Off grid communities

[Nines&Twos]

Please don’t start tinfoil hat, anti-government, hyper religious, or any other non sensical bee ess. I don’t buy into any of that childish garbage.


Finding people who want to separate themselves from ‘the common life’ is difficult. For good reason, I understand.

Most of what you find online is garbage.
III Citadel is a Ponzi scheme. The American redoubt has no organization (that anyone is willing to talk about).

How would one go about finding serious people?
I found one not far from me but they are very anti gun. Well, that won’t work.

Anyone have any suggestions......other than the usual ‘get over it’ and ‘go pound sand’ replies typical to the wonderful interwebz?

[tja6435]

I am in an off grid community, for the most part. Our realtor was a big help with it. I knew the general area we wanted to move to, our realtor directed us towards the off grid areas either with almost no neighbors or with neighbors within a half mile or so. We all have 35+ acre lots so we can use our well water for irrigation (up to one whole acre for personal lawn/garden)

[MT Gianni]

Near me is a collection of 20 acre parcels that have no power to them. In general it is the home of ill washed and poor smelling folk who keep what they shoot at a locker in town until they need it for their icebox. Their children usually do poorly in school due to studying conditions and have more health problems per a friend in administration at said school.
There is little game that frequents those timbered parcels though there is plenty near them. You may draw your own conclusions as I have mine.
That is as close to off grid communities as I know of. If you are referring to the fake stuff shown on TV, made for TV and others squatting in the woods, I do not believe there is a community of such. Knowing many LEO's any one found in such a situation is not allowed to stay there, or fines are hefty along with jail time. I do not believe Montana is alone in this action.

[Nines&Twos]

Nice!
I have a few more years until I will be free from obligations and financially able but it’s certainly my goal. At 41 years old, I’m sick of everything (except my wife). No kids, negligible debt, the wife wants out too.
I’m not exceptionally good at anything but I can get by on just about everything.
Last year I took my health very seriously, I’ve dropped 45 pounds in the last year and started (slowly) liquidating useless stuff.

I don’t need much space and don’t mind working for/with others to get by.

Funny, it’s hypocritical to sit here and post this but everything being connected and over complicated is driving me nutz.

The worlds gone crazy and I’d like nothing more than to put some space between it.

[Nines&Twos]

Near me is a collection of 20 acre parcels that have no power to them. In general it is the home of ill washed and poor smelling folk who keep what they shoot at a locker in town until they need it for their icebox. Their children usually do poorly in school due to studying conditions and have more health problems per a friend in administration at said school.
There is little game that frequents those timbered parcels though there is plenty near them. You may draw your own conclusions as I have mine.
That is as close to off grid communities as I know of. If you are referring to the fake stuff shown on TV, made for TV and others squatting in the woods, I do not believe there is a community of such. Knowing many LEO's any one found in such a situation is not allowed to stay there, or fines are hefty along with jail time. I do not believe Montana is alone in this action.


That’s what I’m figuring. It’s all a lie people tell but never do OR The ones who try are not the sort to associate with.

It’s hard to have this discussion with strangers because you immediately get labeled a fruitcake.

It’s sad that the REAL fruitcakes have some truth but they ruin it with psychotic idiocy.
Example: Ted Kaczynski was very much right in his writings and thoughts on where we are heading as a society but he ruined his whole line of thinking by hurting people and proving he was nuts needed to be knocked in the head. You can’t openly say you agree with his ideas without labeling yourself as being scum just like him.


If I could hunt and shoot I’d be Ahmish. But they’re pacifist idiots. God gave me two hands and I have a right to use them to defend and feed myself.

I really wish I had been born 200 years ago. Lol!!!

[MUSTANG]

I would say look for remote parcels of land / rural parcels of land with homes spread out. That way you can reduce the numbers of people (societal negative influences seem to rapidly change/expand in high density population areas). Then build/buy a home and include elements that provide "Off Grid" capabilities. By definition rural will cut your reliance on community sewage systems. Water from a well or stream/lake and cisterns removes the dependency on community water systems. A Photovoltaic system for key power requirements (refrigeration, freezer, some lighting, water pump and gravity feed water for home, and fan for forced air on a wood stove). That pretty well puts one as "Independent" without getting into the 21st century equivalent of the 1700's personal Cabin Fortress against the hostiles.

[Shawlerbrook]

If you don’t mind the weather, Alaska probably has more of that than any other state. The few people I know that live the off grid lifestyle do it without community involvement. I think the first thing I’d research is what, if any, property taxes are involved. That can make certain states( like most of the northeast) a no go.

[adcoch1]

Wow, we have the same problem. Wanting to go off grid mostly to eliminate the bills that go withnit but not wanting to tie in with a bunch of crazies! Me and my wife and kids are looking at a few spots in western Montana with big parcels or state land surrounding them might not find a community per se, but at least we would have some space. Rural living used to be what we were looking for, and in that case most farming communities would work, just be on the outskirts. The real question i think is, do i want to get away, or do i just need some space? Its a tough call to find what you're looking for.

[WILCO]

Off grid living isn't all it's cracked up to be. Sometimes small town USA is an acceptable answer.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Connecting with people who have sought to disconnect, would seem to be a difficult venture to say the least.

