This was one of my best experiences on my trip to Portland. I really did find staying in an earth cottage had a different, warmer feel than traditional-built structures. Ivy's "mud hut" is cob over earth bag construction. The kind of place out ancestors might have lived in, and I loved the mosaic wall decorations and stone cobbled floor. It's a slightly long trek to the guest bathroom, which for $75 a night could be a little cleaner. And the steps down into the cottage were rickety enough I had to get used to them. But Ivy's a good host and, no pun intended, down to earth!