Sarah Fisher is bringing people back to nature in style.
Fisher, a Sidney resident, launched Escapology two years ago, a glamping site where guests can “reconnect with simplicity and serenity,” according to Airbnb.
Fisher said a change in personal circumstances four years ago led her to reconsider the property.
“It’s this really beautiful, extensive property, and it used to be run as a bed and breakfast back in the day,” she said. “I got it in my mind to turn it back into a business property, and I decided to try glamping and see how that would go.”
Fisher said Escapology has grown to include five glamping sites: four A-frames and one heavy-duty, 12-foot by 12-foot tent, similar to a yurt. Several of the sites have themes, such as yoga, creativity, romance and western/rustic.
“Every site has a bed in it and all the bedding is included,” she said. “There’s no electric or running water, but there are battery-operated lights and outdoor (lights) are solar powered. I add fun little amenities and try to make sure there are things like pots and pans and head lanterns and little lanterns. On the exterior, I have a picnic table and at least two chairs and a firepit with a cooking grate.”
Fisher said guests run the gamut.
“There’s no minimum (stay), and I get a lot of people that will come just to try it out and they haven’t camped before, or I have people that come year-round and, if people want to come in wintertime, I’ve got little camping heaters,” she said. “I get mostly adults and mostly couples, and occasionally people that just want to sit in solitude … which I think is amazing. A lot of my guests come from Long Island or the city and downstate, and the other portion I pull from a lot is people from (Philadelphia). This past year, which was really cool, I’ve been starting to get quite a few local people, as they find out about it.”
Fisher credited the COVID-19 pandemic with getting people glamping.
“What really kind of brought a lot more higher interest is, right after and during Covid, a lot of people really started realizing how important it is to get out in nature,” she said. “You didn’t have much of another option and, after that, people started realizing what they were missing by not getting out. That’s where I started seeing a huge increase and interest for that kind of thing — camping, hiking, any kind of outdoor thing.”
Fisher said it’s her own appreciation for nature that keeps her committed.
“This is what I do full time,” she said. “I manage the whole property and maintain everything and do all the cleaning. Maybe two to three years down the road I’d like to be slowly turning the property into opening as a venue, focusing toward weddings. Here in another two weeks, on a small scale, I’m opening a space for a micro-wedding ceremony — maybe 30 people — and I’m in the process of adding a small little camping store.
“But one of the reasons I was passionate about starting this was, I love nature and I love to be out in the woods,” Fisher continued. “I’d live in the woods if I could, and I do, practically. I wanted to be able to offer a space for other people to come and find that reconnect and to encourage people to disconnect from daily life and reconnect with themselves or each other and create a place where people can sit in silence and peace and be surrounded with everything that nature has to offer. That’s what excites me — I love giving a gift to others and, without overextending myself, I’m giving other people the opportunity to have a space to experience that.”
Fisher’s property includes an apartment available through Airbnb and is known locally for its enormous American flag.
For more information, find Escapology on Airbnb, follow @escapologyllc_ on Instagram or call 607-435-0251.