Where do we start?

[mkmjmom]

We are a military family who dream of having our own homestead in Idaho or maybe Alaska. My husband has about 6-8 more years before he can retire, but we want to start planning now.

What are the first steps we should take? We are working hard to eliminate all of our debt so we have more freedom to do what we want.

We also have twin 11-year-old daughters (who are not so thrilled about the "homesteading" idea...lol) and an 8yo son and a 1yo son. The girls will be college-age when my husband retires, so we will still need to make money, but we want to live as simply as we can.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!
Sadie

[zbery1]

How about taking an Alaska vacation? It might get the girls more excited about about a move and you could look around and see what land prices are and learn more about the types of country. I grew up in Northern Idaho but when I returned home after several years in the military it was no longer home, there were to many people and to much "progress". I now live in southeast Alaska It is heavily forested with incredible mountains, lakes and rivers. I might suggest the Alaska Marine highway as the way to go. No driving and incredible scenery. It also stops in most of the coastal communities so you can look around. If you haven't fallen head over heels in love by then you can drive on up into the rest of Alaska. I know many people who have bought places and come up when they can and start to work on making a home for when they can move here full time. That way they make friends and when the time comes for the final move it's like going home.

[mkmjmom]

Thank you for the advice. I guess I wasn't clear in my question...we actually live in Alaska right now, as we are stationed here. Idaho is home, but we fell in love with the Talkeetna area this summer. We have a house in North Pole, but I think we'd rather be further south.

My questions are really about finding land, learning about raising livestock, etc. I am a complete newby when it comes to this stuff, but I am willing to learn and am not afraid of hard work. Thanks again!

[zbery1]

I would want to be further south too If I lived near Fairbanks! Way to cold up there for me

[SPIKE]

If you are planning and getting out of debt, then you are headed in the right direction.
If the children want to go to college, then it should be up to them to study hard, get good grades, and therefore make themselves elegable for scholarships and grants. I do not believe that a parent should have to carry the financial burden for a childs future education. That is just my personal opinion.

And most of all;






MOVE SOUTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[fnfredux]

Alaska or Idaho...pretty rough living. Have you evre really lived out in the boonies? might sound glamourous or romantic to someone who hasn't done it, but it takes a special breed. I live out in the "boonies' in MO. Only about 8 miles from the nearest small (500pop) town. This is "boonies" enough for me. I have electric and phone. Lots or places like you're talking about won't. You might want to do a LOT of reading about primitive lifestyles before you decide. Meanwhile there are plenty of places in more human friendly areas that are cheap, have no building codes/restrictions, large tracts of farmland/virgin woods that are reasonably priced.
Severe climate is nothing to take lightly if you are thinking of "homesteading".

[LeatherneckPA]

Alaska or Idaho...pretty rough living. ..... might sound glamourous or romantic to someone who hasn't done it, but it takes a special breed. ..... Severe climate is nothing to take lightly if you are thinking of "homesteading".
Nice solid advice. We tend to romanticize "the good ol' days", but the reality is it's a LOT of hard, sweaty, and sometimes dangerous work.

[homemade_mamma]

Sadie, I can't help you with finding land. But since you already live in Alaska I'm sure if you start researching now, in the next few years you should be able to find something that your whole family can agree on.
You also need to decide just how far from civilization you can be. Do you need a grocery store down the road? I grew up in a small town, but when I moved out to a farm (14 miles from a grocery store) it took me a long time to learn how to stock my pantry so that I wouldn't have to jump in the car eveytime I ran out of something.

But now onto livestock. I am assuming you don't have anything larger than a dog and never have? You may want to sit down and make a plan on just how self sufficiant you want to be. (We have chickens and cows for meat,eggs and income. BUT I don't want to have a dairy cow or dairy goat. Too much work for me right now, and with the price of corn, the dairy cow is out. So we depend on a store for milk. ) Then you need to find books, people, websites, extension offices (very good source) that can offer you help in the areas of livestock that you have choosen. But of course true learning comes from hands on. Livestock is a big part of a farm/homestead. Barns, hay fields, lots, fences, probably a tractor or two. Rarely any of these come cheaply and easily. The bigger the animal you are wanting to keep the bigger these items you will be needing. Farms/homesteads are built up over time, usually generations. You said you aren't afraid to work hard. And that's good! I wish more people would felt like you do ;) But how hard is the rest of your family willing to work. My kids are 8 6 3 and 1 . The 8 and the 6 year old have daily chores in and out of the house. And we all work hard, at least it feals like it LOL!
I'm just saying that it will get old pretty quick if you are out in negative degree weather fixing fence and jr's inside playing playstation ;)

So I guess my big advice would be this. Don't homestead too far from a town. Start small and you can always build up from there. Meanwhile you still have a town nearby to fall back on. :)

~Debbie

Oh! And many things you can start to learn now. I am in the process of learning to pressure can. I learned how to water bath can a few years back. So food preservation would be something you could start with.

