A couple decided to ditch city life to live off-grid in a tent in the middle of the desert - and now recycle their poo and use the gas to cook. Whitney Newkirk, 33, and her husband, Trent, 26, upped sticks and moved from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, more than 2,000 miles away to Joshua Tree National Park, California, in August 2020.
The couple had travelled around US national parks in a trailer for a year, but decided to make a permanent move because they wanted to start a new remote life - after Trent lost his job as a mechanical design engineer during the pandemic. They "fell in love" with Joshua Tree National Park - made up of two deserts, the Sonoran and the Mojave - and bought a 2.3-acre patch of land for $8,000 in March 2021 to make into their new home.
The pair bought a custom-designed yurt and invested in a 2,500-gallon water tank. They get their electricity from solar panels and have a home biogas system - using food and even human waste to create gas, which they use to cook using their fryer and stove.