A few years ago, I seen a travel program that visited Christiania...I bet that was something in the 70s...but it isn't what it once was.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/emmyf/why-you-need-to-visit-christiania-before-you-die?utm_term=.wcPq1jJW2#.ndmbGpyaB

I realize that isn't at all what you are looking for, as I suspect most of the disconnected "groups" would tend to be leftist fringe. When someone with conservative type values wishes to disconnect, it's generally not a group type of thing, due to the individualism that runs deep in typical conservative type thinking. Those folks tend to venture out on their own, maybe live like a mountain man, maybe a far off the beaten track parcel of land in AK? If that is your case, you just need to figure out what part of the USA you wish to do that in, and start looking for remote properties.

I know I'm not being much help, I'm just stating the obvious that you probably already know. I probably wouldn't have even joined the conversation, except that last night I watched the Movie "The end of the tour", which is a slice of recent history about the renowned Author David Foster Wallace and his plight in modern society is fresh in my mind...and what he did to attempt to avoid some of the trappings of modern society...until his suicide on 2008.

[merlin101]

I don't think you want true off grid life, I have a cabin in the hills w/o power and it gets old real quick! I now have solar cells and a battery bank so I can flip a switch and have light and pump water from the tank easily not to mention the fan in the window on those hot days or behind the woodstove on the cold ones.
I'm a bit of a prepper, that's one of the reasons I bought the place, but I DO NOT want to live there! I have a small deisal tractor with fuel stored all sorts of supplies and hope to never use them. It would be a tremendous hardship going from my daily life to the early 1900s or before.
Perhaps your looking more along the lines of a small farm with some live stock and a garden, selling a lamb/goat/calf once in a while and some veggies, but keep in mind you will need cash for taxes and stuff you can't make or raise. For tons of info check out the survivalist boards, good stuff buried amongst the real fruitcakes;)

[Nines&Twos]

Wow, we have the same problem. Wanting to go off grid mostly to eliminate the bills that go withnit but not wanting to tie in with a bunch of crazies! Me and my wife and kids are looking at a few spots in western Montana with big parcels or state land surrounding them might not find a community per se, but at least we would have some space. Rural living used to be what we were looking for, and in that case most farming communities would work, just be on the outskirts. The real question i think is, do i want to get away, or do i just need some space? Its a tough call to find what you're looking for.

I labored under the delusion that Montana was my utopia. Ive never been up there. Ive come to realize just how wrong I was. I don’t wanna live in Montana. July and August Montana is probably heaven on earth. I’m too old to ever be man enough to handle December in Montana.

[adcoch1]

Near me is a collection of 20 acre parcels that have no power to them. In general it is the home of ill washed and poor smelling folk who keep what they shoot at a locker in town until they need it for their icebox. Their children usually do poorly in school due to studying conditions and have more health problems per a friend in administration at said school.
There is little game that frequents those timbered parcels though there is plenty near them. You may draw your own conclusions as I have mine.
That is as close to off grid communities as I know of. If you are referring to the fake stuff shown on TV, made for TV and others squatting in the woods, I do not believe there is a community of such. Knowing many LEO's any one found in such a situation is not allowed to stay there, or fines are hefty along with jail time. I do not believe Montana is alone in this action.
Where is that place, or around what town. Sounds like somewhere to avoid!

[Nines&Twos]

I don't think you want true off grid life, I have a cabin in the hills w/o power and it gets old real quick! I now have solar cells and a battery bank so I can flip a switch and have light and pump water from the tank easily not to mention the fan in the window on those hot days or behind the woodstove on the cold ones.
I'm a bit of a prepper, that's one of the reasons I bought the place, but I DO NOT want to live there! I have a small deisal tractor with fuel stored all sorts of supplies and hope to never use them. It would be a tremendous hardship going from my daily life to the early 1900s or before.
Perhaps your looking more along the lines of a small farm with some live stock and a garden, selling a lamb/goat/calf once in a while and some veggies, but keep in mind you will need cash for taxes and stuff you can't make or raise. For tons of info check out the survivalist boards, good stuff buried amongst the real fruitcakes;)


That’s a very valid point and I think my thread title was a mistake.

[merlin101]

BTW Amish do hunt and shoot, see em out every year around my place. They also make great neighbors!

[adcoch1]

I labored under the delusion that Montana was my utopia. Ive never been up there. Ive come to realize just how wrong I was. I don’t wanna live in Montana. July and August Montana is probably heaven on earth. I’m too old to ever be man enough to handle December in Montana.

I couldn't really be comfortable in eastern Montana, but sw Montana is a completely different place! Yeah it snows, but not a lot of sub zero weather in the valleys, and the fishing is amazing.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I bet you have seen "Alone in the wilderness" ?
the true story of Dick Proenneke who left Iowa when he was in his 50's, moved to a remote place in AK and lived there til he was 85. Now that is a story of wilderness romance that I think of often.

Here is a 9 minute clip of the hour and a half program.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYJKd0rkKss

[Nines&Twos]

I could describe what I’d really like to find but as I’ve said, you immediately get the loony label.

