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There's been a lot of good advice so far on self-sufficiency vs. hobby farming, but that's a few steps ahead of where I am right now. At this point, I don't even know where (geographically) to start looking and was hoping for suggestions in that area.
Um... no one can tell you that. It is purely and individually subjective.
Dry? Humid? Snow? Rain? Mountains? Desert? The Pacific Northwest? The Midwest? the Wild West? The Northeast? The South? They all have their attractions - and detractors.
Good soil for farming varies, and affects not only what you can produce but how intensive your labor is; as do climates and availabilty of water, length of growing seasons... the list is endless. It all depends on what YOU want, what YOU are willing to accept, what YOU are willing to do. Ex. Some people insist on rivers, creeks, and streams on their property; having lived next to these, and dealt with the accompanying problems of flooding, mosquito and bug control, and invasive, often pervasive wildlife like snakes, I opted for a place where, instead, I can tap into the sweet, pure, and untampered-with Ogallala aquifer 10 feet down with a windmill-driven pump.I have a short growing season - but the area is famous for supporting superb domesticated stock as well as wild animals.
I have a huge 100-year-old farmhouse that took a lot of work - but was much cheaper than a new and smaller cottage. Some people want a 'latchkey' purchase, with everything already built and made to order; others are willing to put sweat equity into a place and make it uniquely their own.
It all depends on YOU. You have to do your own research, figure out what you want and what you are willing to do to get it, where you are willing to look and for what you are wiling to settle - or never settle. Each one of us on here has our own desires, prejudices, abilities, and needs, and either have found or are still looking for our own 'perfect' place. What MoGal or I might love, you or forestbeekeeper might hate.
Go to landsofamerica.com, type in what and where you might find attractive - size of property, type, price - and see what is available, and what makes you dream. Look, read, investigate, examine possibilities, and make your own determination.
I heard there's a bit of division there and racism on both sides, hate which makes it a weak place. And that state outlawed using cash for selling 2nd hand goods. Seems like demented place to live. Also one of places with high rates of cancer from pollution.
Just one of several things to look at when talking geographically relocating to be self sufficient.
I think that your generalizations may be 'way over the top, dhanu86.
Louisiana has two main cities, Baton Rouge and Nawlins. They are as different as night and day; politically, socially, and geographically.... and the small towns between them are as varied as they are.
DC - creative and new age? Sorry, I spent a LOT of time there - that is the WORST town and area to think about self-sufficiency or even hobby farming. Between the ordinances, the political battlefield (not just congressional but local), the entitlement mindset there, and all of the underlying Sturm and Drang of politicial and societal battles - from the lowest to the highest levels - and the constant to and fro of vehicles, trains, and flights, not to mention the outrageous high prices, it is not a good place to be, unless you are a politician or lobbyist. 100 miles away in any direction, the farmland is good and prices are lower.
The West does not specifically consist of Cali; although a lot of folks think it does. The Pacific Northwest is green and beautiful, but has a lot of liberal drawbacks like gun bans and invasive government, which translates to a higher cost of living and more ordinances. A friend on her hobby farm sold her 20 acres, buildings, and animals for $225,000, and moved to a 40 acre farm in WVa - and was able to start with new stock completely over again due to the lower costs of everything. There are lots of other regions and even states out West - the "flyover states" that no one even thinks about or cares about - I live in one and am quite happy without the ordinances of the "Progressive" South and East Coast. In my own State, the cities of Omaha and Lincoln are considered liberal, with lots of ordinances and "progressive" attitudes - but the outlying farms and ranches pay them no mind. At all.
St Louis, Mo is a bustling, gang-infested rathole - but drive South or east 50 miles and the landscape is rolling and bucolic, the people are laid-back, friendly, and real.
My family had farms in Illinois, Ohio, and Indiana, but those have mostly been sold to huge conglomerates now that have turned them into cramped chicken production huts and mechanized GMO corn producers... finding a decently-sized place out there, with jobs and good land, is difficult.
You can find decent places everywhere, even just 50 miles outside of large cities - you have to determine for yourself which suits you, which gives you what you want, and whether you want an interstate corridor rattling nearby, trains rumbling by, or the complete silence of real rural living.
there's a bit of division there and racism on both sides,
There's racism, some deservedly so, and some not (On all sides)
But here's the interesting thing, looking around the south, and looking around the north... I find the north to be MORE racist.
The difference? In the south, we live WITH each other. this does not happen in the North. There are fewer minorities in the north, and, due to them being more recently arrived (For the most part) you will find more segregation.
It's not something many think about, but for those who don't just go by that 'They heard' once it's brought to their attention... it's seen.
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Originally Posted by dhanu86
hate which makes it a weak place.
ooooooook
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Originally Posted by dhanu86
And that state outlawed using cash for selling 2nd hand goods.
I remember what your talking about, but only vaguely. And and as I recall... that's not the truth of the matter.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dhanu86
Seems like demented place to live.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dhanu86
Also one of places with high rates of cancer from pollution.
