WASHOUGAL, WASH. — People talk about chucking their jobs. They say they will leave behind the madness of the city and hit the road.

A few drinks and they’re telling you about the epic hiking trip in the Sierra Nevada they’ll take or how magical the surf is in Baja California Sur, Mexico.

But nobody ever does it. Nobody. Except for one guy.

His name is Foster Huntington, and he used to work in New York. He had a bright future in the fashion industry. But then he cut the cord. And do you know where he lives now? In a treehouse.

“I could’ve bought a house,” Mr. Huntington said one recent afternoon. He stood at the base of a massive fir tree, his face hidden behind a scruffy beard. “But this is so much better. For me, it’s realizing a childhood dream.”