# Need some Advise on a Couple Things!!



## MattG (Feb 18, 2015)

Hello everyone, my wife (18) and I (20) are wanting to start the homesteading/family farm life. We are currently in upstate Georgia and are trying to figure out where we want to by property.

We have some family in south GA but from what I've seen the land seems very dry down there... Is there anyone homesteading in the south ga area that could let us know how the land is? 

We are also open to living in the Gainseville area because we have family there as well. Again, is there anyone homesteading in this area that could give us advice to whether this is a good area or not? 

And lastly we are not afraid to pack up and move somewhere far away. Our dream location is is buying acreage in the flats by mountains where it snows some but not to much as my wife isn't to fond of it. I watched a show about homesteading in Montana and fell in love with the place but I know they have horrible winters. Any advice? 

Also if there is anyone who is sell acreage in any of the places I mentioned or knows of anywhere with a great deal please let us know. Thank you!


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## kwarrick (Jan 30, 2015)

Hello Matt!

I'm in GA also, in the northeast area. I can tell you about Montana. I lived there for six years; moved to to GA in '09. Montana is the most beautiful place to live; however, if your wife is not fond of snow, it's probably not the place for you. Depending on where you live, snow can start as early as September and last into May. If you're in the higher elevations, snow can be a 10 month reality. If you're native Georgians, your best bet would be to stick to the north GA area where you can have a taste of winter, but your wife will stay happy with a more moderate climate. 

I'm also looking for inexpensive property in north GA to start a homestead. If I find something or a few possibilities, I'll post them to you here. Good luck!


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## GaryS61 (Feb 26, 2013)

My place is in Montana and I would not consider living anywhere else. I am reverse of previous poster and have been in Georgia and wow they have spiders there as big as a dinner plate and other nasty bugs... fire ants etc. Sure we have winters and as a general rule the people who live here make it sound real, real bad, with the hopes that it will not turn into another California ha ha.... we like the fact that there are only 900K people in the 4th largest state. Seriously you can buy a lot more place up here than you can down there for the same money. I have trophy deer that walk around in my front yard, wild turkeys, coyotes, foxes have even seen a wolf on my place. The only draw back is not quite enough rain and a month or so of some nasty cold. Montana is a big state so there are some places with 10 months of snow and mountain peaks etc. But you are talking homesteading and that is not where you would locate in Montana to homestead..............I put up with nice springs (a little short), then a summer that can be hot but is never humid, a gorgeous fall and definite winter which serves to keep the spiders the size of dinner plates at bay..............would not ever consider a trade out of this beautiful place.


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## topofmountain (Nov 1, 2013)

I like the West myself.


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## snowsteader (Mar 6, 2015)

You might want to try http://websoilsurvey.sc.egov.usda.gov/ for areas you're looking. You can view the surveyed soil types are for the area, and how good they may be for farming.

I spent about 2 months in NW Wyoming and western Montana this past summer. My wife and I were dispersed camping in the national forests. It's absolutely gorgeous out there, and is like going back in time.

My main concern about living out west is just that the whole thing is basically a big desert. Everywhere catches on fire every summer. I swear, for the 7 months we were out west there was smoke in the air every day. If I was going to homestead out there, I'd want year round water frontage for irrigation, and that's not cheap.

I think for young people trying to get back to the land, the ticket is the north east. Upstate NY, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, all have affordable land with a consistent year round rainfall. I also think Kentucky can provide the same thing with a more mild winter.

Good luck on your search. I'm going through the same thing right now.


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## rosehaven (Nov 5, 2004)

i'm a florida native for a few decades, would never go back to the swamp! then moved to Kentucky, if you like tornadoes, humid summers almost as humid as Florida and hot, bugs, clannish as H*llllllll people, then KY may be for you. There's a reason for the sterotypes, REALLY. I totally regret my children had to endure the backward culture.

THEN we decided to head West to Idaho, OMgoodness I will never leave. I am HOME...........North Idaho is gorgeous and we just went through our first winter here and it was FUN. Summer was great as you have lots of water sports too. Don't settle.........go WEST you will never regret it.


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