores River Canyon, a
2,000 foot deep canyon, hundreds of miles long, tributary to the Colorado.
Thousands of ancient Puebloan sites are within a 75-mile radius and some
of the largest ancient cities are less than 30 miles away. The Dolores
River is only 10 miles away and beautiful mountain lakes are nearby. Mountain
biking and hiking are right here.
When
we do want to enjoy town life, go dancing or get natural foods, we have
some great places to kick back in: Durango, Moab and Telluride to name
a few. We have an organic garden for fresh greens and access to wild elk
meat for the carnivores.
We
share food and cooking, cleaning and much else. Our workshop weekends
are full of music, dancing, playing in the river and hiking.
We
currently need help with:
- Creating
Hybrid Adobe blocks and panels and adding them to the addition.
- Post
and beam carpentry to build shade structures
- Plastering
with Hybrid Adobe and clay mixes
- Landscaping
- Stonework
- Kitchen
work
- New
plumbing and electrical (and a simple solar water tank, too)
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Philip 'Felipe' Mirkin is the owner of Avant Garde Travel, a travel business
focusing on very small and private adventure trips focusing on Native
American culture, canyon exploration and humanitarian relief trips. He
developed Hybrid Adobe from experimentation with fibercrete, which was
problematic for building. Our building site is also our basecamp and we
are building a large addition to the rustic cabin and tipi. We have been
in operation since 1986 and have provided humanitarian aid for 15 chapters
of the Navajo Nation as well as the Ute, Paiute, Puebloan and other native
peoples. See the Custom Travel button on our website: www.hybridadobe.com
(photos of the region are there too).
Contact
us soon as there are a limited number of spaces available through to October
2003!
INFORMATION
AND REGISTRATION:
Philip Mirkin
Email:
Phone: 866-305-1403
www.hybridadobe.com
We welcome your questions. For more information or a copy of articles
on our Hybrid Adobe process or our adventure programs please send your
address and email to:
or P O Box 123, Dove Creek,
CO 81324. You can always leave a message at our 24-hrs a day message service
866-305-1403 so Philip can call you back personally. You can also call
970-677-3600 direct after May 25th.
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