Hello world!

Welcome to our blog! The goal of this blog is to share our journey of building our dream – Samakya Cabins in Pepin, WI., as well as to share the places and spaces we have fallen in love with amidst the Driftless region.

We have always dreamed of running our own resort/B&B but that plan and dream was always proceeded by “when our kids go to college” or “when our kids finish college”. So what changed, you ask? In actuality, it was the perfect COVID storm that included Chris working as an RN in the hospital during a pandemic and Anna being stuck in an unfinished basement with only a space heater to keep warm. All the while working from home and embracing remote learning with two young children.

One thing to be clear on is we have always been in search of new places to visit, to rent or even to purchase one day. Steve, a friend and our realtor, would likely tell you that I (Anna) call him at least once a year with some new idea or a property that I have found on-line late at night that we “need” to explore. There was a time recently where I found a B&B for sale in Hawaii. This was discussed over dinner and did not go well, resulting in our kids crying over their dinner plates simply over the mention of “what if we move to Hawaii?” (not happy tears). Or the time, we looked at an 19th century rambler that was used as a mental care facility back in the day with chains and metal gates in and out of the kitchen (the defense continues to suggest – it was a really well priced property). Or there was another time, when I was convinced that I can run our own plumbing and electrical company (I still hold onto this as a possibility, so let’s not throw this idea out the window just yet). What can I say, our realtor Steve has always sympathized with Chris😊

One cold Tuesday night in December, we were discussing what to do with our lives and when. This was the moment when I simply asked Chris, “Why do we need to wait until the kids go to college? Why not now?” to which Chris answered “fine, if you find the right property – I will look at it”. You probably have gathered by now that I had already found “the right property.” So the story goes.

I came across a property back in the summer of 2020 that was out of our price range but it was absolutely everything that we have had in mind for quite some time. I would frequent the listing regularly to check, if just by chance, it was at a more affordable price. During a routine check in December, I learned that the price had dropped and that the land was divided into two separate transactions which suddenly made this dream property a realistic opportunity for us to pursue. And that is when I knew it was time to ask the question. I showed the property again to Chris and he agreed, it was everything we wanted from what we could see and read online. That eve we contacted the realtor to make an appointment to view the property the next day. In all honesty, we drove there to look at the property in hopes to find something wrong with it after realizing the weight of the journey we were about to embark on. The idea of shelving our dream until the kids are out of college seemed like the safer option but it was perfect. It was everything that we dreamed of. We didn’t talk to each other for the entire 2 1/2 hour visit on the property, just soaking it all up, we couldn’t say “no” – and we both knew this was the right place.

Why Pepin, WI? To any of you whom have never driven down the great river road, you are truly missing out. It is absolutely one of the best day, weekend trips or drives that you can do within the Twin Cities surrounding area. From Prescott to Winona, and even further, there is so much to stop for, see, do, and taste. We, like many others, have fallen in love with this area for quite some time often wondering why does everyone drive “up North”? We have taken many weekend trips to the Driftless region and often looked for lodging and have never really quite found anything to our hearts content. Over the years, we have even considered and explored simply buying a piece of land to just camp on to have a place to stay in the area. Pepin and the surrounding area of WI and MN are as precious as it gets and we not only want to be a part of it but also share it with others.

We hope you will join us on our journey of making our dream come true. We are looking forward to sharing our progress but most importantly we want to have a platform where we can inspire others and show our gratitude to the people in our lives that have helped us to get here and the many more people that will come into our lives throughout this journey.