Couple Secretly Lived in Highway Median for Years, Rent Free, Mortgage Free

As a writer, I'm always looking for a good story or piece of news. To help collect interesting information, I put out a challenge on a web site this year. I invited people to share their own stories of non-traditional, self-supporting lifestyles. Among the hundreds of respondents who described living unique and interesting lifestyles, the one that I found most interesting was a story of a couple who, after being laid off and failing to find work, ended up living on rent-free, mortgage-free land: a third-mile-wide heavily-wooded median strip between eastbound and westbound highway lanes.

They allowed me to use their story under the condition that I reveal neither their last name nor the exact location of the highway land on which they lived for 3 years.

The following account of one couple's survival of unemployment and financial devastation was obtained during several telephone interviews with Norma and Guy.

Guy and Norma had both been employed in the financial field until mid-May of 2006 when they both lost their jobs. After a year of unsuccessful job searching, their unemployment was scheduled to run out within two months, after which they would face certain eviction from their apartment, not to mention bad credit which would result from inability to pay bills.

However, before eviction or bad credit could occur, they gave their landlord a one-month lease-termination notice in March of 2007, in accordance with their signed rental agreement. After the one-month period, they still had not found a home that they could afford, but they had to vacate the premises anyway. Planning to move by car, they estimated exactly what they would be able to carry in their two vehicles, a minivan and car. Fortunately, all the furniture and appliances came with the apartment, so all the big items would remain. They loaded up the cars with all the items they could not take with them (some of them very valuable), and dropped them off in a church parking lot with a note attached "sell or give away." They returned to their apartment and packed up the minivan and car, and in April, 2007, headed west on a major interstate highway. Norma drove the small car, and Guy followed close behind with the minivan, both cars packed as full as possible, with no particular destination in mind.

They drove for more than a day, with frequent stops since they were in no hurry. There is an old saying, "If you don't know where you're going, any road will get you there." Guy and Norma found this to be very true when, at approximately 3:45 in the morning, Norma fell asleep at the wheel. The small car she was driving coasted into the wooded median, miraculously squeezed between two trees, and came to a rolling stop in a thick evergreen forest. Guy had followed the car with the minivan as far as he could into the woods, but had to stop before low-hanging tree limbs ripped the tarp that covered a mountain of possessions tied to the top of the minivan. He jumped out and ran to where the smaller car had come to a stop. After Guy learned that Norma was fine but that she had fallen asleep at the wheel, they both decided that driving further would be dangerous. Fearful of a receiving a traffic fine for parking along an interstate highway, they pulled the smaller car further into the woods. For security, it was necessary to park the minivan next to the smaller car, so they unloaded the "mountaintop" from the top of the minivan, then drove the minivan into the forest next to the smaller car. After that, they carried all the items that had been unloaded from the top of the minivan, close to where the cars were parked, and covered them back up with the tarp in the event of rain or other inclement weather.

It was now 4:45 in the morning, and they were completely exhausted. They dug through packed boxes and bags to find their tent, sleeping bags, and blowup mattress, which provided them with hours of comfortable sleep.

They awoke at 10:00 in the morning to sunshine, a warm temperature, blue skies, and the songs of 100 birds. The evergreen forest was thick enough that the highway was not visible from their tent. Struck with pangs of hunger from last night's exhaustive series of events, they set up the card table and folding chairs, then rummaged through the cooler and food boxes for breakfast food, of which there was plenty.

After breakfast, they decided to do some exploring. A deer path led them to a pond only a few hundred feet west of the tent. The pond was apparently fed by a stream coming from the south. They followed the stream as far as they could for about a quarter of a mile, where it continued through a very large pipe built into the side of a long hill, on top of which was the eastbound lane. The water coming through the under-road pipe appeared to be mountain runoff from across the eastbound highway. Such a large amount of land between two highway lanes seemed a waste, but perhaps this was the only way to handle the great elevation differences between the two lanes.

They walked back to the pond. West of the pond (opposite where their cars were parked), the ground was somewhat swampy for about 100 feet, apparently overflow for the pond. Continuing west past the small swamp lay a great clearing, a field of wildflowers and green bushes, that could not be seen from either highway lane, because of the thick evergreen border that followed both lanes like a thick natural fence-an opaque boundary. None of this could be seen from the highway. It was completely concealed-a hidden paradise. They continued walking westward past the clearing, and strolled through more forest for about two miles, then returned to the area of their tent and cars.

