Just me and my kids, off griddin' it - follow along our shenanigans at our YouTube Uncle Dutch Farms.
"Hundreds of years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in or the type of car I drove... But the world may be different because I did something so bafflingly crazy that it becomes a tourist destination"
Mike Jay wrote:Sounds like a good trip! One thing that helped us lock in on a location was to make up a list (zillow or realtor.com) of properties that met out needs and price range. Then we could drive by them (park on the road and just snoop in a legal manner). That way, instead of just going to the towns and looking at the area in general, you can see specific spots and see how it really feels to you. Don't plan on buying any of them or falling in love, just see if what people are selling for $XXXXX meets your needs and seems livable.
Once you have narrowed it down to a few areas, another trip where you spend a couple nights in each spot can help pin it down even better. Check out the library, feed store, church, bars or whatever social place you want to get a feel for how friendly the place is.
Good luck!
Just me and my kids, off griddin' it - follow along our shenanigans at our YouTube Uncle Dutch Farms.
"Hundreds of years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in or the type of car I drove... But the world may be different because I did something so bafflingly crazy that it becomes a tourist destination"
Not AR, mostly because I do want SNOW.
"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
Gardens in my mind never need water https://permies.com/t/75353/permaculture-projects/Gardens-Mind
Castles in the air never have a wet basement https://permies.com/t/75355/permaculture-projects/Maison-du-Bricolage-house
Mike Jay wrote:Yeah, it should be a fun adventure for you! If you do open houses, make sure you don't fall in love with something before you're ready or able to pull the trigger. I think it worked out better for us to not be able to walk on the property as we did our drive-bys. We could get a feel for the land and area and if the price of the property looked good to us without getting emotionally attached.
Just me and my kids, off griddin' it - follow along our shenanigans at our YouTube Uncle Dutch Farms.
Judith Browning wrote:
Not AR, mostly because I do want SNOW.
Well today the last of an inch and a half snow is melting here in the Arkansas Ozarks. We do get snow, sleet, freezing rain, etc...all of that winter stuff![]()
I'm not sure what sort of community you're looking for?
If we had begun with a plan and some research back in the seventies, homesteading in the Fayetteville AR area might have been a better choice.
There is a very active farmer's market...well attended by both venders and customers...and also a thriving art, craft and music community...and being a college town leans more liberal than other areas. And of course, most importantly there is beautiful fertile forested land.
A road trip is a great idea...I ended up here sort of accidently while hitching around. You never know what you will find...good luck!
Just me and my kids, off griddin' it - follow along our shenanigans at our YouTube Uncle Dutch Farms.
Pearl Sutton wrote:Bethany: I moved to S MO from the New Mexico desert. I treat the humidity like I used to treat the scorching heat, just work around it timing-wise, work in the morning and evening, not the heat of the day. I put effort into working in it, so I got used to it. Our first summer here, my mom pretty much melted down, stayed in the house, by the A/C and didn't acclimatize at all.
I like it here, it has things that matter to me. There are things I don't care for, but that would be true no matter where I moved. I picked the things that matter MOST to me.
Some things I looked into before buying that might be worth your time:
Consider is where the tornadoes walk, there are definite patterns. Tornado History Project This site helped me a lot. Right along the I44 and I70 corridors seems to be thicker tornadoes. Personally, I wonder: the highways were put where the old roads were, the old roads were there because people had walked that way. Do the tornadoes walk the highways because it's easier for them, less obstructions? Or was the walking easier for pioneers because the tornadoes had kept the path clearer? Hard to say. But there IS a definite pattern to how they tend to go. Has a lot to do with the land forms. Also note:: Tornado frequency shifting east Which personally, I think correlates with Big Ag clearing more mileage of big fields, taking out hedgerows etc that might slow the winds down. When you look at property, beware of places that have a lot of trees all the same age, means if it wasn't logged, it got cleared by Mother Nature.
I also like the sites Drilling Maps to see where they are fracking, and Flooding maps watch the patterns in the area you are considering. Pay attention also to the stream flood markers that are down in the dips in the road, how many of those do you want to have to deal with? We looked at one place (had bad sun exposure) that had 8 markers on the only road in or out, and the bridges over them were just slabs of cement with no extra width or rails, that the water flowed over as it needed to. Umm. No. We don't want to be trapped. We are making our life so we don't HAVE to go places, but the option is nice.
Something to really watch for, unless you are willing to deal with it, is the rock levels in the ground. I know someone who bought 10 acres, that turned out to have 6 inches of topsoil on rock. He chipped out holes in the rock to plant trees. The trees aren't doing real well. You can do soil building, but being aware of it helps you choose wisely. Look at the rock strata on the highway, you'll see what I mean. And if you have a stream in the area, it will possibly involve legal hoops to jump through if you do things upstream. Watch for what else is upstream, I can't find the link, don't recall the name of it, but I had a national map that showed the water quality vs where the big feedlots are.
Love to see you if you come by!! You are invited :D
Just me and my kids, off griddin' it - follow along our shenanigans at our YouTube Uncle Dutch Farms.
Bethany Dutch wrote:
that IS a concern! But someone pointed out... here where I am, I'm at huge risk of wildfires that isn't so much a risk in MO, so I'm almost trading one for the other. My home has been threatened within a mile of a pretty major wildfire twice in the last 6 years, so I feel like that would be a zero sum game (tornado vs. wildfire), neither I think would be worse or better to me.
Gardens in my mind never need water https://permies.com/t/75353/permaculture-projects/Gardens-Mind
Castles in the air never have a wet basement https://permies.com/t/75355/permaculture-projects/Maison-du-Bricolage-house
Tina Hillel wrote:I wanted to suggest that whatever spots you decide you like, try to visit them at night!
If you can, aim to make a visit on a weekend night. Sometimes there are hidden things going on at night that you might not learn about until its too late. Enjoy the search. Its all part of the fun!
Just me and my kids, off griddin' it - follow along our shenanigans at our YouTube Uncle Dutch Farms.
Zone 5/6
Annual rainfall: 40 inches / 1016 mm
Kansas City area discussion going on here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1707573296152799/
Gardens in my mind never need water https://permies.com/t/75353/permaculture-projects/Gardens-Mind
Castles in the air never have a wet basement https://permies.com/t/75355/permaculture-projects/Maison-du-Bricolage-house
Just me and my kids, off griddin' it - follow along our shenanigans at our YouTube Uncle Dutch Farms.
Some places need to be wild
Trying to step off the wheel, so I can get from behind the wheel.