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Old 01-07-2010, 10:21 AM   #32
AscendingStarseed
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Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Los Angeles, Ca
Posts: 355
Default Re: Seeking self-sustained, off-the-grid living environment or radiant community

Quote:
Originally Posted by Carrie1971 View Post
To be honest a front wheel drive with "studded tires" will do unless you are going off road. The state and county keep the public roads open very well.

I think the whole Earth is waking up it is kind of like a wind storm, started off with a light breeze, has had a few gusts and now it is really blowing. Yeah people are waking up.

Those of us who have lived up here for very many years... ( I am 2 more hours of drive time north of Coeur d` Alene ) We all say it is hard to tell when things are bad with the economy as it is always bad here. The logging has been hurt by many factors. It started in 1979 when something called RARE 2 was written into law.

How bad has it been for money? Well of 3 major saw mills "where the logs are taken to be cut into lumber" Only one is still open. That one at a point ran with 3 shifts so there were many men working there. It is now one shift.
The other two Saw Mills that also ran more than one shift and it hurts.

If you have many talents it could be that you may find work. However there is not any living wage work that I know of. Even professional people who have moved to the area have to drive to the south to find a place to work. (Such as a Dr. or Dentist there are more and more people who buy land up here and rent to the south just so they have a safe place to come to on their off time.) NOTE: the exception to finding work is if you are able to land a Government job. Fish and Game, Boarder Patrol, Customs, U.S. Forest Service, or the other employment is working for one of the schools for troubled teens.

I will not paint a rosy picture of living in the northwoods. It is very cold in the winter. When we have wind and it is cold having many layers of clothing on is a must or you will freeze. So if you do plan to live here year around you may want to shop at a used clothing store and buy outfits that have three layers.

Basic long underwear at skin level, with a warm sweat type layer then the outside layer of jeans or pants. Ski pants are even better. Some way to cover your face in addition to hood / hat / scarf, and of course warm foot wear and gloves.

The half past shape of things to come hit the winter weather on the head we have had 3 "thawing times" and it is just now getting back into being a normal winter.

Our growing season is not the best but on a lucky year you may have corn and even get tomatoes. ( this past year was a good one )
Potato, cabbage, carrots do very well here as do many herbals.


The fishing is good and the wildlife is wonderful. ( if you eat meat and like to hunt it is all good on that account. ) Back Packing and cross country or back country skiing is great.

Well, three layers of clothing, that did it for me...Hawaii here I come!!

In the last week I've taken a complete 180 and am seriously taking a look at the island of Kauai, you can rent a room for $450-500 and there are several established eco-villages, with quite a few more in the "forming" stages. Aside from absolutely falling in love with the island when I was there in 1991, you can grow year round. The only other place in the US you can do that is in Florida...no thanks.In addition, you can go into the jungles and find food...catch seafood etc.

If I had my choice I'd get as far away from America as possible, but no one wants Americans...we're hated worldwide. Plus when things finally collapse there are few places that will be safe or unaffected by war, economic collapse or mother nature. I figure Hawaii is as good a place as any and it's about as far away as I can get from America without needing a passport...

So right now that's what it's looking like, if I can make sense of it financially and swing the move...I'm there!

Whew...sounds a lot better than coooollllddd winters and it sounds like work will be easier for me to find on the island. I already checked out the jobs and it looks like I won't have a problem finding work.

Thanks for the run-down...definitely helped make up my mind to keep working on Kauai, seems to have all the pieces of the puzzle
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