Southern location. Northern Arizona or New Mexico. Oklahoma maybe. Not picky.
A group that lives in the world but not of the world.
It’s hard to find a group of people (real life, not this electronic world) that might help you find some peace with god without ramming some nauseating doctrine down your throat.
My wife wants a Judeo-Christian gated community of down to earth people.
If (big if) that exists, they don’t want to be found and I don’t blame them!

[Nines&Twos]

Dick Proennke was more man on his death bed than I will ever be. I’ve watched that on pbs since I was a kid. I’ve never ceased to be amazed by that man.

[thxmrgarand]

Much or most of the acreage in Alaska lies in what is called the unorganized borough. (Alaska has boroughs rather than counties.) There is no municipal government, no taxes (the state has no sales or income tax). Land parcels in Alaska are very small because the government - especially the federal government - owns all the land. However, small parcels can be purchased throughout the state for relatively small amounts of money (supply and demand - it isn't worth much). Gun laws in Alaska are very good, perhaps the best in the US. People live remotely throughout Alaska. No state may have as much variety in climates as Alaska has. Goods shipped to remote land in Alaska can be very expensive. Features and considerations for living in Alaska, remote or otherwise can be researched very well on the internet of course. Technology has made communication within remote Alaska much better and less expensive. The hunting and fishing is for the most part the same as it was 40 years ago. Health care is expensive in Alaska, but the federal government provides it for free, including transportation to urban hospitals, to anyone who is a member of a tribe recognized by the federal government (which sometimes means blood quantum must be at least 1/32 American Indian). The state provides extensive home schooling help and resources. Alaska is a red state politically, and was one of the top states in voting for President Trump. The federal government has a lot of employees here, and it would be OK with almost all Alaskans not employed by the federal government if these people were deployed elsewhere.

[StolzerandSons]

It depends on your definition of off-grid and community.
I live 3 miles from a town of under 1000 population in a county of around 5000 population on 160-ish acre farm. My closest neighbor is about a mile away. The closest large city is about an hour away.

We have Wind, Solar and Propane but are also grid tied to our Co-Op Electric. We are expanding the wind and solar as finances allow. We have wood heat if needed in the house and my shop is wood heat. We have two wells, both potable, both can be operated without electricity when needed. Both can be hand drawn, one has a hand pump and the other has an air pump system.

We have/raise Chickens(meat and eggs) and Goats(meat and milk). We have two gardens a small one close to the house and about 1 acre at the edge of one of our pastures. My Cousins raise cattle so we either buy or trade with them for beef. My cousins also do the farming on our property so we get cash rent from them for the farm ground and paid for the bales off the pastures that we don't use. I have a small wooded section at the north end of my property that I hunt every year...deer, turkey and pheasant are plentiful on our property so no problem filling our freezer. I trade/barter for other things as needed with my neighbors and family. As an example a few weeks ago I traded some gun repairs for a small hog from one of my neighbors that runs a large hog operation. Good for him because the hog he traded wasn't coming on well like it should have and good for me to have farm fresh pork that I know the source and quality.

My shop is behind the house, so work is a short walk away. Because I don't have to leave my place to work there are times when I go months without leaving the property.

While we don't live in an off-grid community, we do live a fairly separated life style with the ability to live off-grid if needed.

Depending on what you are looking for, you might look at buying a small farm outside a small town in the mid-west then spend the rest of your life getting to know your neighbors and participating in your community. It's a lot easier to have a say in a small community...Sheriff elections are decided by a few votes, County Commissioners are your actual neighbors. There are no city cops, the Sheriffs department covers the town patrols in our county. I know all of our Deputies, Volunteer Fire and Emt's by name and I know all of our postal workers by name.

In my case my family has owned this property since the 1860's(I still have the original homestead deed signed by whoever was signing President Grants name that day) so I am related to half the community but we don't shun outsiders we are just wary of them for the first few years...I suspect a lot of small mid-west communities are just like the one I live in.

If nothing else I hope I have given you something to consider.

[dverna]

I live in rural MI on 20 acres. Closest neighbor is 3/4 miles (he has no running water or septic), mailbox is over 2 miles away, corner store 10 miles, closest small town 12 miles, closest city of 4000 25 miles. I back onto about 3000 acres of state land. I am not off grid and do not need to be. Relatively isolated but close enough to people to get and give help as needed.

My electric bill is about $100 a month and worth it to me. There is no phone line, but can get cell with a booster most of the time, and use satellite for TV and internet.

Most here drink too much, smoke too much and a few use dope. Most live a quasi prepper lifestyle out of experience and necessity. Everyone I know can go for weeks without needing to buy food. Only one does not have a generator but I loan him my spare if he gets into trouble.

You do not need to be off grid to live peacefully, away from the rat race, and near good people.

I was a CEO and my old friends cannot believe I have lasted 5 years up here and still love it. But I was raised poor...many times with no gifts for birthdays and Christmas but we had a big garden and raised some livestock and never went hungry.

Country living is not for everyone. And fewer will last off grid for very long. Be careful what you wish for. Camp for three months at a remote cabin with the power shut off before you invest in property. I suggest looking for a place that has power (you do not need to hook up) or where getting power will not cost you thousands later on if your circumstances or needs change.

