It has always been a dream of mine to have a proper tree house. Not just the type where in my youth some planks were precariously balanced on branches and provided a den until the heavens opened. I desire one which can be used in all weathers and could provide me with my own space (sorry boys).
Today tree houses have become grown up and fit in with the environment and require very little (and eco-friendly) material which have minimal impact on the trees in which it is placed (hanging from cables rather than bolted to trees)
Several years ago we stayed in a treehouse on the beach in Goa. Not quite as luxurious as the ones here, the locals erect them at the beginning of the tourist season and then take them down before the monsoon season starts. They were extremely basic, swayed in the breeze and were not dog proof, as we found out when we woke up one night with an agile, flea-ridden beach dog fast asleep across our legs.
Tree houses are not just about luxury either, in the jungles of the Brazza River Basin in the Indonesian province of Papua the local tribes have slowly built their way up into the trees to escape pests and one another. Their residences now reach dizzying heights of over 100 feet. As someone with a fear of heights this is not quite the vision I hold.
For the moment it will remain a dream but maybe one day I will have one ………..