[grandmajoy]

Idaho, pretty rough living? Hello? I've lived here all my life, well except 8 years in Wyo. The climate is not all that severe, we do get snow here were I'm at but some places get hardly any. Land prices are up in my area tho and the developers are here like locusts.

What part of Idaho are you thinking about?

I'm in S. E. Idaho

joy

[Global_Gal]

Nice solid advice. We tend to romanticize "the good ol' days", but the reality is it's a LOT of hard, sweaty, and sometimes dangerous work.


Cousin Sandy's mother Bessie, born in Christian County MO, died a couple of years ago at about 95. A few years ago someone asked her about 'the good ol' days'. Bessie said " Weren't nothing GOOD about them".

We romanticize the 'good old days' but in Truth there really wasn't that much good about them. We just look back on them thinking they were good because we really didn't hear what was really going on outside our own little community.

[homemade_mamma]

What happend to "a little hard work makes you a better person" guys. The good old days may have been a lot of work but so was every other time in history until recently. I for one think most people these days who have an EASY life are a bunch of self serving brats with entitlement issues and not to mention VERY lazy. As I have read around on the forum I think most of you agree that is a huge part of what is wrong with America.
The gold old days may have been tough but those people (for the most part) were good honest hard working people. And most of them are very proud of it! Just like I didn't like it one bit to have 4 kids without any pain meds (our small hospital didn't offer epidurals) but I am damn proud now that I did it and I also know that I can handle ALOT of pain and still live to talk about it!
Now I certainly wouldn't want to live in the depression era in the dust bowl area. Nasty living to say the least. LOL!

I keep hearing about how parents want to make it easier for the next generation. WELL how easy do we want it to be for them. Look what has happend to them. They can't even function without the Wii or playstation, the T.V. on and the phone in their hand texting their friends because they are too lazy to get their butts off the couch.

I really don't think she is wanting to go back to "the good old days" guys, just wanting to get some help on how to homestead in these times. Like the rest of us. We need to give her more ideas!
I admire you Sadie! I hope you stick with your plan. I really doubt you are wanting to live without basic ammenities so I think you will be just fine :) I hope you come back here and read this.

~Debbie

[mkmjmom]

Thank you for all the great advice. I agree about Alaska. It is supposed to get down to -35 degrees tonight, and I can't imagine being stuck way out in the "boonies" with small kids and no heat...definitely dangerous.
But my husband grew up in Idaho and we lived there with the kids for several years a while back. While we want to "homestead," we are not interested in being completely "off-grid." We just want to be more self-reliant than your average American. As we learn, we may want to do more, but we are just in the learning phases.

We are probably what many of you would refer to as "wannabes." But we all have to start somewhere, right? :-/
Anyway, thanks for all the solid advice...I look forward to hearing what else you have to say!
Sadie

[pcrowder]

The closest little town to me is 32 miles round trip. The closest BIG city is 2 HOURS round trip. Alot of people think that being out in the "boonies" wouldn't be hard, but you need to think of it in the worst-case scenarios...what if someone became suddenly very ill and needed emergency medical attention? How long would it take a life-flight or ground ambulance to get to you? Will you have a snow mobile? How are you going to get fuel stored at your place to fill your machines? These are the types of things you need to think about. Since it will be awhile before you do this, buy EVERY SINGLE BOOK on homesteading/living off the land you can find NOW. Read them from cover to cover, and then read them again. Same with books about livestock/poultry - read them all now. If you want to get a taste of it, rent/borrow a pop-up trailer and go "survive" in it for a 2 or three weeks and you will get an idea of what you like/don't like about "boonies" living. Live NOW as simplistically as possible - make your own bread, grow as much of your own food in a garden and "can" your own food, and try starting now to raise animals on a very small scale - most towns/cities will let you keep chickens (hens) as long as they aren't noisy (no roosters!). Raise the hens for the eggs and then butcher and eat some. Raise meat rabbits (in the garage if you must), and then butcher and eat them. This will give you an idea of what it is all about. The first book I would tell you to get is Carla Emery's Encyclopedia of Country Living, or her older version, "The Old Fashioned Recipe Book". It is a wealth of information, and the older versions can be had on EBay cheaply. There are tons of homesteading books on EBay and other used book sites - read read read, and then implement what you've read on whatever scale you can now, before you look for land to retire on. Good luck!

