Greetings from San Diego, soon to be New Hampshire

655 Views 6 Replies 6 Participants Last post by CajunSunshine, Aug 13, 2017

Doug Bo

Discussion Starter · Aug 1, 2017

Hi, me and my wife, are originally from the Northeast. We moved down to San Diego for about 3 years, had a child. Now he is about 17 months old, and we are planning a move back to the northeast. We should be moving back within a matter of months and settling back into that area to be with family for a while, but it is only one step of life. We are open in the future to moving around.

I have had a growing interest in homesteading, although I'm very new to the idea. I have many talents including music and art, but also have a knack for building things and being creative with raw materials and being and overall fixer-upper, and do well building mechanical things. I have little knowledge about gardening, hunting, trapping, and fishing, so I would like to grow my knowledge and experience in these areas. I understand these are essentials in homesteading and I have a while before we're ready to make the jump, if we ever do. Our family is from the northeast (around the NH/MA boarder) and I have been contemplating the idea of homesteading in Maine given the cost of inexpensive rural land. However, even though growing up in the NE, the long winters are pretty intimidating, especially in light of homesteading. I am open to new ideas if anyone has wisdom in this area. I'm generally unfamiliar with much of the culture of anything in the US outside the coastal cultures. I have always had a strong attraction to the southwestern desert and mountain regions, especially in Arizona, but the diverse landscape of New Mexico and Colorado intrigue me as well, and am wondering if anyone in the south to middle great divide region has much experience with this lifestyle.

I know I'm going from one corner of the country to the other, and also experiencing interest with land in between, but if anything seems to ring a bell or if you have a word or two of advice, I would appreciate any I can get as a starter in this area. I will also continue to look around this site to see what's here. Thank you all and good day.

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Darren

· #2 · Aug 1, 2017

If you have time on your way back spend some time in the Appalachians.

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hunter63

· #3 · Aug 2, 2017

Hunter63 Saying Hey and Welcome...From Wisconsin.

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wdcutrsdaughter

· #4 · Aug 3, 2017

Hey there Doug Bo,
I'm here in new england, south western maine to be exact, transplanted from MA. You're right about the winters here- and the funny thing for us is we are only 70 miles north of where we were living previously and the growing season is definitely different. We jumped a whole planting zone. Spring comes a little later and fall starts a little sooner. If your yard is shaded the snow keeps around a little longer. Just something for you to consider as I imagine the further north you go, the colder it will get. Which plenty of people do and do well. Greenhouses and cold frames help. You're right about rural land being cheap, but consider where you will work and how far you are willing to travel for work. Travel in the winter is another adventure.

And above all - remember that learning skills and setting up systems like gardens, and animals takes time and effort - so don't get discouraged. There is so much to learn from on this site and also on youtube if you have the time to look around.

Good luck with your adventure!!

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greenTgoats

· #5 · Aug 3, 2017

Welcome

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Doug Bo

Discussion Starter · #6 · Aug 4, 2017

Thank you all for your replies.
wdcutrsdaughter, What's your assessment on working in Maine? I think I have read on one thread here someone saying that one full time, minimum wage income is enough to support a growing family, and any amount of dual income makes a person appear especially wealthy. Is that true? Me and my wife are working our butts off in southern California right now at two jobs that pay more than minimum wage, and sometimes it feels we're barely keeping up while raising a son. Part of this is due to the fact that we're trying to save up to move back, all while having many car issues. But can one minimum wage income really support a family in Maine in the homestead situation on a cheap piece of rural land? It just seems like an unheard of concept, for me at least. Even in NH and MA, which I have also lived in both, I doubt you could ever do that.

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CajunSunshine

· #7 · Aug 13, 2017

Welcome to here! Looking forward to reading your posts and sharing your adventures, too.

I would think that unless you paid premium prices for land that is abundant in water which is so critical to homesteading success, you may have a rough go of that kind of lifestyle in Arizona, New Mexico or Colorado... (just thinking out loud, lol)

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