This Man Transformed A Decrepit $100 Cabin In The Woods Into A Dream Hideaway Home

Have you ever daydreamed about leaving modernity and all its trappings behind, heading to the woods, and starting a new life in the wild? Out with the traffic, paperwork, and online gossip—In with the rivers, woodwork, and twittering birdsong! It’s not as easy as it sounds, as this retired mathematician will attest to—but that doesn’t mean it is impossible. 

Richard Aiken was a young doctor whose profession had him moving all over the United States and other places such as Europe. These experiences were obviously very exciting and memorable, but he decided that he wanted to settle down.

Richard wanted to live out his realized dream of restoring a log cabin in the forest to become his own, even though he had no experience with fixer-up projects. So, he chose to find an old cabin, fix it up, and restore it on his own land.

To a casual passerby, this might just look like a hunk of junk under a bunch of brambles in the middle of nowhere. But to Richard Aiken, this pile of wood had the potential to serve as the perfect getaway home for him and his family. It’s certainly difficult to see under all that mess!

Richard was a mathematician by trade, a vegan, and an avid lover of the great outdoors. He’s also a family man. As time would reveal, he also had a few skills in construction, renovation, and rustic decor. He’s quite the renaissance man! 

After thinking long and hard about the project, Richard decided to buy in. He reached out to the owner of the rundown cabin and asked him how much it would cost to take the structure off his hands. The owner of the cabin obviously wasn’t using it. 

To any witnesses of this sale, $100 must have seemed like a crazy amount to spend on a rundown structure. His family probably thought nothing of it. Just another one of dad’s little projects. Maybe they thought it would give him something to do once in a while.

Richard and Mary wanted a complete change in their lifestyle after they moved to Springfield. In Aiken’s video, Man Restores Cabin, he described how they strove for a simpler way of life. “We sought land in a back-to-basics homestead,” Aiken explained.

The appreciation for a simpler life stems back to Richard’s deep roots in nature. After he had dedicated his time to learning about science, nature, and culture, he made the wise decision of becoming a vegan — which is where he got his Hillybilly Vegan nickname. He believed that a diet that didn’t include animals or dairy was the best thing for him and the planet.

Richard planned to relocate the structure and place it on his land. But first, he would need to clear out all the debris inside—and there was a lot of it. Rotten wood, discarded building materials, dead leaves, dirt, and all kinds of other junk lay waiting for him.  

Most of the debris on the inside had come from the collapsed roof. And the outside was a complete mess, too, on all sides. The cabin itself was flanked by brambles, deadwood, and trash. Richard ordered in a dumpster and got hauling!

With all the debris cleared away and the brambles and twigs trimmed back, Richard was able to assess his properly. Many of the wooden beams making up the four walls were still sturdy. They would suffice for his cozy hideaway.

Richard, a mathematician by trade, is a meticulous thinker. He believes in good planning and execution. Therefore, he devised a simple system for transporting the old bones of his cabin. You can see the markings he made on the side of each plank here.

The logs were labeled on both ends according to three points: their location on the original site, the direction they were pointing at, and their level. For example, the north side, pointing east, level three—the west side, pointing south, level five—and so on.  

With the non-rotten wall beams salvaged and marked up for transport, Richard could ensure that his cabin would retain its authentic, old-timey rustic flavor. The soul of the cabin was being moved to a new location on Richard’s property. And just look at this vista!

Richard had consulted Two Bears, a member of the Sioux Tribe, for help. His methods of removing the oak beams proved effective! No machinery was necessary, either.

The location wasn’t just beautiful, but there were many natural resources nearby—including spring water. Here are Richard’s kids digging out a water flow. Of course, they had been helping out, too. They were probably excited to have their own family cabin!

Finally, a spot was chosen for the cabin. Richard’s system had worked just as perfectly as he had imagined. The frame of the cabin was laid down. But Richard suddenly stopped the work. He realized the cabin was missing something. 

If the ground would not capitulate, then Richard would have to raise the basement roof! Rather than plant his shack on the ground as it had been done in its original sport, Richard gave it a solid stone foundation. 

With a stone foundation and thanks to the extra height of the floor, the cabin would be in less danger of flooding should the lake over-fill. And since they had moved the cabin so close to a lake, they decided to build themselves a little lakeside platform. 

With the foundations laid, Richard and his family got to work putting up the walls and fixing the door frame. With his markings, this took no time at all. Richard’s son was there to witness the transformation of a stone floor to the making of a woodland home. 

By this point, many years had passed. But now, with the basement done, the cabin itself wasn’t just an imaginary structure! Here you can see the lower part of the cabin with an entrance to the basement. Richard looks like he’s finally having fun here! 

Richard used some nearby split cedar shakes as shingles for the roof. Look at them go up! These beams will likely last much longer than the original cabin’s roof. The whole family pitched in for this tricky step in the building process.

With the bones of the roof up, the cabin was starting to look more like a home. Look at this beautiful 1800s cabin reproduction standing proud in glorious nature. Besides the blue tarp and construction equipment, it’s almost looking perfect!

What’s a cabin in the woods without a porch and a little cover for shade from the sun’s rays? The porch itself looks a little high and will definitely need a set of stairs, but at least now, nobody will walk outside and take a face dip in the dirt.

