In 'Treehouse Letters - The Unabridged Michigan Forest Life Journal', Ellens weaves a unique tale about a self-reliant lifestyle in harmony with nature through a compilation of letters written daily about his forest experiences. This volume provides information about treehouse design, wild animal habits, off the grid construction, maple syrup production, and rustic meal preparation. Ellens unfolds an inspiring message of how a tranquil self-reliant life with nature can fit in with today's busy civilized world. Ellens began his retirement years by spending more than half his time living in a hand-built treehouse in the forest, with oil lamp light, woodstove heat, and hand-pumped water. From the fall of 2018 until the summer of 2021, Ellens spent more than 500 days living off the grid. Ellens describes his treehouse, and expresses thoughts about life in the wilds, ways of forest property management, and daily activity to hand-build a guest log cabin using many resources from the forest itself.