The forest ground was a mixture of rocks and fertile soil. They gathered some rocks and made a fire ring for cooking. Firewood was plentiful, but they realized that a large amount of smoke could get noticed, so they kept the fire small and under the cover of fir trees to help dissipate the smoke.

Late that afternoon, they heated up a can of cream of chicken soup in a saucepan by setting the pot on top of two rocks that straddled a small fire. Only the center of the pan got heated, but that was the best they could do without a steel mesh grill top for handling pots and pans over a flame. They also enjoyed a can of green beans, and some leftover cornbread with jelly they had packed from their last dinner in the apartment. To prevent a large amount of smoke emitting from a dying fire, they quickly covered it with a metal bucket which served quite well for both extinguishing the fire and containing any resultant smoke.

After dinner, they explored the other direction (east), which was more of the same thick evergreen forest with nothing unusual to report. They returned to their camp and prepared a small snack before turning in for a long night's sleep.

Once again, they awoke to sunshine, a perfect temperature, blue skies, and the beautiful songs of many birds. For washing, they suspended a garbage bag from a tree limb and filled it with water from the stream. Two pinholes in the plastic provided a nice flow of water adequate for hand washing or showering. When finished, small sticks inserted into the pinholes served effectively as stoppers in order to conserve water, since it had to be carried by bucketfuls from the stream. They boiled the water for drinking.

Having their entire household of possessions along proved quite handy. They used a hatchet for cutting up firewood, strung up a clothes line for drying things, and used charcoal lighter for starting a fire. Basically, they had all the conveniences of home, except a refrigerator for the eggs and milk. To keep the eggs cold, they placed the Styrofoam carton inside an empty "fishnet" onion bag, which dangled in the icy-cold stream secured with a rope to a tree limb. The milk stayed cold in a similar fashion, by securing the plastic jug's handle with a rope, and allowing the container to set in the cold stream.

Breakfast included great coffee (allowed the grounds settled to the bottom of the pot), toast-on-a-stick, and scrambled eggs, which provided them with sufficient sustenance for the first part of the day.

This environment was so perfect, so comfortable, and so free, that they decided to not be in a hurry about finding a place to live, but instead, would take their time to create a reasonable game plan. Decisions made in haste often produce problems.

Days passed leisurely and blissfully until after 10 days. A treacherous storm blew in, carrying with it high winds and rain that appeared to fall in sheets. A branch fell on their tent and punctured it. Duct tape fixed the hole, but what if a much larger limb falls on the tent? Or worse yet, a tree? That could be fatal. It was obvious that they needed more than a thin tent for protection from the elements.

Therefore, the next morning after the sun and blue skies once again emerged, they took the minivan out onto the highway. They were closest to the westbound lane, so it made sense to simply head west. The nearest exit was almost 10 miles down the highway. Luck was on their side as they drove past a "big box" store that had those cute, homey-looking sheds with porches for sale. They were half-price by not having the store come out and assemble the shed on site, so they spent the better part of their returned apartment deposit on a 10 foot by 15 foot shed, exterior stain, lots of extra lumber and tools. They also stopped at a grocery store and stocked up on foods that would require little, if any, refrigeration.

Driving back to their camp was a challenge with an oversized tarp-covered load tied to the top of the minivan. Too much wind could yank it right off the car; or worse yet, tip the car over. They drove slowly with emergency flashers on. It was necessary to drive another 10 miles eastward past their camp to the closest exit, turn around, and head west for another 10 miles, to arrive at the camp. This 40-mile trip would add considerably to the cost of fetching supplies, so they decided to keep a careful list of supplies needed and only make the 40-mile trip when absolutely necessary.

Upon arriving at the exact spot on the westbound lane where Norma had fallen asleep 11 days ago, they stopped and waited by the side of the road until no cars were in sight before proceeding into the woods, following their initial route. As before, low tree limbs made it impossible to drive the minivan into the camp, so they arduously unloaded the tarp-covered hill from the top of the minivan before driving it further into the woods to the camp.

They decided to get a good night's rest, because strength and endurance would be needed for constructing the shed tomorrow.

They decided to locate the shed in a rocky area where the soil was not likely to settle much. They found such a spot near the edge of the forest, far away from any traffic, but still under evergreen cover where it would not be seen from the air. It would actually catch the morning and early afternoon sun, which was ideal.