[starmac]

Off grid communities were once called communes, something that has pretty much gone out of style these days.

Alaska has many, many folks that live off grid, but not in a community setting that I know of. We do have communities that are not tied into main electric transmission lines, but most have their own electric company, I guess you would call it, probably subsidized by the government in one way or the other.

I know or knew people in Northern New Mexico that lived off grid, but only because it was not available to them, which is usually always the case, as it is generally cheaper than true off grid.
I know lots of folks here that live off grid, many have all the ammenities of grid living, just at a higher cost and would tie into a grid system in a heart beat if it was available..

[HABCAN]

You could check out these on line: Shawn James 'My Self Reliance' (Canadian) and 'Pure living for Life' (Idaho timber frame). They're at least genuine.

[Houndog]

I don't know what part of Tennessee you live in but you need to check out Soddy Daisy Tennessee and parts of the Cumberland Plateu. You won't be totally isolated but this area is sparsely populated and land is cheap. There used to pamphlets at the truck stop near Loretta Lynn's ranch listing land for $100 an acre and parcels as large as 2,000 acres available! It might be exactly what you are looking for.

[quilbilly]

There have been quite a few of them on the Olympic Peninsula for decades much like the guy on TV (but not him!!). I have a few in my neighborhood who pretty much keep to themselves but are otherwise nice. We aren't but could be if required but we like our amenities from time to time. County zoning restrictions mean your habitat must not be visible from the road. The family up the hill raised three kids without electricity or a decent well. If a tree falls on the road around here, you better be fleet of foot with a gassed up chainsaw. Surprisingly enough, a good portion of the off-the-gridders around here are older single ladies. Many of them have been by to have me show them how to tap our maples for the sap to make many things.

[white eagle]

I thought most of the off grid people were wanting to be by themselves
separate from communities

[Nines&Twos]

I thought most of the off grid people were wanting to be by themselves
separate from communities

Not at all. Not very practical either.
The lone wolf attitude doesn’t work very well.
Singles can survive but groups thrive.
It’s true to the point of what I’d like to get away from.
City life is by far easier. Because (most) everyone in a city work toward common goals.
Conveniences are right in your face where as farmer joe can’t walk down to the nearest Kroger for bread.

So! One must find a balance. The happiest medium they can manage.
My balance keeps leaning off to the wrong side.
I gotta find something else.

[BD]

I've known a number of "off grid" families that got by pretty well. None for more than a generation though. And I've never seen an "off grid community" that I'd want to get within a mile of. The idea that it takes a community to be truly independent is a fallacy. A "community" is the death of independence, every single time.

[MOA]

Not at all. Not very practical either.
The lone wolf attitude doesn’t work very well.
Singles can survive but groups thrive.
It’s true to the point of what I’d like to get away from.
City life is by far easier. Because (most) everyone in a city work toward common goals.
Conveniences are right in your face where as farmer joe can’t walk down to the nearest Kroger for bread.

So! One must find a balance. The happiest medium they can manage.
My balance keeps leaning off to the wrong side.
I gotta find something else.

PM sent

[ascast]

"off grid" means what? exactly I'm in upstate NY and the Amish are getting more and more established here. No electricity. Those with dairy may have it as chillers, coolers must run to have a salable product. With that may be bathroom/ wash room requirement in the barn/milk house. That said, NYS does not require electricity or running water in the house. You may build and use an outhouse. Local municipalities may supersede state law. When children are involved you must have enough light for enough hours that school work can be done. Means nothing when an Amish school is used for Amish kids. ( no common core). Also, must have electric lights on your buggy and battery operated smoke detectors. There are building codes. And a lot of codes guys are way below stupid, like super insulation in a tiny house. And there is also always a neighbor or 2 who want to ruin your life just because they can. No matter where you plant yourself, you will have taxes. I'm drifting... interesting thread I'll check back

[Thumbcocker]

Check out the "earth ship" community near Taos

[MaryB]

The "American Redoubt" is not a community. It is a geographic description for a large area of MT/ID where people who are independent minded live, many off grid. You get to know your "neighbors" and that is as far as community goes. They do not question your lifestyle and you do not question theirs! I know gays who live there, religious right(most common), some liberals(gay does not mean automatic liberal), some hippie types etc. People do not pry and to be a good neighbor there you do the same!

I looked at land there but the winter is to extreme for my arthritis...

[GhostHawk]

Before going off grid I would suggest living for a year on the outskirts of a small village.

Keep power, water, sewer, garbage pickup. They are worth every dime. To do those yourself takes a lot of time, energy, and often transport.

Small villages and towns tend to be conservative. They'll be interested in who you are, what your doing but most are fairly decent about it.

Midwest would be my recommendation. Don't go too far north or too high into the hills.

See if you can survive for a year without TV, cell phone. If you can, you'll probably learn enough to be able to go off grid and have a chance of making it.

Its a LOT of hard work.

I grew up a farmers son in a town of 135 people that at the time still had school, grocery store, 2 3.2 diners/beer halls, and a very active community.