With the power of editing, we can get a glimpse into the cabin’s future! It looks like the perfect spot to hang out in when the sun is hot, and the air is sticky and thick—in other words, summer. It’s the perfect getaway location! 

The final touch to the cabin’s walls was the gap filler job or “caulking,” as it’s called in construction. Without filling these holes, the cabin would just be a glorified hovel! They used a traditional recipe of sand, Portland cement, and lime over some chicken wire. 

The caulking was complete. The logs still gave the building that classic, rustic aesthetic that had inspired Richard to begin this project all those years ago. Almost a decade had passed, but the cabin was almost ready.

The project has come a long way since Richard originally had to shovel all that old cabin junk into the dumpster and mark up the planks. The days were long, and the bumps in the road were bumpy, but it was all coming together.

With the walls caulked and the wind sealed off on the outside, it was time to build something that would keep Richard and his family warm from the inside, especially in the winter months. Here are the raw materials for a majestic hearth.

Wow! What a fireplace! This isn’t just a pit for a little bit of fire—it’s a stage for a magnificent blaze! What would a cabin be without the warm, appealing crackle of the fire? Once again, credit to Richard and his family for crafting such a top-notch build. 

So far, we’ve only seen the outside of the cabin—but just take a look at this beautiful interior, starting with the wood-cut stairs. What a work of art! Each step was literally cut out of a piece of the unused cabin wood—every knob and groove a reminder of nature’s bounty.

The cabin was really coming together nicely. The porch was completed, the windows and doors were installed, and the staircase was intact. Richard’s dream cabin was nearly ready to be lived in, but there was one thing.

A door isn’t just a door—it’s an introduction to the interior (or it’s a firm goodbye)! In either case, this door is perfectly suited to Richard’s restoration vision. The door was crafted by a carpenter with a design the family had commissioned.

The wood that Richard took from the original cabin building was intact, but it did have its problems. This picture, taken by his daughter, shows how holes riddled the walls, opening the cabin to the elements.

The artistry on the cabin is impressive, but check out all the furniture on the inside! From the chairs to the dining table, everything looks as if it came straight out of the 1850s—a quant, cozy picture, to say the least.

What’s a good fireplace without a good table to sit around and warm up next to it? This is where the feast of home-grown vegetable stew and home-baked pie happens. The table looks light and easily maneuverable, too, so there’s an easy way to make space.

Here’s a nice shot of the morning sun shining into the cabin from the upstairs level. In the daytime, there’s no lack of visibility, thanks to the window. With no electricity, it was important to think about details like this. As is evident from this picture, candles take care of the light after dark. 

Here’s the bed upstairs—a place to rest after a long day of reflection in the woods or a place to sleep like a babe during the night hours. The smell of the wood and the warmth of the fire in the room below must make this a relaxing experience. 

Who could resist a bubbling pot of stew from this pot? Imagine wood-cooked soup, beans, or hot cocoa from this kitchen! Yum! It would really make you feel like you’re living in a cabin two hundred years ago, living out the homesteader’s dream. 

The fact that there was no electricity in Richard’s cabin made it much more charming and cozy. The flooring was dark and rustic, locally milled from the majestic white oak trees that surrounded the area. These oak pieces were put on top of a composite plywood-type floor — they sat on the floor joists above the foundation.

To be as efficient as possible, Richard designed the fireplace himself. He hadn’t done anything quite like it before, so it required some planning and focus. In his video, he shared, “Fiery golden Hackett stone from Arkansas faced the interior of the fireplace.”

Although bundling up with some hot cocoa by the fire sounds lovely, Richard intended for the fireplace to have more than one designated use. He wanted it to serve its purpose as an old-fashioned kitchen appliance, which was also known as “hearth cooking.”

The cabin’s interior was warm and inviting, but Richard wanted to spend just as much time outdoors. He did, after all, made the decision to live in nature. He developed an old-fashioned structure for cooking food over a fire, which was located right near the porch.

But what’s a home without a loving family? Here they are with a big old pumpkin on the table, eating some delicious home-cooked food. All their hard work over the years is now behind them, and they can enjoy the fruits of their labor. 

Here’s a shot of the family at Thanksgiving, enjoying all the bounties of their years of hard work. Here’s Richard posting a shot of the fire with a cornucopia of treats and a few grapes in the foreground. The fire is really roaring! 

If you’re looking for something to be grateful for, here’s a good one: “thank you for my life, thank you for the work I have been given, and thank you for the tools I need to complete my work.” Richard certainly relished in all the work necessary to turn this ruin into a ruby. 

Richard’s daughter took a few artistic shots of the cabin to mark the ten-year anniversary since her dad began work on the project. This is just one of our favorites. The candles certainly lend a cozy feeling to the room. 

Who doesn’t love a white winter scene where you and your family can enjoy that crisp vista of snow that blankets the earth at the end of the year? Especially if you happen to have an amazing place to stay, feast, and host!

Could this cabin look any more amazing? Here’s a shot of the chimney in its full majesty and the balcony with the railings installed. The only thing missing are puffs of smoke from the top of the chimney stack. That would make a quaint little postcard!

Of course, Richard had a lot of help over the years while rebuilding the cabin. But just look at the mess of work he had to contend with in order to make his dream a reality. It goes to show that if you set yourself a goal, break that goal up into achievable bites, and go for it—you can do anything.