After removing as many rocks as possible, they hit solid bedrock. Actually, this was a good thing, because it meant that the shed would not settle at all. The ground was not perfectly level, but careful repositioning of some rocks created a level foundation for laying down the 4-inch by 4-inch treated-lumber beams upon which the shed would be constructed. The pre-built walls saved a huge amount of time, but it was definitely a 2-person job.

It was tiring work which actually took several days to complete. When they were done, they stood back and looked with pride upon their 10 by 15 foot shed with its tiny porch and galvanized, corrugated metal roof that was guaranteed for many years.

As they walked inside and looked around, they realized that a huge amount of space overhead was being wasted, so they decided to build a 3/4 loft, which would be perfect for sleeping and extra storage. A 3/4 loft would increase their floor space by exactly 75%. Construction of the loft would require a system of two sturdy crossbeams to serve as upstairs floor joists, supported by vertical timbers. They had purchased extra lumber to enclose the outside shower. However, they felt that the loft was a more important use of the lumber, and thus, abandoned the shower-enclosure project.

They found the timber necessary for the loft support system. Guy managed to climb a fir tree and free up another tree that had been learning against it. Once free, it crashed to the ground but remained in one piece. Using the entire diameter of this 8-inch log would have been overkill, so Guy split the log in half lengthwise by applying a sledge hammer to a steel wedge every twelve inches down the length of the tree, splitting it evenly in half lengthwise into two very long 4" half-logs. They were able to "hatchet" the natural beams to a precise length and construct the support system for the loft, over which they laid and secured the loft floor boards. Using an old-fashioned hammer and nails, this took all day. Finally, sturdy branches were fastened together to serve as a ladder to the loft.

When finished, they stood inside the shed, looked around, and imagined all the possibilities. They decided where shelves, storage bins, table, and chairs would be placed.

One of the above two photos, submitted by Guy and Norma, shows part of the finished shed in the wooded environment; and the second photo shows the evergreen forest, taken from a high ridge using a telephoto lens.

One main problem occurred to them-how does the shed get heated in the Winter? They were in the mid-central portion of the United States, meaning that Winters rarely saw anything colder than 10 degrees Fahrenheit. A typical January daytime high temperature was anywhere from 35 to 55 degrees, and a typical January nighttime low temperature was anywhere between 20 and 35 degrees. A method of heat was essential.

They ended up driving back to the same "big box" do-it-yourself store to consult with an employee who directed them to a tiny wood-burning stove with chimney pipe that necessitated sawing a hole in the ceiling and roof. However, the kit came with everything necessary to make the roof completely waterproof. The wood-burning stove was up on legs where it would not heat the wooden floor excessively, but they still installed a fireproof mat under the stove for extra safety.

Guy and Norma tried to use the wood-burning stove only at late dusk or night so that no smoke would be visible. The great thing about the wood-burning stove was that it had a flat area on top that served well for cooking food or boiling water. The shed had two large windows with screens, one on each of the 15-foot sides. Part of the window rose above the level of the loft, which provided nice daytime light to both floors. Another window was located next to the front door, which could also be opened for ventilation. They were delighted at how rodent-proof the shed was, and never had to worry about animals getting into the food. In the Winter, when it was too cold to shower outside, they stayed comfortably clean by taking "sink baths" in a wash basin filled with a mixture of cold water and boiled water. For lighting at night, they used candles placed into lidless glass jars.

After seven months, in November, 2007, Norma and Guy found themselves running out of money. In their particular situation, the consequences of running completely out of money meant starvation, death. With no money, there would be no food, and no gas in the car in order to obtain food and supplies. This was a very grim realization for them. They discussed possible ways to make some quick cash.

They had both waited tables in the past. Many restaurants and coffee shops will hire table waiters on the spot if they are short on help. So the next morning they awoke very early, got cleaned up, put on their best clothes, and drove to a restaurant just off the exit where they had been buying supplies. They walked into the restaurant and inquired about jobs as table waiters. A manager came out and spoke with them, apologizing that he had no openings at the time, but advised Guy and Norma that the coffee shop across the street was in dire straits for help.

