A “yurt” is a sort of circular-shaped, portable house invented and mostly used by nomadic peoples of Central Asia. Although the piney woods and the Appalachian Mountains of northern Georgia are hardly reminiscent of the wide-open Mongolian steppe, the fearless and eco-determined owners of the Cedar House Inn and Yurts decided to include them as a lodging option because they make less of an impact upon the Earth. This is just one small example of the Earth-friendly philosophy followed by the couple who owns this cozy bed and breakfast. Other examples are visible as soon as one enters the beautiful gardens in front of this eco-getaway just 70 minutes north of Atlanta.

Artwork made from recycled materials can be seen in the garden and a closer look at the gardens themselves will reveal the carefully planted swales designed to capture rain, rows of naturally grown, pesticide-free vegetables, a wide diversity of native plants that typically get removed from other gardens, and a small mound of cardboard boxes, logs, and other organic materials that are busy making compost.

Blue, plastic containers that catch rainwater are visible below the rain gutters of the main buildings. A close look up at the roof shows a thin, metal cover. This was put into place because the owners deemed it to be greener than tearing off and throwing away the old tar shingles. The metal sheet on the roof also reflects the sunlight and thus reduces temperatures in the main house during the blazing hot summer months. For the cold, winter months, storm windows were put into place for better insulation and heating bills are reduced by using a silicone-based fluid that heats the baseboards.

Taking into account the very Earth-friendly scheme of the place, it should be no surprise to learn that toilets are of the composting variety and that the sumptuous breakfasts come from an organic garden. Eggs also come from free-range chickens that roam naturally landscaped grounds planted with over 300 trees and shrubs.

It truly seems as if the people behind the Cedar House Inn and Yurts have thought of every possible way to function in a sustainable fashion and since they keep thinking of new and improved ways to do so, visitors might learn some new tricks for living green during their cozy stay in one of their Georgia yurts.

Nicaragua is becoming more common as a travel destination for the adventurous eco-traveler but it still lies more or less off the beaten path. This is probably related to the fact that large tracts of the country are roadless and undeveloped with little infrastructure. At least this keeps the tropical forests of a great many places in Nicaragua intact, but it also means that even the most eco-adventurous of folks won’t be able to experience such magical areas.

Nevertheless, Nicaragua is a big enough place to provide intrepid visitors to this friendly country with a number of options. One of the best is the Selva Negra ecolodge. Selva Negra means “Black Forest” and yes they are referring to the pine-clad Bavarian land that spawned the cake of the same name. Whether the original Bavarian immigrants who founded the place gave their new home this title because of homesickness, because the surrounding cloud forests reminded them of southern Germany, or a combination of the two, we will never know. However, what is certain is that excellent German-influenced cuisine is served at the Selva Negra restaurant, including their own version of Black Forest Cake.

In addition to being an ecolodge, this eco-sanctuary of the central Nicaraguan highlands is a working farm. Flowers, organic produce, and livestock are all grown or raised on-site in as sustainable a manner as possible and are sold in markets as well as providing ingredients for the restaurant. The cows and pigs also provide fertilizer and manure that is used in the gardens and in growing their excellent, organic, shade-grown coffee.

Although coffee grows faster in full sunlight, not only does this require the removal of biodiverse cloud forests but also heavy application of chemical pesticides. Coffee is grown beneath the shade of the forest, however, doesn’t need as many pesticides, grows better, and has a richer flavor because the shady conditions mimic the understory habitat in which coffee evolved. At Selva Negra, visitors will also see how this benefits wildlife when they catch glimpses of Howler Monkeys and dozens of birds on trails that pass through the shade coffee plantations and primary forests of this eco-friendly destination.