IS WILDERNESS LIVING IN THE GREAT NORTH FOR YOU?

Do you long for wilderness living in the great north?

Is wilderness living in the great north for you? You may take a moment to imagine…

The bustle of traffic is fading into the distance. The rumbling engines, honking horns, and radios droning are somewhere off beyond the horizon. You are the master of your new domain. Free in a way that you never were among the crowds and urban sprawl. Here, among the wilderness you find peace, right outside your door, the possibility of adventure, should you choose it.

You walk out your front door and listen to the sounds around you, and all you hear is the sound of nature; the wind rustling through the trees,  bird songs and chattering of squirrels. The great outdoors awaits you. The night sky glows with the light of millions of stars unmasked by the urban glow.

The call of the barred owl in the night, the howl of a wolf in the distance, It is only then that you realize what you have been missing. This!  This is food for the soul.

Life moves at a different pace, on wilderness time, if you will, when you aren't living in the chaos of the city. As you meander down a path, you stop and smell the flowers, there are no muttered curses, or pressing of impatient bodies struggling past you on the street.  No longer do you walk briskly past hundreds of strangers faces instead there are a hundred ancient and familiar trees.

Homesteading folks are different in the bush, though they be 100 miles up or down the river, they will plod through the most hostile conditions to assist, should a “neighbor” need help. If you're unfortunate enough to get stuck in the snow or overflow, you can bet your boots, that some burly fellow with a big ole truck and chain, or snow machine will yank you out before you freeze. It's just the way of life out in the bush to prevent frozen hands and frozen toes.

I think this way of life develops for a couple of reasons. When you are far from urban conveniences you must be prepared, and you prepare not only for yourself but for those few around you.  As you are in a much less populated area, resources and services often need to be combined or shared. As you become more self sufficient you'll find there's a real feel good pride with conquering obstacles, not needing to call for help or waiting for another to fix it and hand you the bill.

When you no longer have a neighbor within earshot, you can set up a target range right in your own backyard, if you like. Hunt, fish or hike in your own back woods, Grow your own food, just steps from your door. Play guitar, sing with abandon, It's freedom in its truest form.

If you long for wilderness living in the great north, the tranquility of nature, the wild adventure of the wilderness, and the freedom to follow your own path, if you’ve been wallowing in the doldrums of discontent, dissatisfied with your routine and dull existence, if you’ve been contemplating and seeking a new direction, a life change that is challenging, fresh and lively, it might be time to take your path... Into the wild.

Wilderness living in the great north, its that time of year again!

Wilderness living in the great north, its that time of year again!

This year's food acquisition is already under way. The pressure canner is jiggling away, releasing steam as the contents process.  It's the time of year when food is abundant on a wilderness living homestead. Fruit on the trees is ripe, the vegetable garden has reached maturity, the seeds are ripening. The necessity of food preservation spurs the homesteader to can at a maddening rate. Staying up late waiting for the pressuring time to be up before going to bed often at 3 am. Time between is spent washing jars and lids, slicing and dicing, peeling, separating and other preparations before putting the food in jars.

This year there are bear licenses, so bear meat is on the menu. Fat to be rendered, and hide to tan. The same for deer, meat to be canned, tallow to be rendered, and a hide to tan.

There are peaches to can, and apple sauce to be made. There are berries wanting to be jam. There isn't a moment to spare while wilderness living on a homestead.

The salmon run this time of year, in the autumn, and wait in line to be canned. Canned salmon is a delicious snack, one you don't want to miss!

So it is when you reach the end of the day and wipe your hands on your apron, there isno better feeling than putting your feet up. Feet that have stood for 16 hours in a hot kitchen, bearing our load at the counter, that at last can rest.  What a Glorious feeling! Going to catch a wink before it's up at 6 am to wash more jars! ...and what about that wine?

How to find food - DONT STARVE In the Wilderness or remote homestead

How to find food - Dont starve in the wilderness or remote homestead....

One of the most important things a person needs to know when living in the wilderness is how to find food. I will explain some methods for collecting and preserving food without refrigeration. I will cover some basic knowledge that will help to acquire some food.

Don't starve in the wilderness! Wild plant edibles are many. Many mushrooms are poisonous. I recommend not eating them unless you have been trained in picking them. However there are many edibles available to you. You can acquire vitamin c in wintery areas by drinking pine needle tea which will prevent scurvy. Please take the time to read a book on wild edible plants and berries. There are hundreds of them and they can help sustain you preventing starvation. The layer of wood just beneath the bark on a tree can be eaten in pines, maples, and others.