They thanked him, then visited the coffee shop across the street. A white-haired, smiling manager welcomed Norma and Guy with open arms, gave them aprons to put on, let them study the menu for a little while, answered a few questions for them, then put the couple to work immediately. The pay was not great, less than minimum wage, but the tips were good. By the end of the day (10 hours), they had both made a combined total of $128, an average of $6.40 per hour per person, including tips. They were very surprised when the manager simply gave them cash out of the drawer to pay them for their hourly wages for the day. He asked them if they were working again tomorrow, to which they heartily said "Yes!" By the end of the week (6 work days), they had both made a combined total of $802.

They advised the manager that they would work 12 more days, before and after Thanksgiving, taking off a 5-day weekend (Wednesday through Sunday) for seeing their families. He appeared to be very thankful for any time that Guy and Norma could spend in the coffee shop, and agreed with their work schedule. At the end of their final day of work, the manager thanked them profusely and invited them to come back any time, stating that he would put them to work. The $2,400 they made in 18 days of work would last for months, providing they did not encounter automobile or health problems.

On the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, the coffee shop manager let the couple borrow his phone to call their families and let them know they were coming for Thanksgiving. It was very convenient that Guy's family back East lived only 17 miles from Norma's family. They left Tuesday night after work to drive back East and arrived at Norma's family's home Wednesday evening. Thus, they spent Wednesday evening and Thursday at Norma's family's home, then Friday with Guy's family.

They advised their families that they would be returning to visit for Christmas. On Saturday, they headed west to return to their evergreen-forest home by Sunday night. All during the trip home they reflected upon the events of the holiday, their families, the warm welcome they both received, and the wonderful togetherness and conversations they enjoyed. It truly was a comfort to know that all was well with everyone back home. They decided that they would stay longer for Christmas, since they had no work commitments during that time.

During their discussion of driving back East to their homes for Christmas, they decided to work at the coffee shop for the first two weeks in December to earn more money for family Christmas gifts and gas for the long trip.

On the morning of December 1st, Guy and Norma showed up at the coffee shop, and the manager welcomed them with enthusiasm, and put them to work right away waiting tables. When they advised the manager that they could work for two weeks (6 days per week), he expressed his sincere gratitude, and told them how happy he was to have them back for any amount of time in his coffee shop.

One extremely great benefit of working in the coffee shop during the day was that it was warm on cold Winter days. Norma and Guy had been avoiding the use of their wood-burning stove during daytime hours to prevent smoke from being seen. Since it was dark by the time they arrived home each day, they felt free to use the stove all evening and night.

The coffee shop was extremely busy those two weeks, presumably due to the pre-holiday time, thus, the tips were even better than before. However, each night upon returning to their evergreen-forest home, Guy and Norma were completely exhausted after spending 10 hours on their feet, working at top speed to keep all the customers happy. It was very tiring, but at the end of their 2-week commitment, they had made a combined total of $1,872. When added to the $2,170 remaining from their first stint at the coffee shop, they now possessed the tidy sum of $4,042.

What a joy Christmas shopping was when they could afford to be generous. They spent a touch over $1,000 on family Christmas presents, leaving about $3,000 to live on until such time that they would return to the coffee shop.

Christmas came and went, and the new year brought them new hope.

January was cold, which was no surprise. It only snowed a few days in January, but when it did snow, it drifted up to several feet deep in places and was sometimes difficult to open the front door. The snow did not melt quickly, but stayed around for days. They did not dare take the car out on a snowy day, because the tracks would surely draw attention to their secret road into the forest. For this reason, they had stocked up especially well before the dead of Winter struck.

Norma and Guy can both recall one January day when they were outside shoveling snow from their walking path. They heard the motor of a large truck squealing and grinding to a halt on the side of the highway. Next, they heard voices coming from two or three men, probably highway workers. Guy and Norma hid behind a tree when they heard one voice growing louder and closer. They remained motionless behind the tree for what seemed like approximately ten minutes. The voices then grew a bit more faint, the engine revved up, and they heard the truck slowly pull away. After that was silence-no more voices. The men were gone, but Norma and Guy felt very nervous about nearly being discovered. They dared not venture out toward the road to see how close the men's snowy footprints came to their area, because their own footprints would create a path from the road to their home, which would be a disaster. They would simply have to assume that the men saw nothing, or they would have investigated the shed.

They pondered the thought of being discovered and discussed it at length. Would they go to court, get put on probation, do community-service time, or worse yet get thrown in jail? The variety of possibilities were truly frightening.

