Time to leave it all behind

W

wade

Joined
Sep 22, 2005
Messages
493
I hate living in the city and think its time to give it up and move deep into the woods. Anyone with me?
 
We can build skyscrapers and mass transit!! just kidding.

I don't live in the city, but it's not rural either, kinda in between.
I'd move out into the hills if my wife would go for it, but, for now, I'm stuck.

As technology allows people to work remotely, perhaps mroe people will be able to take your idea an act on it.
 
wade said:
I hate living in the city and think its time to give it up and move deep into the woods. Anyone with me?
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I'm with ya and I've looked into it. Unfortunately there are no decent paying jobs in the woods. (At least not in my field -automotive) At best, I can get to a more rural area but then I'm faced with a 90+ minute commute twice a day. :(

Looks like I'll be stuck in the city/burbs for another 20 years.
 
Living in the woods is my plan. Fortunatly as mentioned, working remotly is more possible these days, but it means more people speading into the wild too. Ideally I would like to live within a reasonable drive of a urban centre (say an hour or so), but live more isolated in a cabin without close neighbours and such. I do lke some of the conveniences of the city, but most I could live without on a daily basis. A couple trips a month to run errands will cover it.

The biggest issue with living the way I want is raising kids. I want to have a family and I am not sure how well it will work as the kids get older.
They need to be more social and involved, and cities offer all sorts of things like sports faciilites, and sports teams and so on. Cost can be an issue too. It means everyone needs a car to get to school, or jsut get around in general, and no chance of living home for college...
 
I live in a rural area. The closest town is ten miles, and has a population of a 800. The next larger town is about 15 minutes away and has 2,500 people, then the big city 30 minutes away and has a population of 7,500. If I need something not available in these towns, Jackson is 45 minutes away and boasts 61,000 people. Then I am halfway between Memphis and Nashville, 1 1/2 hours to each, 645,978 and 575,261. I live on 360 rolling acres of pasture and woods, the kids (both teens now) walk our 1/4 mile long driveway to catch the bus to school, or ride with my wife who is a CNC machine operator at a local machine shop. My home based business lets me work my own schedule, and I travel a six county area doing construction and service work. One need'nt go too far off into the boonies to have peace and security. And cows (angus beef), chickens, ducks, deer, squirrels etc. And I can pee in the yard or burn leaves if I feel like it. Or I can dial in my .270 or shoot skeet in my yard. Being miles and miles from civilization sounds grand, but it is a nice place to visit. I prefer being a few miles from the volunteer fire department, knowing the Sheriff and the Deputies, and getting my operations at the end of a relatively short ambulance ride.

Codger
 
i live in a pretty small town, and i can get to the local shopping plaza after a 30 minute walk. i have lots of woods behind my house.

of course, my dream is to move to some remote area much like codger mentioned where i can have many many acres to run around on but still be able to get to the city for nice sharp files and other mass produced goods.
 
Codger_64 said:
I prefer being a few miles from the volunteer fire department, knowing the Sheriff and the Deputies, and getting my operations at the end of a relatively short ambulance ride.

Codger
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Those are other pretty serious consciderations I forgot to mention, but have thought about.

Another conscern is the likelyhood of a home invasion. Being remote and isolated seems like an ideal target for thieves and vandals. I have been trying to think of ways to keep my future place safe and secure.
 
I dial in my .270. I practice with my .357 mag. I shoot skeet. I have dogs, and neighbors know when I am gone. They watch my place, and I watch theirs. Yes, there are a few doofuses around who like to steal. They tend to avoid situations where they will get caught, and if caught get hurt. No problems here so far.
 
Codger_64 said:
I dial in my .270. I practice with my .357 mag. I shoot skeet. I have dogs, and neighbors know when I am gone. They watch my place, and I watch theirs. Yes, there are a few doofuses around who like to steal. They tend to avoid situations where they will get caught, and if caught get hurt. No problems here so far.
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That is good hear. How far are you from your neighbours? I envision myself living somewhere on a large enough lot of land that neighbours are comfortably close, but not close that they can see my house from theirs. I am not anti social, and like the idea of a community and neighbours, I just don't like being surrounded by houses on all sides like the city, or even a lot of "cottage country" homes are.
 
I have a neighbor to the West whose house I can see across my pasture maybe 1/4 mile away... I have a neighbor to the North at the end of my driveway, 1/4 mile away. I give him eggs and venison, he gives me fish and free reign of his acre garden. I shoot to the East and South. Both neighbors are retired couples who have lived here more than 40 years. They know who is who in the zoo, and are great neighbors. I can see both houses from mine. Oh, and I have a hundred year old log cabin in the East pasture behind my house. A sad landmark of sorts.
 
Sounds like gods country to me with that setup, Codger!
Is that log cabin beyond repair? Could be a guest house or even a historic landmark, rather then a sad one.
 
I have moved from the city to the country. Been here over 40 years. It takes awhile to be accepted. if your new to it, you're just trading one set of problems for another set of problems.
 
You live in a beautiful area Coldwood. I just noticed you are in Saranac. I grew up in Montreal, and spent lots, LOTS of time camping and hiking in the ADK. Most of my experiences in the US and with Americans was in your area, and I have nothing but good things to say. I know how small town folks have a bad rep for being unaccepting and cold towards outsiders, visitors or tourists, but that certainly is not my experience. One day I might just retier to the area. Somewhere near Keene Valley. The countryside is beautiful, with four real seasons and easy access to all the outdoor sports I love. the ADK is the best park I have ever visited in Canada or the US, bar none.

Will
 
I've got it all I guess... I live back in the woods, about 100 yards off a nice little creek, my neighbors are nearly a quarter mile apart up our shared drive, and they're the best people a guy could wish for for neighbors. One couple is in their 50's and has a huge collection of vehicles, and the other couple is in their 40's, the wife a teacher and the husband runs his own business -- probably everybody on this forums' dream job -- taking groups out hiking, camping, canoeing, etc.. As with Codger_64, I've got a dog, and when I'm gone, one or other of my neighbors look after the place, and when they are gone, I look after their place and dogs. About the only downside is not being able to get cable or DSL, so no fast internet. But I can shoot my guns whenever I want, fish in the creek, and go out and practice my survival skills on the least whim, if I so choose.

Josh
 
Will, Kevin is from Montreal and we are planning a get together next summer for a day of some shooting, archery, fencing and just good times. Anyone in the area of Plattsburgh/Montreal is welcome to join us.

And yeah Will, Keene Valley is a great area, beautiful land!
 
Coldwood said:
Will, Kevin is from Montreal and we are planning a get together next summer for a day of some shooting, archery, fencing and just good times. Anyone in the area of Plattsburgh/Montreal is welcome to join us.

And yeah Will, Keene Valley is a great area, beautiful land!
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Awesome. My parents, and my fiance are in Montreal, so I go back a few times a year. I can't wait to go back for Christmas for some snow and ice climbing! I just hope conditions are better than last year, which so far it doens't look good :(.
 
I worked on a house this spring, 2 mile driveway, 21,000 acres, Nearest town of account was a hour drive, nearest city of 5 digits was an hour by small plane or a 5 hour truck ride. Whole county had fewer people than my graduating class from high school.
PLanning on going back this spring to look for something for sale near there for me.
 
Downeast Maine is nice, but who have to remember a few rules if you move up here.
1. Don't try and change anything.
2. DON'T TRY AND CHANGE ANYTHING!!!!!!! :D
3. And yes, in fact, you can't get there from here.

As far as I am concerned, if I can be half an hour away from a minor city, that is close enough.
 
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