But not much is left of the old place, businesses are almost all closed. There is a body shop and a Bar. Other than that it is 8 miles to get anything else. 40 miles to city of 160,000 some thousand with Walmarts and restaurants, 3 hospitals and 3 colleges.

Small town america is drying up and blowing away. But that means there are houses for sale, often very reasonable. Big enough yard for a garden. And a 5 minute walk puts you outside town limits and lets you shoot, hunt, etc.

[Hick]

You don't have to be in an off the grid community to be off the grid. I know of several families near here who are off the grid, even though power is available. It's just a choice they make. You can do that is rural areas, such as Northern Nevada, and nobody cares one way or the other. The important part is that you have to be in an area where wells for water and septic for sewage is allowed.

[Plate plinker]

You definitely have to be handy to live out in the sticks. A departed friend once told me the farther out you go the better you have to be at making do. He was pretty far out from a real community and knew a thing or two about fabricobling.

[xs11jack]

Think ahead for the future of getting 60 or 70s and what health problems you or your wife may have that cost a bundle to purchase each month. Think about being that age and have sever arthritis or some other disability that limits your ability to do daily chores. At some point you may have to move closer to town and sell your property which may have very little value because it is too primitive. I am not trying to discourage you, just want you to cover every possibility.
Ole jack

[shootmore]

My old neighbor left his job building ships some time around 1970 left his nice house and only he probably knows what else. Loaded up his family and left Bremerton Washington. He said this is where they ran out of gas. They pretty much camped for a while. He was some how able to purchase a piece of property and built a little building on it that he put bunk beds in for his two boys. Him and his wife slept one in the front seat and one in the back seat of the car.
Later on he built a house from old houses he took down around town. He even reused the nails as it was his wife's job to straighten them out. He had no running water and hauled water some times in a backpack but later on got a pickup and hauled it up the hill that way.

His stories are endless and I often listen to him for hours as he tells the stories. While not a community he is one tough old man that did it by himself and his family

[waksupi]

I labored under the delusion that Montana was my utopia. Ive never been up there. Ive come to realize just how wrong I was. I don’t wanna live in Montana. July and August Montana is probably heaven on earth. I’m too old to ever be man enough to handle December in Montana.

There are places to be off the grid in Montana. July and August, we are on fire, and you can't stand to be outside. Get in some of the real backcountry settlements, if the locals don't like a person, they just seem to disappear with no trace. Lots of places to hide a body here.

For a place to get away from people, look at southern Kansas.

[waksupi]

I couldn't really be comfortable in eastern Montana, but sw Montana is a completely different place! Yeah it snows, but not a lot of sub zero weather in the valleys, and the fishing is amazing.

Seriously? Down around Wisdom and the Big Hole country are some of the coldest places in the nation!

[Hannibal]

I labored under the delusion that Montana was my utopia. Ive never been up there. Ive come to realize just how wrong I was. I don’t wanna live in Montana. July and August Montana is probably heaven on earth. I’m too old to ever be man enough to handle December in Montana.

I'd say that depends on how you feel about mosquitos. My employer paid for me to visit there for a week once. Havre, Montana to be exact. That was enough for me to decide it wasn't my kind of place. This was in 1997 and the winter had been harsh. The remains of cattle that had wandered over fence lines in the snow drifts and had ultimately starved and frozen to death were still scattered about. I'm not a particularly social person, but that stuff right there is too extreme for me.

I've never seen mosquitos like that before, either. Ever seen a swarm of gnats? It was like that, only mosquitos. Clouds of mosquitos. In June.

I said 'Audios' and don't plan to return.

[starmac]

Montana is a big place, like most states it has some beautiful country and some not so good. The beautiful parts exceeds that of a lot of states, but like anything it depends on what a person likes too.

[tja6435]

I think a lot of people have a lot of different ideas of what 'off grid' means. To me, it means disconnected from the national power grid. We don't have a phone line either, just wireless internet via an antenna on the roof.
I have built our power system, we used generators for about 3 months until I got the solar panels, got them mounted, wired, battery bank, charge controllers, wind turbines all set up. We primarily run on solar now, I have 2x 1800## forklift batteries I still have to rewire and get into the basement with our other bank.

[Markopolo]

SE Alaska has TONS of off grid communities... and the weather is not as severe as the interior.
PM Me if you want more info

[Tazman1602]

I live in rural MI on 20 acres. Closest neighbor is 3/4 miles (he has no running water or septic), mailbox is over 2 miles away, corner store 10 miles, closest small town 12 miles, closest city of 4000 25 miles. I back onto about 3000 acres of state land. I am not off grid and do not need to be. Relatively isolated but close enough to people to get and give help as needed.

My electric bill is about $100 a month and worth it to me. There is no phone line, but can get cell with a booster most of the time, and use satellite for TV and internet.

Most here drink too much, smoke too much and a few use dope. Most live a quasi prepper lifestyle out of experience and necessity. Everyone I know can go for weeks without needing to buy food. Only one does not have a generator but I loan him my spare if he gets into trouble.

You do not need to be off grid to live peacefully, away from the rat race, and near good people.

