Ted Pilger HOW I FOUND OUT ABOUT SUNNYRIDGE POSTED Feb 19, 2000
This is what I wrote back in Oct. 1988 about this question.
I first heard about Sunnyridge in a letter from Dee (Demetra) in which she described the commune and suggested I come there. I had known Dee at New Paltz State College in N.Y. where I had attended one semester and then dropped out. I was a roomate with Dee and her boyfriend, Larry Holland, and came to know her quite well, especially her sensitive side. I valued her opinion and honesty.
Peter K. HOW I FOUND OUT ABOUT SUNNYRIDGE POSTED May 28, 2000
Betty, Leah, Nina, Miriam and I were living in a rented house on Highway 199 while we were looking for land. In addition to us the "we" included Larry and Barbara, a couple we had met at the August 1 meeting and with whom we were spending a great deal of time (to hear more about this meeting which is really where SR was born, and about the time between the meeting and Sept. 1 when we moved to SR you will have to ask me.) Anyone else who wanted to could, and often would attach him or herself, to this core group of four adults and three children. Occasionally Pat and Terry, a couple who had purchased a beautiful mining claim along the bank of the Illinois River very near to Takilma which was the center of the Hippie influx in the Illinois Valley, Lila Rocey with her two daughters, Amy and ???, one-armed Duke, Mr. Clean and other assorted people joined us at various times. Our search was aided by local Real Estate brokers and local folk. At this time, there was a mini Real Estate boom in the Illinois Valley and all kinds of land was for sale. Much of this land was useless and actually subject to being inundated by the frequent flooding of the Illinois River. Still the long haired Freaks of California were there, cash in hand buying whatever was placed on the market. Had we had money we could have gotten some really fine places, but I was the only one who would admit to having any, and all I had was about 1500 dollars. We saw many places and heard of more as news of available places spread quickly by word of mouth. The two I remember best were a mining claim along the Illinois River toward the Kalmiopsis Wilderness. This was a fabulous place in a flat valley with a 60 to 100 foot long deep, clear swimming hole flanked by a beautiful clean wide sandy beach. There was an old broken down cabin in a nice wide area that would have made a fine garden space. It cost more than we had and, perhaps more significant, it was a long way on foot from the end of a fairly long four wheel drive road. Another memorable place was a whole town complete with eight to twelve ramshackle buildings way up in the mountains. This was really far off the beaten path and quite inaccessible. Needless to say some people were attracted, but cooler heads prevailed. Now, when I say "we" I mean a very colorful crew of people accompanied by many children and in various stages of Hippie dress and behavior. For example, I had a short beard and short hair, it was all in the process of growing, but it must be remembered that up until June of that year I was making Court appearances in Long Beach. There was Mr. Clean, so called because of his uncanny resemblance to the picture of the man on the cleanser container, there was Duke, a man with one arm only and a piece of Ginseng perpetually in his mouth, Jim, bearded with a wide and colorful bandannna tying up his hair, and Carol, his lady, looking straight and innocent as if fresh from confession. Of course, we stayed stoned as much as possible, but continued to function without any apparent difficulty. continued next comment...
It was a fun activity, one had a chance to project into the future. You could try to imagin what life could be like on the particular property that you were looking at. The question of who was going to move on to the land with you was much in the air. Already at this beginning time the tension between the attitude that would permit anyone who wanted to join and the attitude that felt that some limits were unavoidable and desirable manfested itself. At some point in the third week of August, we heard that an old miner in Takilma wanted to sell his mining claim on the Althouse Creek above Holland. It was fairly late one hot afternoon that Larry and I drove up the Althouse Creek Road to look for it. We stopped first a the old cabin that was on the left hand side of the road about half way to Sunnyridge thinking this might be the place. We realized that it couldn't be it because it didn't fit the description. We also immediately concluded that if this were the place it was not at all appropriate as it was too dark, to small, too close to the road. We drove further and eventually came to the foot of the driveway to Sunnyridge and recognized that we were at the place that was for sale. We left the vehicle and walked up the driveway. As we came to the top of the driveway we saw on the right a small, tight cabin with a little porch on it. It was one room, had a tin roof and had a couple of good size windows, one of them looking up the valley toward the mountain. Around this window was growing a beautiful red climbing rose bush which seemed to embrace the window and from the inside must have framed the mountain view in a spectacular manner. We had no key and thus could not get in. On the left was a very usual and traditional outhouse. Almost directly across from the cabin and only aobut 20 or so feet away there was a series of three open sheds that had a common roof. They were in good shape, the smallest one being enclosed and without windows had been used to house some sheep or goats and was ankle deep in manure. It eventually became the clothes closet and, later the Sauna, and still later became part of Ted and Ellen Sue's dwelling. There were some good size Fir and Cedar trees and there was a clearing on the ridge with the land sloping down in three directions. From the uphill side we could see a water channel that had been dug out and came from the woods. Next to it was a path which we took. Even today I still remember the magic of those first moments at Sunnyridge. It was a hot day, yet in the woods it was cool, the sunlight was filtered through the trees and all was quiet and still as it can only be on a hot summer day. The path underfoot was soft. It hadn't been trod upon for a long time. We walked silently up the channel and heard a body of water running downhill on our right. As I remember it the channel was empty of water and after a short walk, getting deeper into bigger trees we came to the larger creek from which the channel funnelled water down to the cabin. The dam and the pipe that were to channel the water were in disrepair, but it was clear that wouldn't be difficult to repair the whole. I knew that this was the place for me and my family. It was immedicately clear that even if others did not come along I was going to come and live here. On the way to Takilma we decided to bring the other people, especially Betty and Barbara to see the place. We did that the same evening and maybe even made the offer to the miner on the same day. It was clear, this was the place.