February felt as cold as January, but there were days with no snow on the ground, which made it possible for Guy and Norma to drive into town for supplies without leaving telltale car tire tracks to and from their shed. When entering or exiting the highway, they never drove the car over the same spot twice to prevent tracks from creating a visible "road," which could arouse the curiosity of any road authorities or workers. For this reason, they tried not to make any trips into town on rainy days, because wet ground could more easily produce tire tracks. Fortunately, there were far more dry days than wet, so this never became a problem.

By March of 2008, the weather began to warm up, and April brought a whole new world of wild flowers and migratory birds returning from their southern escape from Winter. The world came back to life, and the daylight grew longer.

Summer arrived with all its glory, bustling wildlife, and long lazy days. By this time, the couple had worn easy-walking paths through the woods, around the pond, and places where they frequently walked. Life got easier and more comfortable as they learned to adapt to the environment. During these months, whenever money began to dwindle, the couple worked at their leisure at the coffee shop.

Another Autumn came, followed by Winter and Spring. Days melted into weeks, and into months. It was now 2009.

On June 1, 2009, Norma and Guy drove back to the coffee shop after being away for two months. They were delighted to see that the coffee shop had expanded with an outside café. The manager had added a nice variety to the menu, and the shop was open longer hours. Guy and Norma decided to give it everything they had, and work 12 hours a day, 6 days a week June, July, August, and September. Twenty percent longer hours meant twenty percent more money. Thus, by October 1 they were able to add $7,400 more to their $850 in remaining earnings from previous work. They had $8,250.

Norma and Guy had not been on a vacation together since their honeymoon nearly 11 years ago. With $8,250, they could go on a second honeymoon, and still have money left over for living expenses. So they stopped at the library before returning home one evening, and used the library's PC to compare prices among a variety of companies offering cruise vacations. They called the least expensive cruise line, who was happy to schedule one month's worth of back-to-back cruises to the western Caribbean, the eastern Caribbean, the Bahamas, and Bermuda. Using only one cruise line company for these different cruises meant the purchase of only one round trip airline ticket per person. The entire package came to $5,200.

They purchased a VISA gift card with their $8,250, which would provide them with better security of their money. They used the new card to pay the cruise line $5,200 for the vacation package. The $3,050 that remained on the card could be used anytime, just about anywhere. They could use part of it to fund any incidentals, souvenirs, or miscellaneous expenses incurred during the vacation. And later, they could use the gift card to pay for groceries and supplies-same as cash.

The coffee shop manager allowed them to leave their car parked in the shop's parking lot, and he drove them to the airport in mid-December of 2009 to begin their one-month adventure. During the ride to the airport, the coffee shop manager informed Guy and Norma that he planned to retire and move to Florida. Surprised by this news, Guy asked the manager when this would be happening. The manager said this would happen as soon as he found someone responsible enough to take over the coffee shop and eventually buy him out. Essentially, a "lease-to-own" type of situation.

Norma and Guy both expressed their interest in taking over the coffee shop, but admitted that they had no knowledge of how to run a business. The manager had come to know and trust the couple as a hard-working, intelligent team. He offered to mentor them over the next year if they were willing to take it on. Before dropping them off at the airport, Guy and Norma advised the manager that they were definitely interested and wished to resume this conversation upon returning from their vacation.

Norma and Guy were in ecstasy over looking forward to their one-month tropical vacation, then on to the possibility of a real life afterward, in the real world. They delighted in the idea of not having to live a life of hiding and fear of being discovered.

Upon their return, they purchased a pre-paid cell phone. Knowing that they would need a real address for their business venture, they found an apartment close to the coffee shop, paid a deposit, signed a one-year rental agreement. They were now officially back in the world.

They visited the coffee shop, discussed at length the change-of-ownership plan, and accepted the manager's offer, which included generous profit-sharing, health benefits, and all the mentoring necessary for a smooth transition of management exactly one year from the date of their agreement in January, 2010. The manager even agreed to be available by phone afterward to assist with any issues that may arise.

Norma and Guy spent the next few weeks slowly transporting possessions to the apartment as they commuted to and from work. By March, 2010, they officially moved into their apartment, and left their hidden paradise in the forest.

That Summer, they spent a few weekends back in their forest home as a getaway from the hustle and bustle of working and living in town. It was a nice contrast, but they felt grateful to once again be employed and living an active social life among friends. It felt great to be working again and planning for the future.