I was a CEO and my old friends cannot believe I have lasted 5 years up here and still love it. But I was raised poor...many times with no gifts for birthdays and Christmas but we had a big garden and raised some livestock and never went hungry.

Country living is not for everyone. And fewer will last off grid for very long. Be careful what you wish for. Camp for three months at a remote cabin with the power shut off before you invest in property. I suggest looking for a place that has power (you do not need to hook up) or where getting power will not cost you thousands later on if your circumstances or needs change.

Same thing/place for me -- you west side or east side? Drop me a PM.

Art

[JimB..]

It sounds to me like you want to live on a few acres just outside a very small town and maybe 25 miles from a city of 25,000 somewhere in the lower Midwest.

I suggest that you move in steps rather than going too extreme all at once. Go from where you are to something like above, if after 3 years you want to get more remote you’ll have developed some of the skills to make the experience successful.

It can be a lot of hard work living on a farm, fun for us was walking the railroad and picking blackberries or getting the meat out of black walnuts listening to a ball game on the transistor radio, or fixing stuff. Painting the fence was fun, preparing the fence to be painted was a chore! For many many years the well was half a mile from the house, my grandmother finally got sick of it and had a well dug by the back door even though everyone told her that there was no water, they were wrong. I miss it and the people, and often think that I shouldn’t have left, but I know that I can never go all the way back.

Good luck with your adventure!

[Nines&Twos]

Thanks for all the replies. Much to think about.
As I said earlier, I have some obligations I will not walk away from BUT they are finite and my wife and I agree....I just can’t stomach the idea of spending the last half of my life in suburbia hell.

[MrWolf]

You kinda sound like me. Got hurt, at the tail end of a divorce, kids are grown, etc. and decided to give me what I always wanted. Land and to be mostly left alone. I moved to WV as I wanted a gun friendly place to start with. I got 81 acres, mostly woods. My nearest neighbor is 1/4 mile away, my mailbox 3/4 mile. It snows, I have to plow my way out or wait till it melts. I have my well, septic system, and no trash pickup. Got the dog I always wanted, a Great Pyrenees who is 8 1/2 months old and about 100 lbs. I have bear, deer, turkey, fox, etc.. Nearest town of 500 is maybe 5 minutes away with medical care, stores, etc about 45 minutes away in Winchester, VA.. I could choose to live off grid but being hurt and getting older it is nice to have the option. Lot of good advise given. Sounds like you want something along my lines.

[reloader28]

It depends on your definition of off-grid and community.
I live 3 miles from a town of under 1000 population in a county of around 5000 population on 160-ish acre farm. My closest neighbor is about a mile away. The closest large city is about an hour away.

We have Wind, Solar and Propane but are also grid tied to our Co-Op Electric. We are expanding the wind and solar as finances allow. We have wood heat if needed in the house and my shop is wood heat. We have two wells, both potable, both can be operated without electricity when needed. Both can be hand drawn, one has a hand pump and the other has an air pump system.

We have/raise Chickens(meat and eggs) and Goats(meat and milk). We have two gardens a small one close to the house and about 1 acre at the edge of one of our pastures. My Cousins raise cattle so we either buy or trade with them for beef. My cousins also do the farming on our property so we get cash rent from them for the farm ground and paid for the bales off the pastures that we don't use. I have a small wooded section at the north end of my property that I hunt every year...deer, turkey and pheasant are plentiful on our property so no problem filling our freezer. I trade/barter for other things as needed with my neighbors and family. As an example a few weeks ago I traded some gun repairs for a small hog from one of my neighbors that runs a large hog operation. Good for him because the hog he traded wasn't coming on well like it should have and good for me to have farm fresh pork that I know the source and quality.

My shop is behind the house, so work is a short walk away. Because I don't have to leave my place to work there are times when I go months without leaving the property.

While we don't live in an off-grid community, we do live a fairly separated life style with the ability to live off-grid if needed.

Depending on what you are looking for, you might look at buying a small farm outside a small town in the mid-west then spend the rest of your life getting to know your neighbors and participating in your community. It's a lot easier to have a say in a small community...Sheriff elections are decided by a few votes, County Commissioners are your actual neighbors. There are no city cops, the Sheriffs department covers the town patrols in our county. I know all of our Deputies, Volunteer Fire and Emt's by name and I know all of our postal workers by name.

In my case my family has owned this property since the 1860's(I still have the original homestead deed signed by whoever was signing President Grants name that day) so I am related to half the community but we don't shun outsiders we are just wary of them for the first few years...I suspect a lot of small mid-west communities are just like the one I live in.

If nothing else I hope I have given you something to consider.


We are almost the same set up. I can very easily go without power and modern conveniences. I love it. Its not for everyone though.

I live 40 miles from town. Most of the idiots around here want to live in the country but HAVE to have all the perks of town. When the power blinks they are are the phone immediately complaining. When the cell towers are down its almost like being in a warzone. They go crazy.
Its totally amazing to me how society has become so reliant on modern conveniences and believe that its impossible to live without them.

[RED BEAR]

That is the great thing about the us you can live as you want. As Thomas Jefferson said if it doesn't break my leg or pick my pocket why would I care. If you want to live off grid you are not a loon your an american living as you choose. As for me I am far to lazy to even try! I don't like to hot to cold to wet don't like to hike god forbid run. My perfect day is a drive to the range a few hours shooting come home and reload what I shot.

