Man In Wyoming Builds Family A Nest

ELK MOUNTAIN, Wyoming – Wade Truesdale was proud of the house he had bought for his wife and 5 kids, until the day the furniture polishing factory where he worked closed down with no notice, and he was left without a paycheck.

With few openings for furniture polishers in the small town of 1150 people, Wade soon lost his dream house to foreclosure by the bank, and he was forced to find a new place for his family to live.

Always having been a good provider, but not knowing where to turn, he became distraught, and wandered out into the desert one day to think.

He was trying to figure out what to do when suddenly he spotted a bald eagle’s nest on the ground, and it all became clear to him.

He would build his family a nest!

Bald eagles build nests up to nine feet in diameter, either in large trees, on cliffs, or even right on the ground.

Truesdale figured, “if a plain old bird can build a nest, I could certainly do a better job.”

He instructed the children to begin gathering twigs, to the ridicule of the other people in his neighborhood. Even his wife thought he was nuts at first, but realized they had few options, and eventually she too began gathering twigs.

Emmaline Truesdale said, “ Growing up, I never pictured myself living in a nest, but life brings you things you’d never expect. You kind of have to roll with the punches.   Truth be told, living in a nest, is not as bad as I thought it would be.”

The Truesdales wound up with a nest that’s 30 feet in diameter, with a lovely view of Elk Mountain Lake.

It’s eight feet high, for security reasons, and since as he says, “ none of his children fly,” they enter and leave by a special ladder Wade built to make it easier for them to come and go.

Truesdale says living in a nest has plenty of advantages. First, he says, “ You never having to worry about losing your keys, like the rest of the world saddled with regular homes, with doors and locks.

“There’s a tremendous sense of freedom living in a nest”, he adds. “ You totally feel connected to nature and to the Universe. On a clear night, you just lay back with your hands behind your head, and fall asleep just looking up at the stars.

“It’s quite a spiritual experience communing with nature on that level.”

As soon as he gets a job, Truesdale hopes to be able to build a second level to his nest, and has plans to put a powder room on the ground level to accommodate guests.

The only one in the family not too happy with the situation is his 16 year old son Kyle. He explains, “ How am I supposed to invite girls home to visit my nest?   It’s really embarrassing. No girl wants to date a guy who lives in a nest.”

Countering claims of nests not being safe, Truesdale said, ” Are they kidding?   Would a mother bird put her babies in something that wasn’t safe? I highly doubt it.”