Jaimie and Dave Hinckle’s tiny house build tested the couple’s love, strength, and perseverance. Now that it’s completed, the couple’s main priority is to live a happy life.
One way to do that is by turning their 5-acre property in Kalama, Washington, into a playground.
The property is home to everything from Dave’s metal shop to Jaimie’s chicken coop. And their most recent project has added even more fun: Dave built a 50-foot-long suspension bridge that connects to their own private lookout deck.
“I’m happy that my husband got to do something that he wanted to do for so long,” Jaimie told Insider. “I’m proud of him. I’m so proud of him.”
After Dave had a life-threatening stroke, the couple now prioritizes joy
The couple’s 406-square-foot suspension home was finished in 2016. Jaimie and Dave Hinckle
In August 2015, Dave suffered from an intracerebral hemorrhage, or a major brain bleed, which is a life-threatening type of stroke.
At the time, the couple was just a few months into building their shipping container tiny house. After Dave went through intensive therapy, the couple successfully finished their home feeling happy, healthy, and exhausted in April 2016.
“We had poured our heart and soul into it,” Jaimie said.
The tiny home is built with a 20-foot-long shipping container that sits on top of a 40-foot-long container. Downstairs is the living room, kitchen, bathroom, and storage room, and upstairs is the couple’s bedroom, which leads out to a private balcony.
With their house completed, the couple now focuses on adding fun elements to the property, like the suspension bridge.
Last summer, Dave spent a month building the suspension bridge
The bridge took less than a month to complete. Jaimie and Dave Hinckle
Jaimie said that when Dave envisioned his ideal home, it featured a suspension bridge and a zip line.
Since the brain bleed, the couple has focused on making sure those dreams come true.
“What happens if something happened to him and I hadn’t let him build this thing that was so important to him?” Jaimie said.
So last July, the couple checked the suspension bridge off the list.
The bridge starts at the private balcony off of the tiny house and leads to a deck that overlooks a nearby valley.
The family of five stand on the 50-foot-long suspension bridge. Jaimie and Dave Hinckle
Dave completed the bridge in about one month, and it sits 9 feet above the ground.
Jaimie said the bridge holds a lot of sentimental value for the family. The wood used for the bridge came from Jaimie’s daughters’ father, who had recently passed away.
“There will always be a piece of our girls’ dad here for them in this property,” Jaimie said.
Next summer, the couple plans to build an adrenaline-inducing zip line. Jaimie said Dave is pushing to have it 40 feet above the ground, but she said she’s negotiating for a lower, safer height.
“Once we get past that little hiccup, a zip line is definitely going to happen,” Jaimie said.
