♪♪
-I'm Rissa. I'm one of your "R29" producers
and we're here today in Bonny Doon, California,
visiting the O2 Pinecone Treehouse.
I am here at the Pinecone Treehouse forest
for two reasons.
First, and probably the most important,
is that I want to escape the city
and all of the risk and annoyances that come
with living in a building with hundreds of people
that you don't see, but you definitely hear,
and probably smell.
And, secondly, as a person who loves to explore,
having the chance to come to Bonny Doon Forest
for a weekend getaway, I had to say yes.
Okay, guys, we made it here to "Donny Boon."
We are in front of the Pinecone house
and it is spectacular.
Let's go.
So this pinecone structure will immerse you
in 360° views of coastal redwood trees.
It rises 50 feet above the forest floor
and is composed of 56 laser steel diamond frames.
Every piece of this design was custom-built
and the architect kept the idea of sustainability in mind.
The only way to enter the pinecone pod is
through an alternating stepladder.
It's kind of steep, but like it's doable.
We have this cool rope.
Let's go.
♪♪
I made it.
We are here in the tree house.
Dude, this is so pretty!
It's so cute!
I think it's a little smaller
than I thought it was going to be,
but it definitely is a pod, as as they described it online.
Bed looks super soft.
I'm going to take off my outside clothes
because I'm not an animal before I get in it.
But I thought I was going to have like
a small panic attack walking up the stairs,
from clutching onto the rail so tightly.
That did not happen.
I walked up, made it.
Amenities check -- whoo, whoo, whoo!
Okay, so we have some cute lounge spots for a couple.
I think that this bed could either be
like one single or two doubles.
We have our lights.
Ooh! There's a dimmer on it, too, so, romantic.
We have our heater.
Honestly, I'm not saying it's lacking amenities,
but it has just enough for the perfect night.
I tried to open a window and I succeeded,
but they are quite heavy.
Do they all open?
Okay, that one opens, but if I slip while opening that,
I'm sliding down, so these will be staying closed.
Very cool.
We're going to go down to the bathroom, check it out.
I hear that there's a composting toilet.
I know nothing about that.
Going to go to learn.
Guys, I just open the door.
There's no lock. But that's fine.
Okay, we're going to go downstairs.
That's not a good start.
Going down, going down.
♪♪
We're in the bathroom, which is directly
below the Pinecone Treehouse.
You access it through a 25-foot ramp.
It's a pretty small space, but,
it does have great views, like the rest of the tree house.
Beside me, you'll see the composting toilet.
I was kind of wary of it when I first walked in,
but no smell and it's pretty easy to use.
So there is a pile of wood chips next to the toilet.
After you're done, take like a generous scoop.
You put it in and then kick it a few times on the bottom,
just to help with the decomposing process.
Really simple. Really sanitary.
The shower is directly in front of me
and we have the sink to our right.
Mirror mirror, not on a wall.
Is this the most handsome forest of them all?
So, after you're done with your business --
you know what that is --
you can just open these doors and voilà,
it's nature's Febreeze.
But, if you look around,
you'll see many different colors of wood, and different sizes.
So this is all reclaimed wood,
from the boards to the paneling on the sides,
and it really just speaks
to how sustainable this place actually is.
Unlike the tree house, it actually locks --
another layer of privacy.
So what's really cool about the shower
is that the water goes directly down into the grate below.
Water off your back,
literally onto the ground and into the trees.
How cool is that?
♪♪
We're actually underneath the Pinecone now.
This is a little hammock space
where you can go to --
Maybe, maybe if you have too much time
with your partner or whoever you're here with,
this is another indoor space that you guys can occupy.
You look straight down from here, which is pretty cool
and not as -- not as frightening
as -- as -- as I would think it is.
Each time I go up and down,
it's -- it's a little like less intimidating.
I no longer like --
I was like watching my feet as I go down.
But a pro tip I found is make sure that your hair
is pulled back as you're descending the stairs,
so you can really see where like your feet are landing.
Looking around, I definitely see the --
the lines of where it's suspended,
but it's honestly just like these --
these like really thick redwood trees around me.
In the distance, you can hear
like the trucks on the road, which isn't too far away.
It's that like perfect balance of someone can hear you,
but they can't like always see you
and so you do have that -- that --
that cloak of privacy, which is awesome.
♪♪
Okay, so I fell asleep a little early, around, hm,
4:30, would you say, Nicole?
Around 4:30.
But keep it in mind we had a long day.
Honestly, you can't really see much outside
because it is pitch black.
The structure does sway a little bit
because it is bolted -- it is like
hooked to the trees, that also do sway.
The bigger challenge is going to be
drinking enough water to stay hydrated
and -- and have our skin look nice and smooth,
but to not drink enough where we have to go and pee
at 4:00 in the morning downstairs.
Yeah, so we're going to go to sleep.
We'll catch you in the morning.
Ta-ta for now. [ Laughs ]
♪♪
Good morning, world!
We slept soundly.
You know, it's not like a Tempur-Pedic mattress, but,
very well.
[ Indistinct ] We had a long day yesterday.
So, last night was amazing.
It was cold. It gets cold out here, guys.
But we turned on the heater.
It took around 15 minutes to warm up the entire space.
Honestly, I think like the sway of the -- of the pod,
really, it's like -- it's like it kind of rocks you to bed.
The sunrise was so beautiful.
I really just like laid in bed and took it in.
360 views, guys.
I'm -- I'm -- I'm not going to knock it. So great.
I was scared. I'm not great with heights.
I think it's a human thing, right?
Fear of falling is human, but it felt like really sturdy
and I got over it really quickly like once I got here.
The structure is suspended on redwood trees
and, every single day,
as the trees grow bigger and stronger,
the structure becomes more fortified
in -- in this environment.
And, once I realized that, my fear kind of melted away.
One thing that is scary is that,
if you jump, the structure will shake
and you remember that you are 50 feet above the ground,
which is never a great reminder.
This isn't a place for like a dance party,
but it is a really a place for, for yoga, some meditation,
read a book, knit -- chiller hobbies.
I didn't have expectations going into this experience.
I knew that we'd be in a tree house
and I knew that it was beautiful,
but to actually have like the photos
like match up with like what you see
and to be suspended in the air was something
I really couldn't like fathom before I got here.
10/10 would recommend for those who are not fans of heights,
but aren't afraid to take a little adventure.
But, overall, I had a fantastic time.