jim HOW I FOUND OUT ABOUT SUNNYRIDGE POSTED Jun 29, 2000
in 1967 we, priscilla, clem, rachel, michelle and i moved to newpaltz ny and rented a farm house on pioneer trail....that for me, was the begining of my freedom from the onslaught of materialism and polution that overwelmed my family.....i was now on the treshold of the life style i longed for and was trying to formulate in nyc.....an organic existance with an extended family........and that started to gell in newpaltz...since the idea of commune was in the air and all our friends of that time were yearning for the same union....toguether we decided to meet up in the southwest and there we formed a caravan...a few at first, allan, reva and their two kids....and later larry, barbary, beany, jane and their children.....priscilla and i decided to go to mexico and later rejoin the group....as it turned out the group was expanding and ended up in oregon, which was the destination we had planned in ny for the commune...priscilla and i returned to newpaltz on our way back to the westcoast and there, as it was already developing, lived in a sort of communal situation and met more and more people who were developing similar ideologies...there were a lot of us......in 1968 we recieved a post card from barbara w. that a place had been found, and to join them....that winter i took my van with rachel, michelle and barbara barry who dropped off to join her kids in colorado....and finaly got to the mining claim...i was totaly relieved and stayed on for ever....
I don't know about Sunnyridge but in the summer of 1969 My Father and his native american children asked me to come visit them at Takilma....Dad was a one legged man in his 60's but was accepted into the commune wholeheartedly.. I stayed for most of the summer with him at the commune. I turned 20 during that summer.
MY Dad Thom Miley, and My Mom Donalee moved my little sister Willow, a baby, and my self a toddler or more, on a bus cross country to this commune called "Sunnyridge" I remember the bus trip it was NOT FUN, grey rabbit i believe, yes i have a catalog memory and absolutely remember alot of things about sunnyridge. I rememeber the confusing family dynamics with the "blending" and i was not happy at all to have yet another sibling, vividly rememebr being so mad, and yet Ethan Miley is the most amazing man! Japotes...anyone know how to make them? Flour, and water, and hand patted into "tortila" shaped flat bread, also the roasted seaweed w/ soysauce. The kitchen was kind of a hub, always knew i could find someone to annoy in the kitchen, must have been endless questions. The root celler, and the frozen hotdogs, this lil hippie girl liked dem dogs!!!!! The water wheel, coolest thing ever. The swimming hole, and being tossed out in the deep end, and left to swim back to shore, was NOT HAPPY that day, did swim like a fish after tho, so i guess i nee4ded it. oh the brownies, uh yea the ones i was told not to eat, you all know me, when did i ever listen. The chair was solid, but i asked if you would please quit spinning the house, so vividly rememeber i was 5. And Clem, i remember Clem! It was a diverse, amazing place to be, full of so many different ideas, and voices, i'm greatful for the time i had there, I grew up in Takilma graduated, and moved to sunshine in southern cali, I'm Erin Miley, Thom and Donalee's only child, and I love my roots
Erin Miley! I am not sure if you remember me or not, but we were best friends before my mother and stepfather stole us away to Israel. We rode with your family across the country on the Grey Rabbit .. that is the right name! I wrote you letters from Israel and you gave them my father. He was supposed to be coming to visit us when he passed away. I have thought about you many times over the years. Please get in touch with me! I am in New York City!
Hi Erin! I remember you from the Summer of '71 I think. We hung out down at the swimming hole a lot. My mom and I were there visiting for the Summer and I remember it being a lot of fun. First time I felt that I fit in somewhere I think. I was 9 years old.