[pcrowder]

And sadie - if you want to pm me off list, feel free any time.
Pat

[pcrowder]

homemade mamma- I agree with you 100000%! Most people today are so lazy that they can't function, and I worry about what's going to happen soon to alot of these "soft" people, as it was announced today that we HAVE been in a recession for the last 13 months (wasn't a surprise to me!), and that we are all in for much tougher times ahead. I have friends who live in the suburbs of Denver who have never made a loaf of bread (and wouldn't know how), have never put kerosene in an oil lamp (they don't even own one), and their biggest "crisis" is when their cable goes out and they miss their "soaps"...yikes! The coming times are gonna be REALLY rough for alot of people. I say to all of them, read read read and learn learn learn all you can starting right this minute to learn to take care of yourself. Who knows, the life you save may be your own! But, unfortunately, they just poo-poo the advice, and I know darned well, that if things get really bad, they'll ALL suddenly show up on my doorstep begging for help. :(

[fnfredux]

Idaho, pretty rough living? Hello? I've lived here all my life, well except 8 years in Wyo. The climate is not all that severe, we do get snow here were I'm at *but some places get hardly any. Land prices are up in my area tho and the developers are here like locusts.

What part of Idaho are you thinking about?

I'm in S. E. Idaho

joy *

sssssh... after looking this up I'm thinking of moving way North to a warmer climate

IDAHO Forecast
http://www.accuweather.com/us/id/boise/83701/forecast-15day.asp?partner=accuweather&traveler=1&zipChg=1& metric=0

MY Forecast
http://www.accuweather.com/us/mo/trenton/64683/forecast-15day.asp?partner=accuweather&traveler=0&metric=0

http://www.visitidaho.org/about/climate.aspx

I stand corrected and in ENVY..

[Duchesse]

Start where you are then you'll know if it's truly for you. *

I live in NYC. *I have a small raised bed organic garden and I have five pygmy goats. I've only been a goat owner for a little over a year. *Prior to that I read up on goat care for nine months before I bought two little does. *

Next spring I may even get two or three hens for eggs and to learn hands on chicken care. *When I get to the country I will get a rooster and breed some chicks for meat. * *The rooster is illegal in the city. I have been researching the best chickens for the homestead. I've decided on the Wyandotte.

I agree with everyone who said READ READ and *Read as much as you can about homesteading. Then choose what can be done right where you are and have a go at it.

If after doing that you still want to move to the country and expand your homestead, start looking for your land.

[fnfredux]

Start where you are then you'll know if it's truly for you. *

I live in NYC. *I have a small raised bed organic garden and I have five pygmy goats. I've only been a goat owner for a little over a year. *Prior to that I read up on goat care for nine months before I bought two little does. *

Next spring I may even get two or three hens for eggs and to learn hands on chicken care. *When I get to the country I will get a rooster and breed some chicks for meat. * *The rooster is illegal in the city. *I have been researching the best chickens for the homestead. *I've decided on the Wyandotte. * *

I agree with everyone who said READ READ and *Read as much as you can about homesteading. Then choose what can be done right where you are and have a go at it.

If after doing that you still want to move to the country and expand your homestead, start looking for your land.
Do you live in NY CITY or New York State?
I would really like to know (I'm not being a wise guy) how you can have livestock in NY City.
I used to live in CT, visited the "city" many, many times. Other than the burnned out Bronx, I cannot think of anywhere that you could have livestock. And eve in the Bronx, I don't think it would be legal, just that no one would rat you out.

[angelfood]

I agree with earlier posts, you should be studying books and learning skills now, while you have some time. Too many homesteaders try to take on too many projects the first year and are overwhelmed. It is not a bad idea to put off livestock until you have your orchard and garden in and have the place fenced, water, power and septic in and some living structure that can keep you warm and dry. If you have the money to build your house right away, great! But most of us start out living in a shed or trailer until we can get a home built.
As for buying land, what about water? How much will a well cost? Could be way higher than you would think, as in tens of thousands of dollars. Yikes! And is the water good or loaded with sulfer? Some parts of the country water rights are a complicated issue. In Alaska oil and mineral rights might be a concern. Are you very private and prefer no one to cross you property? Then check out right of ways. Just learning about how to shop for land is important. A good book is Finding and Buying Your Place in the Country.

Learn how to bake your own bread, it is fun and satisfying. So is canning. I quilt and embroider, and I recently invested in a cheap beginner sewing machine. I can never find the clothes I like and prices are rediculous so other than jeans, I am going to try to learn to make my own.

It is worthwhile to think about your climate zone and what you can grow. Go ahead and plan your orchard and try to get it planted as soon as possible. You will wait a few years before harvest. Plant berry bushes, they will produce in a couple of years. Find online sources for heirloom trees and vegetable seeds. Join Dave's Garden online and find forums with a wealth of gardening info. Nice folks too!

A lot of work and planning goes into this, and much more work when you are finally there. It is never "finished" always chores and something needs fixing. So be sure this lifestyle is for you before you buy the land and commit. To us it is a dream come true. We like to stay busy, are sufficient in each other's company. Love the quiet.

Good luck to you and your family!