About

Mallory Paige Wild Mountain Homestead Family in Colorado

Hi, we’re the family behind Wild Mountain Homestead.

We live at 8,000 feet in the Colorado Mountains. We stay busy raising three young kids, growing a large market garden, and caring for pigs, chickens, and Colorado Mountain Dogs.

We’re passionate about bringing fresh vegetables and cut flowers to our local community. You can find us every Friday throughout the summer at the Westcliffe Farmer’s Market.

It can be challenging to grow at 8,000 feet elevation, but we get better every year. In addition to sharing our bounty locally, we aim to share online all that we’ve learned over the years.

Mallory, Mom & Editor-in-Chief

Hi, I’m Mallory. The main writer and creator here at Wild Mountain Homestead.

I’m a 6th generation Coloradoan with deep homestead roots. From the time my ancestors stepped foot in Colorado they’ve been working to live off the land. They we’re the original settlers and homesteaders in Southern Colorado. Since then my family has continued farming, cattle ranching, and living in the wilds.

I’m a bit obsessed with being self-sufficient and I guess you could say I come by it naturally! My Grandpa Bub is a big inspiration in my life and the memory keeper in our family. His motto has always been, “leave it better for the next generation.” I take this very seriously and truly hope I can do him proud.

For as long as I can recall, I’ve wanted to live off the land. It’s taken a long time to get here, but I learned a lot along the way.

During college I biked to farmers market and started caring about finding local sources for food. Upon moving to Seattle in 2009, I became obsessed with the idea of urban homesteading. I quickly added chickens and a garden to my small backyard. From there it was a slippery slope of grinding grains, buying in bulk, and trying to make everything from scratch.

While living in Georgia, I was lucky enough to help out on an organic vegetable farm. I learned all about planting, rotating, planning, and working incredibly hard to build a dream.

And now I have the opportunity to integrate everything at our Wild Mountain Homestead!

Motorcycle Meeting & A Move Across Country

Matt and I met while I was riding a motorcycle across North America (with my dog in a sidecar!).

Our Labrador Retrievers pulled us together while attending one of the first Overland Expo Events.

From there we remodeled a lake house in Georgia, got married, had a baby, and decided to move to Colorado.

We’ve now been building our homestead for five years with a growing menagerie of animals, large garden, and 3 small kids. Life is busy and wild, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Operation Moto Dog, A Dog in a Sidecar riding a motorcycle to Alaska with a Dog, a woman motorcycles across North America alone with a sidecar dog

Matt, Head Farmer & DIY Champ

Matt Granger, Farmer in Westcliffe, Colorado

Matt keeps things running on the farm. From building a custom water system to managing our off-grid solar system and caring for a market garden and growing menagerie of animals.

Oh and he does it with a bunch of kiddos underfoot. We love him for making the dream possible.

He’s a wizard at troubleshooting, an ace mechanic, and a chainsaw fanatic.

He also runs the Westcliffe Farmer’s Market and sells our locally-grown veggies there every Friday morning.

Our Process

Wild Mountain Homestead covers everything to do with homesteading, off-grid living, gardening, and self-sufficient living. This includes individual product reviews, buying guides, and informational posts.

A large vegetable and flower garden in the mountains of colorado, surrounded by a tall fence to protect from deer
A portion of the vegetable patch of our Colorado high-elevation garden.

I want this to be a place that helps newbies start a homestead, and experienced off-grid livers take things to the next level. Whether you have a small patio garden in the city, or a hundred acres in the middle of nowhere, this is a place for you.

I spend a lot of time testing and take pride in giving honest reviews. And I’m always aiming to cover a variety of price points. I know how it is to have a limited budget, but still need something that works reliably. I have a background in journalism, reviewing gear, and photography. I aim to combine these skills to provide the most thorough and helpful content available.

Gear and Revenue

Many of the products you see on Wild Mountain Homestead have been purchased from local retailers and dealers. Additionally, I may receive some products from manufacturers to review.

No matter how the gear is procured, I always maintain complete editorial independence and never receive any financial compensation for reviews. Everything here is honest, tested, and true.

The revenue here is generated when you make a purchase through the links or buttons in our articles. I really appreciate when you do this—the price is the same to you, but this allows me to continue testing and reviewing as much gear as possible. And if you return a product, I make nothing. If you end up being disappointed with our recommendations and don’t come back to the site, we lose our readership. That’s why I always set a very high standard for our work, constantly striving to provide the best, most honest, and most helpful information around.  

Born from a True Passion

This site exists because I truly love homesteading, raising a family off-grid, and becoming more self-sufficient.

I certainly don’t know everything, but I love learning and sharing what works for me. I’m always looking to increase my skills and broaden my knowledge base. Don’t hesitate to reach out with tips or questions. You can email me at wildmountainhomestead (at) gmail (dot) com.

Thanks for being a part of our Wild Mountain Homestead!