Ted Pilger
ReplyDeleteHOW I FOUND OUT ABOUT SUNNYRIDGE
POSTED Feb 19, 2000
This is what I wrote back in Oct. 1988 about this question.
I first heard about Sunnyridge in a letter from Dee (Demetra) in which she described the commune and suggested I come there. I had known Dee at New Paltz State College in N.Y. where I had attended one semester and then dropped out. I was a roomate with Dee and her boyfriend, Larry Holland, and came to know her quite well, especially her sensitive side. I valued her opinion and honesty.
Peter K.
ReplyDeleteHOW I FOUND OUT ABOUT SUNNYRIDGE
POSTED May 28, 2000
Betty, Leah, Nina, Miriam and I were living in a rented house on Highway 199 while we were looking for land. In addition to us the "we" included Larry and Barbara, a couple we had met at the August 1 meeting and with whom we were spending a great deal of time (to hear more about this meeting which is really where SR was born, and about the time between the meeting and Sept. 1 when we moved to SR you will have to ask me.)
Anyone else who wanted to could, and often would attach him or herself, to this core group of four adults and three children. Occasionally Pat and Terry, a couple who had purchased a beautiful mining claim along the bank of the Illinois River very near to Takilma which was the center of the Hippie influx in the Illinois Valley, Lila Rocey with her two daughters, Amy and ???, one-armed Duke, Mr. Clean and other assorted people joined us at various times.
Our search was aided by local Real Estate brokers and local folk. At this time, there was a mini Real Estate boom in the Illinois Valley and all kinds of land was for sale. Much of this land was useless and actually subject to being inundated by the frequent flooding of the Illinois River. Still the long haired Freaks of California were there, cash in hand buying whatever was placed on the market. Had we had money we could have gotten some really fine places, but I was the only one who would admit to having any, and all I had was about 1500 dollars.
We saw many places and heard of more as news of available places spread quickly by word of mouth. The two I remember best were a mining claim along the Illinois River toward the Kalmiopsis Wilderness. This was a fabulous place in a flat valley with a 60 to 100 foot long deep, clear swimming hole flanked by a beautiful clean wide sandy beach. There was an old broken down cabin in a nice wide area that would have made a fine garden space. It cost more than we had and, perhaps more significant, it was a long way on foot from the end of a fairly long four wheel drive road. Another memorable place was a whole town complete with eight to twelve ramshackle buildings way up in the mountains. This was really far off the beaten path and quite inaccessible. Needless to say some people were attracted, but cooler heads prevailed.
Now, when I say "we" I mean a very colorful crew of people accompanied by many children and in various stages of Hippie dress and behavior. For example, I had a short beard and short hair, it was all in the process of growing, but it must be remembered that up until June of that year I was making Court appearances in Long Beach. There was Mr. Clean, so called because of his uncanny resemblance to the picture of the man on the cleanser container, there was Duke, a man with one arm only and a piece of Ginseng perpetually in his mouth, Jim, bearded with a wide and colorful bandannna tying up his hair, and Carol, his lady, looking straight and innocent as if fresh from confession. Of course, we stayed stoned as much as possible, but continued to function without any apparent difficulty.
continued next comment...
It was a fun activity, one had a chance to project into the future. You could try to imagin what life could be like on the particular property that you were looking at. The question of who was going to move on to the land with you was much in the air. Already at this beginning time the tension between the attitude that would permit anyone who wanted to join and the attitude that felt that some limits were unavoidable and desirable manfested itself.
ReplyDeleteAt some point in the third week of August, we heard that an old miner in Takilma wanted to sell his mining claim on the Althouse Creek above Holland.
It was fairly late one hot afternoon that Larry and I drove up the Althouse Creek Road to look for it. We stopped first a the old cabin that was on the left hand side of the road about half way to Sunnyridge thinking this might be the place. We realized that it couldn't be it because it didn't fit the description. We also immediately concluded that if this were the place it was not at all appropriate as it was too dark, to small, too close to the road.
We drove further and eventually came to the foot of the driveway to Sunnyridge and recognized that we were at the place that was for sale. We left the vehicle and walked up the driveway. As we came to the top of the driveway we saw on the right a small, tight cabin with a little porch on it. It was one room, had a tin roof and had a couple of good size windows, one of them looking up the valley toward the mountain. Around this window was growing a beautiful red climbing rose bush which seemed to embrace the window and from the inside must have framed the mountain view in a spectacular manner. We had no key and thus could not get in. On the left was a very usual and traditional outhouse. Almost directly across from the cabin and only aobut 20 or so feet away there was a series of three open sheds that had a common roof. They were in good shape, the smallest one being enclosed and without windows had been used to house some sheep or goats and was ankle deep in manure. It eventually became the clothes closet and, later the Sauna, and still later became part of Ted and Ellen Sue's dwelling.