This is where what others have said comes into play.
If you live in 'cancer alley' (A small streatch of La...) this is the case.
If you lived North of Alexandra, or northern LA... Totally different cultural world... as well as different health risks. (Not that all of south LA is at heightened risk, just an easy example.)
Quote:
Originally Posted by dhanu86
Just one of several things to look at when talking geographically relocating to be self sufficient.
You might also be well advised to base your 'items to look at' on FACT!
The catch is that I would actually be able to have to find a job wherever I go. My background is in medical administration and human resources/benefits coordination, which I'm sure creates a problem. That is, how can one work in human resources while living somewhere with very few humans? Now, i don't exactly have a passion for it, so I'm willing to transition into a more appropriate field (as long as the compensation is comparable). However, especially in this economy, it's not likely anyone would hire someone for anything if said person had no experience.
I would like to stay in the Northeast, if possible. All my family is here and I'd like to be able to visit them once in a while. I was thinking Pennsylvania might work (in terms of distance), though I don't really know much about the state by way of its suitability for a hobby farmer. Regardless, I'm keeping an open mind.
it's very unlikely that the first place you pick will be the place you wish to live for the rest of your life. Why worry about it? If I were in your work situation (as I once was) I'd pick a place convenient to my work but with some rural features. That means some land, some favorable county ordnances, and no need of extensive work to do some planting and perhaps keeping chickens or a cow. I'd dip my toes into the water, not dive head first. See if you like it, if it agrees with your personality. It's not for everyone. I learned that I love the country, scenic and dry weather only, but I don't care to be an agriculturist. That doesn't make me bad and farmers good or vice versa; it's about the individual.
Don't, whatever you do, give up your professional life. No one's happy with a reduced income regardless of what they say. You have choices that many less educated people on this forum don't. Use those choices to your advantage. Give the hobby farm a try; but make sure that you can get out painlessly or be able to try a different area or different kind of property. I doubt that your first rural property will be your last one.
See if there are human resource positions available for some of the government agencies. The Forest Service consolidated all their human resources into one location a few years ago, but before that, each forest and often each district had their own. Perhaps some of the other agencies still do (Park Service, Fish and Wildlife, Army Corps, BLM--although that agency will be out West). That would give you a job in a small, rural area (possibly). I believe you can search online at USA Jobs.
I think that your generalizations may be 'way over the top, dhanu86.
Louisiana has two main cities, Baton Rouge and Nawlins. They are as different as night and day; politically, socially, and geographically.... and the small towns between them are as varied as they are.
DC - creative and new age? Sorry, I spent a LOT of time there - that is the WORST town and area to think about self-sufficiency or even hobby farming. Between the ordinances, the political battlefield (not just congressional but local), the entitlement mindset there, and all of the underlying Sturm and Drang of politicial and societal battles - from the lowest to the highest levels - and the constant to and fro of vehicles, trains, and flights, not to mention the outrageous high prices, it is not a good place to be, unless you are a politician or lobbyist. 100 miles away in any direction, the farmland is good and prices are lower.
The West does not specifically consist of Cali; although a lot of folks think it does. The Pacific Northwest is green and beautiful, but has a lot of liberal drawbacks like gun bans and invasive government, which translates to a higher cost of living and more ordinances. A friend on her hobby farm sold her 20 acres, buildings, and animals for $225,000, and moved to a 40 acre farm in WVa - and was able to start with new stock completely over again due to the lower costs of everything. There are lots of other regions and even states out West - the "flyover states" that no one even thinks about or cares about - I live in one and am quite happy without the ordinances of the "Progressive" South and East Coast. In my own State, the cities of Omaha and Lincoln are considered liberal, with lots of ordinances and "progressive" attitudes - but the outlying farms and ranches pay them no mind. At all.
St Louis, Mo is a bustling, gang-infested rathole - but drive South or east 50 miles and the landscape is rolling and bucolic, the people are laid-back, friendly, and real.
My family had farms in Illinois, Ohio, and Indiana, but those have mostly been sold to huge conglomerates now that have turned them into cramped chicken production huts and mechanized GMO corn producers... finding a decently-sized place out there, with jobs and good land, is difficult.
You can find decent places everywhere, even just 50 miles outside of large cities - you have to determine for yourself which suits you, which gives you what you want, and whether you want an interstate corridor rattling nearby, trains rumbling by, or the complete silence of real rural living.
I couldn't make a misconception for the "fly-over" states because all I know is what I saw out my Airtran window, grids of farms, one after another. I'd have to add that to my blacklist. Almost like looking over Manhattan, only its green.
Coming from north I don't see anything very progressive about the south, just some bumkins trying to be modern and cosmopolitan, so to me that's the wild frontier. I shouldn't of said DC area, really I meant 50-100 miles out like in Fredericksburg Va, outer MD, and Delaware around Dover or south. But within driving distance of DC, because for new-agers its a creative metro (yoga, holistic health, spiritual workshops). I don't know the OP but those are examples.
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