Cascade Eco-Resort
/2022
Twelve demountable bamboo cabins perch along mist-cooled ridgelines, their flexible PV shingles and wetland-filtered grey-water systems enabling year-round off-grid operation. Wrap-around decks orient guests toward a cascaded waterfall soundscape, immersing visitors in rainforest biodiversity while leaving virtually no trace on the landscape.
Project Gallery
Timescales
Two narrowly defined dry-season windows framed a monsoon hiatus: the first completed screw-pile foundations and constructed wetland bio-filters; the second saw prefabricated bamboo cabins air-lifted by helicopter and fully assembled in just six weeks.
Detailed interior joinery, site-specific furniture installation, and final PV-battery commissioning occupied the remainder of the schedule before a curated soft-opening for eco-influencer guests.
Objectives
Operate entirely fossil-fuel-free with minimal earth disturbance, offering guests an immersive rainforest experience from every deck, boardwalk, and trail.
Design all cabins and boardwalks to be fully demountable, allowing the site to revert to wilderness without trace once the 25-year concession expires.
Collaborate with indigenous guides to lead foraging and ethnobotanical tours, sharing revenue through an equitable profit-split agreement.
Materials
Structural systems utilise laminated bamboo I-beams connected by concealed stainless knife plates, with cork-insulated MgO wall panels providing breathable enclosure.
Elevated decks rest on removable screw piles, and interiors feature volcanic-stone vessel sinks and naturally antibacterial kenaf-fibre linens.
Lightweight flexible PV shingles charge stable lithium-iron-phosphate batteries discreetly housed within built-in cabinetry, eliminating the need for generators.
Challenges
Every component had to fit within a 1.8-metre helicopter sling net or be mule-packed along narrow trails, as road access was prohibited by environmental regulation.
Persistent rainforest mist accelerated material weathering tests, prompting a switch to denser silica-rich bamboo species for enhanced durability.
Frequent lightning strikes caused inverter trips during commissioning, necessitating upgraded surge protection and revised grounding schemes mid-installation.