Well, here goes the planning stage..

cerebraljungle · #1 11/13/12, 01:00 AM

Greetings from Afghanistan! I am currently deployed here on my fourth (and hopefully last) go around. So here is my situation - I retire in 3 years, will be going to school for two more after that (finishing a degree in blacksmithing). So by my calculations that gives me 5 years to figure out how to buy, develop and occupy the little homestead of my dreams. Fortunatly I will have the pittance of a retirement the army gives me to ensure i dont starve to death and while I can hunt and fish I have absolutly no clue how to farm or raise animals. I dont have a wife or kids (any takers? lol JK) and Im totally commited to the plan of homesteading. Here are a few questions for the group - I have no building experience, how hard is it to build a small cabin? Ive been overwhelmed by information i've found on the internet by what looks like people who know what they are doing

other then that - what are the major pittfalls you have encountered starting your homestead? Sorry for the long post but I'm full of questions.
Cheers,
Scott

PNP Katahdins · #2 11/13/12, 01:07 AM

Welcome to HT, Scott! And thank you for your service. Do you have any idea where you will be retiring to?

Peg

cerebraljungle · #3 11/13/12, 01:17 AM

looking at three areas - eastern tennessee (stationed in TN, plus will be going to school at TN Tech) Upper peninsula WI ( plenty of game and cheap land) or Montana - honestly open to anywhere but thats where Ive been looking

KMA1 · #4 11/13/12, 09:03 AM

Scott,

First, Thank you for your service to all of us! Second, Welcome to the Forums.

To answer your question, yes there is no question that you can build a home. Sounds like all you lack is the knowledge and skills to do it. If you are willing you can learn and develop these. First, there are a lot of different books out there which not only explain in simple terms how to build a house, but also have great illustrations. I am pretty sure that there is also a lot of on line info. I suggest that you spend your free time doing some background study online and books. By the way, that goes for plumbing and electrical as well.

Once you get to your schooling at Tn Tech, I would suggest that you find a habitat for humanity project and volunteer for the whol project. You should be able to find something like this around Cookeville. That will let you see and work on building first hand. Ask questions about everything. Then volunteer to help, or actually hire on as a "gofer" on a framing crew or a small builder who does the whole house. Again ask questions. I know this sounds like a lot of effort, but for a total of 3 or 4 weeks you can gain a lot of knowledge and some experience.

This should give you enough skill and idea about how to do things to build a small building. Maybe start with a storage building or other outbuilding on your land to begin with. Then move on to a cabin.

There are a few forum HT members who live reasonably close by. I am only about 4 hours away from Cookeville area myself, so you could probably find someone able to give you some guidance in Tennessee. It is a good place to homestead.

I didn't realize that Tn Tech had a blacksmithing program. While you are there, check out Brotherton Mountain north of Algood, Tennessee which now runs into Cookeville. That used to be a beautiful place for homesteading. Wife's grandmohter's family homestead was on Brotherton Mountain. Not sure how much residential development is there now, but it used to be a great place.

whiterock · #5 11/13/12, 10:57 AM

MOre power to ya , Scott. Keep coming back here and reading and asking questions. Lots of good info. You will want to start small. A garden first, not too big, or it will overwhelm, some fruit trees, then on to small livestock like chickens. Don't overdo at once.

Thank you for serving. Keep safe.

Ed

PrincessFerf · #6 11/13/12, 11:46 AM

Hi Scott and welcome to HT! Thank you so very much for your service.

When you return to the states, you may want to take time during school to continue your research - especially the location. Eastern Tennessee is quite a bit different (weather-wise) than the UP in Wisconsin. Having lived behind the cheddar curtain my whole life, of course I'm biased towards Wisconsin.

As previous posters have said, you can absolutely achieve the goals you've stated in your initial post. Don't get too overwhelmed by all of the information on the web - because once you start getting your hands dirty you'll find that its a lot easier than what you've read. (I learned that with raising chickens, turkeys, etc.)

I would suggest picking one topic at a time and if you can, keep a journal (paper or electronic) of what you're discovering. As I've researched on the web, I found that one website would have a few useful pieces of information and yet another would provide a bit more, etc.

Chickens are quite easy to care for and are a great way to begin your adventure into livestock. As for gardening/farming, pick a few things you love to eat and start from there. Pick some food that you can preserve for the winter months, too. Tomatoes and beans are perfect for starting out.

