Usually this time of year I do a post about the “best of”. The last few years I’ve had the blog under the name Sled Dog Slow, but since we’ve recently rebranded under High Tide Homestead my analytics are a little wonky. That’s not the only thing that has been wonky in 2021 though!

Dog Posts

One of the things I’ve noticed is a lot fewer views on dog related posts, maybe because I don’t look explicitly like a dog blog anymore? In any case, husky posts still make up the top 4 of the blog views, with Tips for Removing Porcupine Quills from Dogs, Signs of Labor in Dogs, How to Hack a Chicken Killing Dog, and 10 Reasons We Chose The Husky to Guard Our Homestead coming in that order for views.

Off Grid Posts

The next highest post views are more consistent with off grid specific posts, which is what this adventure is supposed to be about! Coming in a #5 is How to Raise Chicks Without Electricity from way back in 2016 when we first started this adventure. #6 is The Good, The Bad, The Gross – Outhouse Care. When we first moved I couldn’t find much outside of a few forum answers for how to keep outhouses in good working condition. Ours has served us well, but I can’t say I’ll miss using it when we finally have an indoor toilet again.

25 Reasons Why Living In The Alaskan Bush Is Awesome made #7 on the list. I’ve been affectionately calling our place “Bush Lite” because we don’t come close to being real bush folk. Especially since the road was built out closer to us last year! I’m glad it didn’t come all the way out, though. And part of the reasoning for the new place is its further from the new road.

Cleaning fireplace glass made #8, Searching for Spirit Stones made #9, and 50+ Ways To Use Wood Ash made #10 on the list. Seems like people are reading for a mix of practical how too’s as well as personal stories. I try to keep a pretty good balance of both here. This blog is also a journal of family adventures in building our dream. I hope my kids read it and look back on their childhood fondly!

Readership in 2021

The top way people found us this year is through search engines. That’s the first time that has happened! The top search term that brought readers here is “Alaska living off grid stories”. Following closely were “keeping chicks warm without heat lamp” and “how to remove quills from dog’s mouth”. Pinterest was a close second in helping people find the blog.

Most of our readers came from the US with nearly 28,000 views! The next 4 were Canada, the UK, Australia and the Philippines. The most popular day on the blog is Saturday, with the most popular time being 8AM. I only posted 11 times this year, even though every year I swear I’m going to post more. Maybe with the new cabin I’ll have a lot more to say!

As always, thanks for reading and have a great new year!

Katie