Ever wonder what it would be like to chuck it all and move to an organic farm on Kauai? Well, Lee Roversi did just that and, because she did, you can try it out yourself by staying in one of the two bed-and-breakfast cottages at her North Country Farms on the north shore of Kauai. This is not your traditional bed-and-breakfast. Personally, when I hear bed-and-breakfast, I think of an over-designed Victorian where it feels like you've moved in with the in-laws. I know this isn't fair as I've visited any number of really cool and different bed-and-breakfasts but, let's face it, that's the usual rep. At North Country Farms, you instead stay in two wooden guest houses that are completely self-contained and include a welcome basket filled with goodies to enjoy at your leisure instead of a formal breakfast where you’re expected to make chit chat with strangers. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that if you’re into it. Really.)

Below is the note that Lee leaves in the room that details how she came to leave the fast life of New York City for the life of an organic farmer in Hawaii. If you’d like more information on the farm or to book one of the B&B cottages, which run $150/night, visit http://www.northcountryfarms.com/

From Lee Roversi:

Many times visitors are curious about our “story” of coming to Kauai, starting this farm and business, so I’m going to tell it here.

Back in the old days, B.C. (before children), my then-husband, Chad Deal, and I were both working freelance in New York City. This gave us ample opportunity to travel, which we did often. One of our favorite destinations was, at that time, the north shore of Oahu, famous for its mammoth surf and also, conveniently, the home of a friend of ours. Being a surfer, this was always an epic vacation spot for Chad and certainly not a shabby one for me! We fell in love with the laid back feeling so pervasive in the Hawaiian Islands, especially in the early 1980s.

But, for some time, life kept us on the fun, albeit fast, track on the East Coast. Our first son, Sky, was born and we left Manhattan and moved to Old Greenwich, Connecticut—an easy commute into the city for Chad and much opportunity for me to continue my business on a greatly reduced Mama schedule. While thoroughly enjoying our village life in Connecticut, we continued to dream of a life that was not so fast-paced, with more beautiful surf spots, more rural, open space. Then, our daughter, Nell, was born. This got us thinking even more seriously about a place where our children could grow up more free and with fewer clothes! This vision was greatly enhanced by the extremely bullish real estate market at that time. We took the leap! We sold the house, we packed everything in storage and we piled into our van and headed west. That was 1986.

The camping trip lasted 6 glorious months coming across the U.S., investigating places that might fit our dream. The area around Mendocino, California piqued our interest and we almost bought there. But, friends had visited Kauai a year before and had told us we had to check it out and so we ventured further westward.

We arrived on Kauai on a blissful October day to our pre-arranged rental in Hanalei. We never looked back. We bought our land a month later and began the ultimate adventure of building our home and planting the acreage. North Country Farms was created out of tremendous love and intention. It is where our youngest son, Bay, was born.

While the marriage did not survive, the creative force behind the vision did. I bought Chad out of the venture after our divorce in 2000 and have continued the work of providing an important sense of place for me and the children. At the same time carrying on providing organic produce for our community and a place for intrepid travelers to experience while they explore our beautiful island. It is a dream that lives on. And I never tire of the sheer wonder of having built every building on the property and planted every tree and shrub. Waking up every morning here is a gift. The work is food for my soul. It is my sincere hope that you will sense some of the magic of this story while you are our guests here on the farm.