[MaryB]

I live in tiny town nowhere SW MN. Around 280 people in town. We all know each other, help out as needed. Nobody sticks their nose in your business... 60 mile round trip for groceries to 1 of 2 towns(about 5k pop and maybe 12k pop, both county seats), bank, bar/cafe, co-op are the businesses in town. Houses can run from $5k to $30k... depends on how much work you want to put in them. Lots on the edge of town are large, I have a huge garden and space for chickens if I want them... property tax is low, I pay $360 a year...


Thanks for all the replies. Much to think about.
As I said earlier, I have some obligations I will not walk away from BUT they are finite and my wife and I agree....I just can’t stomach the idea of spending the last half of my life in suburbia hell.

[lefty o]

the second you add the word "community" to it, dont matter if its off grid, behind a gated fence or whatever, all it is , is another layer of someone telling you how to live.

[john.k]

before you buy anywhere ,check with some of the locals to make sure you wont be living next to the "hole in the wall gang"....friend of mine who moved so he could have old machinery,tractors etc..reckons everytime he goes out for the day,the thieves plunder the place....dogs get poisoned,thieves cruising the roads in unregisterd trucks all night,cops presence is non existent........hes even had gates and a cattle grid stolen.

[HABCAN]

Mary B, my place is like your place.

[bayjoe]

Wet Mountain Valley is one of the most beautiful places you will ever see.
Ever kind of wildlife in the area and the Arkansas River to go play to boot

[MT Gianni]

I'd say that depends on how you feel about mosquitos. My employer paid for me to visit there for a week once. Havre, Montana to be exact. That was enough for me to decide it wasn't my kind of place. This was in 1997 and the winter had been harsh. The remains of cattle that had wandered over fence lines in the snow drifts and had ultimately starved and frozen to death were still scattered about. I'm not a particularly social person, but that stuff right there is too extreme for me.

I've never seen mosquitos like that before, either. Ever seen a swarm of gnats? It was like that, only mosquitos. Clouds of mosquitos. In June.

I said 'Audios' and don't plan to return.

Havre 'skeeters laugh at a 410. To kill them you need at least a 20 gauge 1 oz shot.

[nicholst55]

If I could hunt and shoot I’d be Ahmish. But they’re pacifist idiots. God gave me two hands and I have a right to use them to defend and feed myself.

Most all the Amish folks I knew of hunted regularly back in PA.

[Nines&Twos]

Yeah, but they won’t raise hand to save their own in the face of evil.
That’s a crock of **** and it’s their right as Americans to believe that they way but I ain’t buying it. No god worth serving would ever ask me to sit idle while someone hurts my family.

Aside from that, I think their way of life is beautiful. No disgusting perversions and frivolity. Simple clean living.

[Houndog]

Yeah, but they won’t raise hand to save their own in the face of evil.
That’s a crock of **** and it’s their right as Americans to believe that they way but I ain’t buying it. No god worth serving would ever ask me to sit idle while someone hurts my family.

Aside from that, I think their way of life is beautiful. No disgusting perversions and frivolity. Simple clean living.

I MUST add to your post that the Amish are some of the most honest and trusting people I've ever delt with! They used to come down to my part of Tennessee and buy horse drawn farm equipment all the time. They would contract with me to deliver this equipment to their farms, usually paying in advance with no more than a handshake to seal the transaction! I just wish every customer I had were that pleasurable to deal with!

BTW: If you ever get asked to eat a meal with them, TAKE IT!!!! I had that pleasure several times and FANTASTIC is the best word to describe it.

[MaryB]

Minnesota, land of 10,000 lakes and 10 trillion mosquitoes! Late last summer stepping into the garden you risked your life from blood loss... I swatted my arm and in the space of a hand print I killed 20 of them. Looked like I had slashed my upper arm open! And I was in there 2 minutes to get a tomato for supper!


Havre 'skeeters laugh at a 410. To kill them you need at least a 20 gauge 1 oz shot.

[tja6435]

I've always thought the local Amish up here to be all decent people. They do what they say, a hand shake deal is as good as a written contract and they don't b.s. We sold 4 hogs to an Amish guy last week, decided on a price, hand shake, got it done no problems.

[waksupi]

Havre 'skeeters laugh at a 410. To kill them you need at least a 20 gauge 1 oz shot.

A friend was working the flight line at Maelstrom AFB at Great Falls. He said one night they pumped 250 gallons of avgas into a mosquito before they realized what it was. He is a very honest man, and I have no reason to doubt his word.

[starmac]

I see Markapolo AKA alaskaguy has offered to fill you in on his take in pm's. I would take him up on it as what you are talking about is exactly what he has done. He is not in what I call a community, but may be exactly what you are talking about, as everybody anywhere near him is also off grid. He has been making it work a few years now, but doesn't get online as much since he moved there and built his place.

