Welcome to Twisty Mountain
We’re glad you found your way here.
Twisty Mountain is a small, deeply personal corner of rural West Virginia shaped by family roots, practical work, outdoor life, and a stubborn belief that not everything broken needs to be thrown away. Around here, one day might involve drying herbs or blood oranges for tea, the next might involve freeze-drying meals for a backpacking trip, troubleshooting a chicken coop door, or trying to stay one step ahead of the ongoing ladybug invasion.
This site is where all of that comes together.
It’s part journal, part resource, part trailhead, and part front porch conversation. You’ll find stories from life here, beginner-friendly outdoor guidance, practical articles, gear thoughts, food ideas, and, over time, a growing collection of local knowledge and community resources.
What you’ll find here
On the Trail
Backpacking, hiking, Leave No Trace, trail food, gear lists, and lessons learned the hard way so you don’t have to learn every one of them yourself.
In the Kitchen & Garden
Herbal teas, dehydrating, freeze-drying, canning, fermentation, growing food in a small space, and all the little experiments that make a place feel lived in.
Fixing, Making, and Learning
Repair stories, practical skills, repurposing, tools, old knowledge worth keeping, and a belief that communities are stronger when people know how to do things.
A little about us
Twisty Mountain sits beside land known as Sunflower Hollow Farm, and this place carries both memory and momentum. Tara has a remarkable gift for making a small piece of ground productive, beautiful, and useful, whether she’s brewing herbal teas, preserving food, repurposing something old, or planning what comes next.
I bring a lifetime of teaching, a love of the outdoors, Appalachian roots, and a willingness to learn by doing, even when “learning by doing” has meant ending up in situations most people would politely decline, including one especially memorable septic tank ordeal.
Together, we’re trying to build a life that feels balanced, rooted, adventurous, practical, and open to learning.
And yes, the donkeys have opinions about all of it.