Meet Rachel Beers | Tiny House Retreats & Nature Advocate

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rachel Beers and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rachel, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Back in 2016-2017, my husband Justin and I were both working long hours at our corporate jobs, living in a 2,300 sq. ft. house in Scottsdale with our 2 boys (our 3rd son was born in 2018), supposedly “living the dream” but we were not happy. We were spending way more time away from our family and working jobs that did not align with our hearts. After discussing the trajectory of our lives compared to what our hearts were saying, we knew the path we were currently on was no longer the right direction for us and our family.

Around this time, tiny house shows started popping up. Justin mentioned that we should live tiny and I thought he was off his rocker, we had only moved into our Scottsdale home 1 year prior and we lived 2 streets away from our best friends and their kids. The more I watched the tiny house shows and saw the different types of tiny houses including ones for families, the idea took root and seemed to be less out there. Once planted, the idea grew and I realized why the appeal of tiny houses was so great…living small meant less debt, less stuff which then in turn meant more time for meaningful experiences and adventures together and that’s exactly what I was longing/looking for.

At the same time, my Mom’s health was declining, as she had an aggressive form of dementia called Frontotemporal Lobe Dementia and she ended up passing away in August of 2017. My Mom was only 67 years old when she died and the saying “life was short” really hit home. This traumatic event began the driving force behind my gusto to change our lives. We shifted our focus as we wanted more time together as a family, we wanted to work together, free ourselves from stuff and fill our lives with more meaningful experiences and adventures. So we sold our Scottsdale home along with 90% of our belongings, quit our corporate jobs and moved into an Airstream and traveled for a bit to figure out where we wanted to build our business and our family legacy.

Justin’s expertise was in hospitality and he suggested a tiny house retreat, a place for people to experience tiny living along with reconnecting with each other and nature. I love connecting with people and making them feel at home so I thought it was the perfect idea for us and a great way to compliment our skills and personalities (my background was also in insurance and accounting so that didn’t hurt either). Not only do we provide tiny houses for people to enjoy while experiencing nature, outdoor activities and reconnecting with their loved ones, our family of 5 lives in a 4 bedroom tiny house that is 650 sq. ft.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
We love meeting and connecting with new people while providing a glamping experience to people who would like to get outside while providing the creature comforts of home. We want people to take a break, disconnect from the busy life and enjoy the peace and healing properties that nature provides. I like to say that when you step outside into nature, you are able to slow down so you can look inside yourself.

I am so proud of my family of 5 as we have grown stronger individually as well as a family through this choice that we made. We get to be together every day and yes that can be tough at times but I wouldn’t change it for the world as our family is very close and I love that because I couldn’t say that before. Sure we were kind of close but now to see the bonds my boys have with each other as well as Justin and I, it’s truly a gift. Our boys also help us run our family business (they help clean the tiny houses, they help with projects on our property, etc) all while learning invaluable life lessons along the way.

This journey has not been easy but has it been worth it? ABSOLUTELY! We lived a comfortable life in the city in a big home and that felt soooo much harder than what we are doing now. We have had plenty of hurdles and tough decisions along the way but this life WE have chosen provides us with much more purpose and fulfillment then our previous lifestyle. We would not have met all the amazing people that we now consider friends if we stayed at our corporate jobs. Sometimes, I need to pinch myself because I can’t believe I get to live where we live, meet the people we get to meet and be all together at the same time. I feel truly blessed!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
First stop would definitely be Sycamore Canyon, it is the second largest canyon in Arizona and it’s only a 15 minute walk from our property! Sycamore Canyon has the Sycamore Rim Trail which is a 11 mile hiking trail so I would take my friend on the trail for a bit and stop by Sycamore Canyon Vista for the gorgeous views of the canyon. After that I would head back towards home and take a quick swim in the swimming hole, listen to the birds, the wind in the trees and the small waterfalls. It’s a little oasis.

It’s hard to choose where to go next as we are very lucky to have some amazing spots nearby. Dow Springs is a mile done the road from us and it has some wonderful history about the original homesteaders back in the 1880’s. You can still see portions the historic cabins.

Scholz Lake is about a 10 minute drive from our property and it is a bird habitat and usually there is no one else there due to the bumpy ride to get to it including a short hike to get to the lake. It is so worth it especially if you love to bird watch. Pomeroy Tanks is only a 20 minute drive away and it is part of the Sycamore Rim Trail as well. It is a natural reservoir for many insects, fish, frogs and you can see lily pads too.

White Horse Lake is about a 25 minute drive from our property and it’s a great place to paddleboard and kayak. If you don’t have a paddleboard or kayak, you can rent one from the nice folks at Black Bear Snack Shack, Bonnie and Jeff Bingham. After you are done hiking or kayaking, you can grab a bite to eat or sweet treat from them as well.

Williams is a great spot to explore Historic Route 66 and visit some cute shops. Our favorite shop is Olive the Best which is located in Williams and Flagstaff. It’s the perfect place to try out some delicious olive oils and balsamic vinegars. It is locally owned by a father and son, Scott and Scotty.

For our favorite places to eat, we would head to Flagstaff and the first stop would be MartAnne’s Burrito Palace (family favorite). Tourist Home Café has our favorite burger and Dark Sky Brewing has delicious brews as well as upscale bar food.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
We feel fortunate to be loved and supported by our family and dear friends but there are a few people that supported and cheered us on at the beginning of our tiny house journey that we would like to give a shoutout to; Toni Story and Jade Josie from El Pais Motel in Tucson as well as Alexis & Christian from Tiny House Expedition. Toni and Jade partnered with us and provided a space for our tiny houses while we found the perfect property for our family and our business. Toni and Jade are such wonderful people as well as great to work with. If you are in the Tucson area, you have to check out El Pais Motel (@elpaismoteltucson) and see all their hard work and creativity. Alexis & Christian are fellow tiny house advocates as they lived in a tiny house and traveled around the country interviewing fellow tiny house dwellers. They also introduced us to Toni & Jade. A couple years later, they interviewed us showcasing our personal tiny house as well as our business. Go check out our videos on their YouTube channel Tiny House Expedition or follow along on their Instagram page @TinyHouseExpedition.

Website: https://www.thetinyhomeinn.com

Instagram: @tinyhomeinn

Facebook: Hummingbird Tiny Home Inn

Image Credits
The personal photo was taken by Jessie at Nettik Photography. I received her permission to use the photo as long as credit was given to Nettik Photography.

All the other photos are original photos taken by myself or my husband Justin Beers.