Phil and Pauline Evans own the Treehouse Hostel. They built it as an extension to their home which sits 2 km from the Kohukohu ferry. It's location makes it an ideal stopping point for hikers and backpackers. In fact, location is what got this unique hostel started in the first place.

The last ferry to Rawene leaves at 6 pm. People who used to miss this boat would knock on the Evans' door looking for some place to stay. "We said come in. They stayed on the floor. They liked the way we lived. We liked their company." So the Evans put up a sign at the ferry saying that people were welcome to stay at their home for free if they missed the last boat. That year they had 300 people sleep on their floor.

In 1990 the hostel was built. On opening night it was booked solid. "We were still sewing up matting, unpacking and placing things when people started arriving. They just joined in and helped us."

The Treehouse stands on what was originally pasture land. It had some regenerating bush, three creeks and a spring. The Evans came to visit in 1981, walked around the land for half an hour and decided to buy it. Since then they have planted over 3000 trees. They first lined the drive with fruit trees so they would have something to eat. They planted a one acre vegetable garden that grew enough to feed their family and then they built a house.

The trees on their land are self sustaining and organic. The Evans encourage visitors to pick what is ripe: fig, apple, plum, bananas, papaw, apricots and sub-tropics.

A great deal of plant and tree research led the Evans to plant macadamia nuts. These trees require neither a support structure or spraying. The potassium they need is provided by the banana trees planted around them. Even the ducks in the yard lend a hand (or perhaps a foot) in managing the nut trees. During the day they have free range. They eat the weeds, fertilize and flatten the earth under the trees. At night the trees shelter them from wind and rain. To complete the cycle, the Evans collect the duck eggs in the mornings and use them for breakfast. The macadamia nuts are processed in a nearby town and returned to the hostel where they are sold to visiting backpackers.

As well as fruit and nut producing trees, the Evans have planted eucalyptus trees to act as a wind-shield around the property, ornamental and timber trees for a retirement fund. Among the timber trees are 300 Tasmanian blackwoods and 200 tallow-woods.

Equally as impressive as the self sustaining plants and trees is the Evans house. It was designed to operate on wind and solar power. The cooking is done on a German wood stove with firewood from fallen dead wood. The attached Treehouse hostel runs off of utility power though. "Backpackers aren't always good about turning off the lights."

The water used on the property is all rainwater collected in a catch basin and filtered for drinking. If that runs out, a spring fed creek supplies the rest.

Because the hostel is in the trees, made of trees and surrounded by trees, the Evans took the advice of an Australian traveler and named the place The TreeHouse.