Two of the people we keep meeting who have spent years innovating designs for nomadic ultra-light living are Boeing retiree Paul Elkins and “guerrilla grazer” Aaron Fletcher. Recently, the two met for the first time to swap ideas. We put together a video timeline.

Around this same time, we visited Paul at his new workshop on Camano Island (north of Seattle on the Puget Sound), where he showed us his tiniest livable camper: It’s only about 4-feet long (he sleeps curled up) that includes LED lighting, lots of storage, a one-gallon-bucket skylight and a propane burner for a stove.

The tiny mobile home costs about $150 to build, mostly from trash; “Including the $20 bicycle for wheels, 1×2″ wood for the frame, screws, tape, zip ties, insulation, paint, and hardware, the total cost came to roughly $150″.

At his new island home, Paul gave us a tour through his collection of ultra-cheap shelters, vehicles and survival ideas, from his corrugated-plastic dwellings to his foldable-plastic boats (made for about $24) to his new mini Conestoga Wagon to his DIY prepping tools like his recycled-bottle bidets, bucket toilet and the tiniest rocket stove (2-inch-square).

[Paul’s sketchbooks on human-powered vehicles, Paul’s plans, Paul’s videos, Paul’s new book on Human Powered Vehicles, Aaron’s videos].