Kevin and Laura Mooney
The Mohicans, located near Glenmont in the remote, rugged, wooded hills of extreme northeastern Knox County, offers no less than six treehouses available for a night’s stay. Ranging from rustic to romantic, even their various names invite a visit: Moonlight, Old Pine, White Oak, Little Red, Tin Shed, and a very unique and cozy one-room honeymoon suite: The Nest.
A family business begun in 2012, The Mohicans is owned and operated by Kevin and Laura Mooney. “I got the idea of building treehouses for adults from a couple of my friends,” Kevin Mooney says. “At first, I thought they were crazy, but it’s worked out better than our wildest dreams. At the time, no one within hundreds of miles was offering that type of vacation lodging. I also have to credit the Amish builders and carpenters in our area who helped us. We literally couldn’t have done it without them.”
Mooney contacted Pete Nelson — star of the Discovery Channel’s hit TV series Treehouse Masters — to design both his White Oak and Little Red treehouses. “Little Red was even featured on the show,” Mooney says.
Each of the treehouses has electricity and a modern restroom with a sink and a flush toilet. The showers, however, are outdoors on the surrounding deck. Don’t worry — they’re enclosed, except for overhead. But hey, the birds and squirrels won’t laugh if they see you naked.
Two new treehouses are coming online during 2019. The Castle is a two-story octagon. The View will be made mostly of glass, giving visitors a 180-degee panorama of the surrounding woodlands from bed.
Never short on ideas, the Mooneys have future plans of putting a full-sized Airstream travel trailer up in a tree. “It will have a customized interior and sleep four,” Kevin says.
If you prefer that your overnight stay be on solid ground, four cabins are also available that each sleep from 8 to 10 guests. Like the treehouses, the cabins are Amish-built, but these are named for the Mohican, Walhonding, and Kokosing rivers and Killbuck Creek.
Looking for a wedding venue? The Grand Barn Event Center hosts nearly 100 weddings per year, accommodating up to 200 guests. Bridal parties come from all over the country, not just Ohio and surrounding states.
“Last year, we had five couples from California married here,” Mooney says. “One of the brides was from San Diego, and I asked her if she had ties to Ohio. She said, ‘No, I just saw a picture of the Grand Barn online, then clicked on the pictures of your treehouses. That’s when I turned off my computer and picked up the phone. I knew I wanted to be married at The Mohicans.'”
The Mohicans is a member of The Energy Cooperative.
W.H. “Chip” Gross is Ohio Cooperative Living’s outdoors editor. A year ago, he and his wife, Jan, celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary at The Mohicans in The Nest treehouse.