There is a lot to learn and thankfully homesteading isn't something that you have to complete overnight... or even in one year. Take advantage of the experience and wisdom shared on these boards, you'll find it to be a huge help!

emdeengee · #7 11/13/12, 11:54 AM

Be sure to check out the Country Singletree section.

It sounds like you have good plans but if you really don't know anything about gardening or raising animals or buildings then you should try to include some time for practical learning. The Backyard Homestead is a very good book to start off with but you should try to work on a real farm to get some experience. My friend spent 3 months every winter for 3 years working on a farm in Costa Rica - no pay just room and board - but she learned so much. Last year she took a years course on permaculture at

Linnaea Farm: Frontpage

She did not ever want to leave.

There are other places such as this where you could learn. No matter how much you read there is nothing like hands on for learning. You can learn as you go but it is expensive, tiring and frustrating. By the time we got to our acreage we had been city and suburban homesteading for years as well as working on farms and orchards on our weekends and holidays.

sisterpine · #8 11/13/12, 12:39 PM

I did homestead in MT for 15 years and it was great but hard. Wicked winters made it tough at times. Very short growing season as well. When I started my stead I was a 45 year old woman who drew her cabin plans on a napkin at age 15. Those were the plans I went with. My husband and I, neither of whom had ever built much of anything built our cabin by reading basic construction books and listening to the advice of others when we had a question. We had to fire and rehire the carpenters, cement form builders, drywallers and electricians severl times but we got her done all by ourselves! So if I could do it you can do it too! You will be much slower than a pro and it will be frustrating sometimes but it is also fun and extremely satisfying!

FarmboyBill · #9 11/13/12, 02:21 PM

I think you better keep your mind on what your doing over there so that when you come back with all limbs attached and alive and your money in a bank. THEN, think about what your going to do.
It gets too easy to think about what your going to do, How your going to do it, and try to distract your mind from where you are, and what your doing. That gets you killed, and if not you maybe onna your friends.
Keep your mind on your job. U got plenty of time after your back to get in here and find it all out. We ll still be here, ready and waiting.
Good luck

cerebraljungle · #10 11/13/12, 09:51 PM

Very good advice from everyone - KMA1, definitly will look into the volunteering at HFH sounds like a good way to learn without making costly mistakes. Bill, gotcha brother - I know when to switch on and when to decompress, dont worry nothing but mission on my mind when im giving a patrol brief and when Im leaving the wire. To all, Ill be on here from time to time mostly just reading posts but if I have questions I'm sure you will hear them.
Cheers,
Scott

Gianni · #11 11/14/12, 08:54 AM

Not a lot of call for Blacksmiths in MT. I know a lot of Farriers who will travel anywhere for good horses and one genius that makes his living in ornamental iron. It is very difficult to find affordable land in MT that you can make a living on. It becomes more so to have a subsistance living. If the length of the growing season doesn't get you the lack or water or prices seem to.

Linebacker · #12 11/14/12, 11:52 AM

Thanks for your service brother! I made the decision to go back to my roots while I was deployed to Iraq in 05/06. One advantage I had over you was I knew where I was going to live. Homesteading is a lot like the army, there is a manual for everything, and like everything in the Army the manual way may not be the best way for the circumstances at the time. As mentioned before where you settle will determine which livestock and plants will do the best for you. Take it slow but maintain the avenue to your goals. No matter how hard I try, the goats and chickens just won't follow Army Regulations and understand the Chain of Command!
Brad

sidepasser · #13 11/14/12, 12:23 PM

Thank you for your service and I hope you are done "over there" after this trip. Nice seeing a new face here and welcome aboard.

I built my farm myself with help from people that I hired to show me how to do things like pour concrete, make mortar, lay block, etc. I think you learn more that way than by hiring people to do everything for you. The only thing I did not do myself was electrical (I am terrified of electricity cause I can't see it..before it bites - lol) and I had to hire men to build and install the rafters and decking for the barn/house.

Of course I hired out the well and septic but if you were handy with a backhoe, no reason you couldn't dig the septic yourself unless you want an outhouse.

