Tom Chudleigh's tree spheres are nothing if not cozy. Tight and compact as nuts, the two spheres are a marvel of ingenuity as they rock gently in the breeze, suspended spiderlike from three strong trees. A ladder hugs the circumference of a trunk, providing access to the spheres. Once inside, you're sealed off as if in a capsule, a room for two in a giant eyeball six metres off the ground.

The tree spheres are Chudleigh's take on back-to-nature accommodation. They hang in a grove on the two-hectare property where he lives on Vancouver Island near Horne Lake. Too small to be called a cottage, too sealed to resemble a tent, and too free-swinging to be a tree house, the spheres occupy a category all their own. They are unique structures that hang from living organisms and rely on the elements for their motion.

"I didn't know much about spheres initially, but I knew they'd be important to me somehow," says Chudleigh, a Calgary native who began making them in 1992. "I kept having this recurring vision of a spherical boat," he explains. "So I started building [the sphere called] Eve, and halfway through, the tree-house idea came to me. Now I realize the sphere has symbolic meaning of wholeness, connectedness, as opposed to separation. The walls become the ceiling and the floor. In a sphere, it's all about oneness."

The two spheres are a labour of love. Each is composed of spruce and sports Costa Rican teak floors, two circular windows, beds, and a seating or dining area. Storage space is cleverly fitted into all the nooks and crannies of the orb, and there's running water, a kettle and a microwave, a fridge (in the larger sphere), and even a speaker system so you can plug in your iPod and listen to your favourite tunes.

I'm grateful for the absence of music the night my companion and I relax in Eryn, the larger of the two spheres (3.2 metres in diameter). It's comforting up here in the treetops, in this small, peaceful, organic space. We watch Christmas and Thanksgiving, the geese Chudleigh inherited when he rented this property, swim gracefully on the pond. An ever-so-slight breeze rocks Eryn softly, and as darkness descends we are lulled to sleep by this rhythmic slow dance.

"People certainly seem to find it restful," Chudleigh says. "They tell me that it is very relaxing and that they haven't slept so well in a long time. Perhaps that is because of the motion, or the space itself, or the fact that they're up in the trees for the first time since they were kids."

While the spheres are available for purchase, you can try one out by renting it for a night or two. Most guests use the spheres for sleeping, but others use them for meditation, or to find inspiration for writing. "One couple spent a few days making a documentary film in the sphere, and for another guest, a night in the sphere was a transformative experience, prompting a total life change," Chudleigh recalls. The guest sold her home and went off to travel around Africa.

Besides being a unique form of accommodation, the tree spheres are a good example of low-impact tourism. Hoisted into the air, they leave no footprint on the ground and require no elimination of vegetation. A composting toilet located steps away from the bottom of the ladder provides a sanitary and non-odoriferous solution. For now, guests in need of a shower take a three-minute walk to Chudleigh's log cabin, where a bathroom has been designated for their use.

Guests will find that the location of the spheres allows for convenient access to Horne Lake, which has swimming, hiking, and a cave network. The spheres aren't far enough away from Horne Lake Road to avoid the sound of passing cars, but this location is a short-term solution, says Chudleigh. Ultimately, he dreams of having an eco-friendly resort where 20 or more spheres hang together deep in a forest and "floatplanes preferably provide the only access." His rustic workshop holds the seeds of this goal. In one corner sits an unfinished fibreglass sphere that will one day serve as a massage room. A trailer on wheels is another work in progress, destined to become a sauna and bathrooms for guests.

For now, he constructs spheres for others, fielding calls from the U.S., France, and Australia. A 3.2-metre fibreglass sphere takes at least eight months to create and sells for up to $50,000, while the spruce version requires 20 months of labour and costs up to $150,000. Chudleigh does 95 percent of the work himself, hiring help on occasion.

Chudleigh is thoroughly enjoying his orbital experiment, and when bookings get quiet you will find him and his wife, Rosey, curled up in one of the spheres for the night. "I think it's my job to throw the idea of spheres out into the mass consciousness and see where it goes," he says.

ACCESS: The writer stayed as a guest of Free Spirit Spheres, located at 420 Horne Lake Road, off Highway 19 North, approximately one hour's drive from Nanaimo's Duke Point ferry terminal. The spheres are available for rent year-round on a nightly or weekly basis. No children under 14 are permitted. Eryn, the larger of the spheres, sleeps three with a double bed and a loft bed. It rents for $150 for one night or $275 for two nights for two people ($35 more per night for a third person). Eve, the smaller sphere at 2.7 metres in diameter, sleeps one or two comfortably, though two large people would find it too small. It rents for $100 for one night or $175 for two nights. For details visit www.freespiritspheres.com/. Book by e-mail at rosey@freespiritspheres.com .