[Lloyd Smale]

yup we have a hunting camp that's about the same. About a week there and I'm ready to go home and sit in the recliner with the ac or gas heat on and watch tv. I could go for off grid with one exception. Id never have a house that didn't have electricity available. Then again I was a lineman all my life.
I don't think you want true off grid life, I have a cabin in the hills w/o power and it gets old real quick! I now have solar cells and a battery bank so I can flip a switch and have light and pump water from the tank easily not to mention the fan in the window on those hot days or behind the woodstove on the cold ones.
I'm a bit of a prepper, that's one of the reasons I bought the place, but I DO NOT want to live there! I have a small deisal tractor with fuel stored all sorts of supplies and hope to never use them. It would be a tremendous hardship going from my daily life to the early 1900s or before.
Perhaps your looking more along the lines of a small farm with some live stock and a garden, selling a lamb/goat/calf once in a while and some veggies, but keep in mind you will need cash for taxes and stuff you can't make or raise. For tons of info check out the survivalist boards, good stuff buried amongst the real fruitcakes;)

[Elkins45]

My experience has been that off-grid and community are opposites.

[owejia]

Had this same discussion with some of my nieces and nephews at our last family get together in Sulfur Springs, Tx last fall. Living in the really rural country is quite different than living off grid. All depends on how primitive you want to live. Can live rural and raise and preserve most of your food but still have electric and phone service etc, but getting up every morning, wintertime breaking ice in water pitcher, building a fire to heat and cook with and going out to the outhouse ain't for the faint of heart, especially as you get older.

[Thundarstick]

I have electricity as a sole power source, all other services I utilize are totally by choice. I love rural living, but it has is own challenges. In this part of the country, one is farm equipment and grain trucks everywhere, always leave early if you have an appointment! Next is the smells of the rural land scape (In farm country) hog, cattle, and chicken operations. I'm going to pitch this out. What really ticks me off is the city folks that want to move out to the country on an acre or two, THEN gripe and complain about it! Like one of my co-workers complaining because they built a chicken house across the road from him! My God! Do you want to live in a HMO, or out in the country? Do be sure what you really want, and are prepared to live with before you do it! BTW there are lots of places one can live a rural life!

[Nines&Twos]

For the record I ain’t 100% city folk.
I lived the first 20 years of my life on 60 acres of woods and apple orchards.

Since my incarceration in this suburbian supermax prison I’ve grown increasingly restless and filled with malcontent.

[Thundarstick]

Head West, half way between where you are and Jackson and some where between Mississippi and Kentucky is where you want to be!:happy dance:

[merlin101]

Iwas just thinking, Years ago when my 40 yr old son was a teen and in Boy Scouts he went to a BSA camp that was waaay out in the sticks and had a year round care taker/maintance guy that lived on the property in a very nice looking cabin. This place was about a mile or so from the main camp and had it's own diesel powered generator for power. The private road was about 12 miles to the gate/mailbox and another 15 or so to the main road. This camp is in the middle of the Adirondack Mts. in NY, gotta be others out there in other states. What better way to live "off grid" and be paid for it?

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Electricity is really nice to have. There is living off the grid, and then there is being able to survive should the grid fail. Nothing wrong with solar panels, generators, woodstoves either. But why live completely off the grid before it becomes necessary? One can still live a long way away from anyone else and enjoy both the privacy and convenience of electricity. Works for me.

[starmac]

Well in Alaska, electricity is only available in a small portion of the state, unless you live in town or a village.

Lots of folks don't have electricity and are no more than 25 miles from Fairbanks, the 2cnd largest city.

[GRUMPA]

I could describe what I’d really like to find but as I’ve said, you immediately get the loony label.

Southern location. Northern Arizona or New Mexico. Oklahoma maybe. Not picky.
A group that lives in the world but not of the world.
It’s hard to find a group of people (real life, not this electronic world) that might help you find some peace with god without ramming some nauseating doctrine down your throat.
My wife wants a Judeo-Christian gated community of down to earth people.
If (big if) that exists, they don’t want to be found and I don’t blame them!

I live in the NE part of AZ, just read this...... http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?270258-Please-read

That gives a person a good perspective of what life is like around here. You might have a hard time with the community, like minded folk. We've been here since 05 and did most of the work, within reason. We can do a lot of things, but I have never met anyone that wants to learn. Folks would rather just pay you to do it, and by that, means cheaper than anyone else. That part.....in my world, just doesn't happen.

Don't get me wrong, folks are pleasent and do the giggle talk a lot around here, but in reality it's a facade.

People that move here just want there own space, lots are generally 40+ acres and that's just the land. Not much as far as city services around here to even talk about so I wont. Although if your car dies on the roads around here I wouldn't expect a person to wait long before someone comes along making sure your ok. The thing is the more you can do ON YOUR OWN the better off your going to be.

After 13yrs of living here I've never had to lock my house, I can leave the keys to my car in the ignition. Folks do open carry here, and what local LEO we have around here they don't give it a second thought. Where I am (look at picture in that link) I have a shooting range of over 3mi if I want. And you'll never get anyone knocking on your door trying to sell you anything either.

I can go on and on....but there's things you just have to know. You must be determined, the I CAN DO IT ON MY OWN attitude. Don't succumb to fear, things startle folks like snakes and they panic easily.