Other way you can learn on the job is to volunteer to help someone else. That is how I learned how to hang wall paper without it looking horrible..I hired on for no pay for a summer with a wall paper hanger..and learned how to strip, prepare and hang the paper. Then I used that knowledge to do some part time work on my own to help pay for my land.

You are looking at some vastly different climates from TN to the frozen north land. You might want to narrow that down a bit and settle on one area geographically and then spend some time researching growing conditions (length of seasons, soil types, etc.) which you can do via the net by utilizing the Dept. of Ag's website and similar sites.

don't worry about getting mouths to feed right off - lol..I would focus on location, then maybe hit craigslist to find possible land for sale to look at pricing, etc. You might even want to lease a place for a year or so to make sure that area is the one you wish to live in. I did that when I moved to Huntsville from Ga. as I did not know anything about the area. So leased for a year and then moved and leased again, and finally got married and DH and I are now looking to buy land and build a house or buy a farm. By leasing for awhile, I have a good idea of where I want to live in this area and where I don't want to be. You would have a chance to see how the traffic is, taxes, zoning, etc. before you commit.

something to think about and again, Thank you for your service!

Sidepasser

Maura · #14 11/14/12, 12:44 PM

You are going to need to do a soil survey of where you intend to live. Indiana has great soil and a long growing season, for instance. How does the land in TN compare? You can always improve the land, but it takes time. Are you going to farm with horses/mules?

littlebitfarm · #15 11/14/12, 02:19 PM

Is the time in college and degree better than less time spent with a good blacksmith? I know an amazing blacksmith and she takes on students on occasion. Have no idea what the arrangement is. Lorelei Sims - Artist/Blacksmith - BLACKSMITHCHIC.COM - Welcome to the Vortex of Hot Metal

Kathie

MO_cows · #16 11/14/12, 02:46 PM

Thanks for your service, stay safe over there. And welcome.

Just a little food for thought - due to the recession and all the foreclosures, you can BUY a lot more house/cabin than you could build for the same money in a lot of areas. So please don't rule that out when you actually start looking for a place. In our immediate family, we have bought 3 places in the last 2 years. 2 in town with enough yard to garden and 1 is on 5 acres; all 3 properties together cost less than $100k, all were foreclosures.

The most bang for your buck is gardening. Also hunting, fishing and foraging can yield a lot of food nearly free in some places. So those would be things to research. Learning to keep/raise chickens would make a good introduction to livestock, work your way up from there.

Best of luck to you.

texican · #17 11/14/12, 09:57 PM

Learned something today.... (was getting nervous, as it's getting late and haven't learned anything, up until now)... that someone offers degrees in blacksmithing. I thought it was learn it yourself, or apprentice out. I'm wondering do they cover farrier'ing also? Sorta go hand in hand nowadays, unless one starts a niche business.

cerebraljungle · #18 11/15/12, 01:57 AM

Thanks to all for the great advice - its good to hear from folks who come together to help someone out. Basically im still in rough planning, Lord knows how things might change in the next couple years but it's good to get the goals set and start looking toward them. That being said, I really have no definitive plan for a location - It will be very dependant on price, location running water, timber, cleared land etc.. TN is my general goal due to good weather (4 real seasons) though the northern states offer much in game and fish availability. Ideally I would be looking for an already established homestead for the savings in labor and learning curve (what worked, what didn't). However that cuts into the meager funding availability (gotta love catch 22). As for finishing college - It allows me more time to find "that perfect place" while taking advantage of the college benefits that will allow me to live modestly while learning. End state goal is being able to live in relative comfort while living in the country and doing what I love (smithing) as a means for additional (but not required for survival) income. I would be looking into the custom knife business and running it over the internet. Definitly have enought contacts in the military to keep myself quite busy lol.
Cheers,
Scott

blooba · #19 11/15/12, 07:50 AM

I would just like to thank you for your service.
You are fighting for our freedom even though the majority of people are not.

Thank You!

Bret · #20 11/15/12, 08:22 AM

Thank you Vet.

4 posts! I wish I had only 4. Once the toothpaste is out of the tube, it's hard to put it back.

Get home safe.

Keep putting cash away for your goal. Pennies, nickels and dimes add up. Start with those. Overwhelmed comes and goes too. Have a general plan and start somewhere. The act of starting will turn on other things that you didn't know were in you.

Enjoy where it takes you and the people that it will bring into your lifie.