There were some good size Fir and Cedar trees and there was a clearing on the ridge with the land sloping down in three directions. From the uphill side we could see a water channel that had been dug out and came from the woods. Next to it was a path which we took. Even today I still remember the magic of those first moments at Sunnyridge. It was a hot day, yet in the woods it was cool, the sunlight was filtered through the trees and all was quiet and still as it can only be on a hot summer day. The path underfoot was soft. It hadn't been trod upon for a long time. We walked silently up the channel and heard a body of water running downhill on our right. As I remember it the channel was empty of water and after a short walk, getting deeper into bigger trees we came to the larger creek from which the channel funnelled water down to the cabin. The dam and the pipe that were to channel the water were in disrepair, but it was clear that wouldn't be difficult to repair the whole.
I knew that this was the place for me and my family. It was immedicately clear that even if others did not come along I was going to come and live here.
On the way to Takilma we decided to bring the other people, especially Betty and Barbara to see the place. We did that the same evening and maybe even made the offer to the miner on the same day. It was clear, this was the place.
jim
ReplyDeleteHOW I FOUND OUT ABOUT SUNNYRIDGE
POSTED Jun 29, 2000
in 1967 we, priscilla, clem, rachel, michelle and i moved to newpaltz ny and rented a farm house on pioneer trail....that for me, was the begining of my freedom from the onslaught of materialism and polution that overwelmed my family.....i was now on the treshold of the life style i longed for and was trying to formulate in nyc.....an organic existance with an extended family........and that started to gell in newpaltz...since the idea of commune was in the air and all our friends of that time were yearning for the same union....toguether we decided to meet up in the southwest and there we formed a caravan...a few at first, allan, reva and their two kids....and later larry, barbary, beany, jane and their children.....priscilla and i decided to go to mexico and later rejoin the group....as it turned out the group was expanding and ended up in oregon, which was the destination we had planned in ny for the commune...priscilla and i returned to newpaltz on our way back to the westcoast and there, as it was already developing, lived in a sort of communal situation and met more and more people who were developing similar ideologies...there were a lot of us......in 1968 we recieved a post card from barbara w. that a place had been found, and to join them....that winter i took my van with rachel, michelle and barbara barry who dropped off to join her kids in colorado....and finaly got to the mining claim...i was totaly relieved and stayed on for ever....
I don't know about Sunnyridge but in the summer of 1969 My Father and his native american children asked me to come visit them at Takilma....Dad was a one legged man in his 60's but was accepted into the commune wholeheartedly.. I stayed for most of the summer with him at the commune. I turned 20 during that summer.
ReplyDeleteMY Dad Thom Miley, and My Mom Donalee moved my little sister Willow, a baby, and my self a toddler or more, on a bus cross country to this commune called "Sunnyridge" I remember the bus trip it was NOT FUN, grey rabbit i believe, yes i have a catalog memory and absolutely remember alot of things about sunnyridge. I rememeber the confusing family dynamics with the "blending" and i was not happy at all to have yet another sibling, vividly rememebr being so mad, and yet Ethan Miley is the most amazing man! Japotes...anyone know how to make them? Flour, and water, and hand patted into "tortila" shaped flat bread, also the roasted seaweed w/ soysauce. The kitchen was kind of a hub, always knew i could find someone to annoy in the kitchen, must have been endless questions. The root celler, and the frozen hotdogs, this lil hippie girl liked dem dogs!!!!! The water wheel, coolest thing ever. The swimming hole, and being tossed out in the deep end, and left to swim back to shore, was NOT HAPPY that day, did swim like a fish after tho, so i guess i nee4ded it. oh the brownies, uh yea the ones i was told not to eat, you all know me, when did i ever listen. The chair was solid, but i asked if you would please quit spinning the house, so vividly rememeber i was 5. And Clem, i remember Clem! It was a diverse, amazing place to be, full of so many different ideas, and voices, i'm greatful for the time i had there, I grew up in Takilma graduated, and moved to sunshine in southern cali, I'm Erin Miley, Thom and Donalee's only child, and I love my roots
ReplyDeleteErin Miley! I am not sure if you remember me or not, but we were best friends before my mother and stepfather stole us away to Israel. We rode with your family across the country on the Grey Rabbit .. that is the right name! I wrote you letters from Israel and you gave them my father. He was supposed to be coming to visit us when he passed away. I have thought about you many times over the years. Please get in touch with me! I am in New York City!
DeleteHi Erin!
DeleteI remember you from the Summer of '71 I think. We hung out down at the swimming hole a lot. My mom and I were there visiting for the Summer and I remember it being a lot of fun. First time I felt that I fit in somewhere I think. I was 9 years old.