Another method of how to find food and not starve in the wilderness is fishing: this method should not be overlooked as it is a year round food source. Fish offer some very healthful benefits. Some fish contain fats such as salmon. This fish carries large 600 lb bears through long winters and it can carry you through too.  Another benefit is that it can easily be preserved both pressure canned in jars, as well as soaked in brine (sugar and salt solution) then smoked, or just smoked and air dried.  Salmon are a migratory and seasonal fish, so must be harvested when they arrive. You must not wait! They can be caught with hook and line, nets, weirs and fish wheels. Please see the laws in your area. Fish traps can be made with sticks in a river or stream stabbed into the ground  that is wide at the opening and narrows down stream so that the fish swim in and become trapped. Fish such as pike, whitefish and others can be caught through the ice using line and hook and also nets put under the ice using two holes.  When fishing in the warmer months try fishing near trees that have fallen in the water, log jams, and on the quiet water side of bends in the river. Line can be made from strands of fabric pulled from clothing, vines, fine trees roots etc. Good can be carved from bone, sticks, and found wire or metal a simple tiny stick about the length of your thumbnail can be sharpened atboth ends and the line tied just off center. Baited. When pulled it will catch in the fishes throat and the fish can then be pulled in.

Don't starve in the wilderness, consider Trapping:  The advantage of traps vs. Hunting is that a trap is hunting for you even when you sleep. Having snare wire is essential in aiding in not starving in the wilderness. It is made into slip loops and placed where animal trails can be seen in the grass and snow. It can be hung from low bushes and should be about 2 to 3 inches from the ground. Traps must be checked every day. You can not survive only on rabbits as they do not have enough fat, making them supplemental meals only. Deadfall traps can be used for any animal size depending on the size of the dead fall trap. A trap like this is built by balancing a heavy object such as a log or rock on a stick so that the animal bumps the stick or pulls on a string tied to the stick activating the heavy object to fall with gravity. You can acquire larger or smaller animals this way. These animals will have fat and the bones can be boiled to extract the high calorie marrow.  Another relatively easy trap is digging a deep hole that animals fall into and can not escape.

Hunting:  hunting with spears, bows and arrows, and guns is most successful in the early mornings and in the evenings when wild animals move about the most. Finding a water source, an area of cover, or a feed source will give you the most opportunities to see animals. Being still and quiet, without fidgeting, will allow animals to behave normally and allow them to come closest to you without being alarmed. This gives you the best advantage for success in acquiring some major nutrients.  You will find it helpful to conceal yourself behind bushes, rocks, downed trees or other natural features which can conceal you from view.  It is also helpful to hunt with the breeze blowing into your face instead of your back. Having the wind in your face ensures that your own scent is being  blown away from the game you are hunting preventing them from being aware of your presence. The farther animals are from you the higher you must aim. Nest can be preserved in a cold stream, by air dying in the wind, by smoking, or pressure canning. During the winter months is can be hung from a branch out of reach ofpredators and left frozen until use.

How to find food in the wilderness requires knowledge about things like, Birds rarely fly at night. They become easy to grab by hand in the dark. If you see abird go to roost, in the dark you can often reach up or climb up and grab it. Same with Water fowl on the nest. The eggs can also be eaten. Again please know the laws in your area.

If you are near the ocean, freshwater can be found by digging a hole on the beach about ten feet from the high tide mark. The hole should fill with less salty water. In the forest you can acquire fresher water which from snowmelt, is healthier, versus rivers or lakes than can contain bacterias and protazoans.

Foods that are often overlooked by the average person are: white grubs from dead trees or wood, these taste kind of nutty. Porcupines which make a very nice stew and are relatively easy to catch. Crawdads along a creek edge are miniature lobster looking creatures. Earth worms, grasshoppers, which can be fried. Mice, snakes, frogs legs, Pine cone seeds, cattail roots (are similar to potatoes and are a carbohydrate.) Seaweed Sea urchin eggs, clams if you are near the sea.

These are just basic suggestions and should be studied through reading material, licensed teachers, etc. Always follow the laws in your area. 

YOU CAN STILL HOMESTEAD TODAY!!! WILDERNESS and REMOTE LIVING is AVAILABLE!

At 53 yrs old Dick Proeneke left everything behind to live in the Alaskan Wilderness

Alone....

YOU CAN STILL HOMESTEAD TODAY!!! WILDERNESS and REMOTE LIVING is AVAILABLE in 2017!  Although many of the government homesteading programs are gone, the dream of homesteading a remote or wilderness homestead is still very accessible and available. The state of Alaska has many remote parcels available for "over-the-counter-land sales" <=click or paste - http://dnr.alaska.gov/mlw/landsale/otc/

where you can purchase remote properties over the internet direct from the state of Alaska with your credit card. Their website has maps, pictures, evaluations and descriptions of available parcels with a wide range of prices from low couple thousands $2k on up to $50 or $60k depending on the locale and size of the parcel, type of ground etc. Its worth a look if you are Alaska inclined.  They also have a purchase and remote parcel staking program for 1+ year residents of the state that is very attractive as well. The state of Alaska also offers very attractive financing to residents on land purchases from the state of Alaska.

Canada has many affordable wilderness large acreage parcels where you can still homestead today. Many are very reasonably priced and Americans can stay at their Canadian homesteads up to 6 months a year. Dual Citizenship is also available which would make full residency possible. With dual citizenship you must realize that if borders are closed during time of war you will have to remain on whichever side you reside when the border closes. However, I must say that Canada has some of the most beautiful wilderness areas/habitat.

Another way to acquire remote properties in todays economy is through tax sales in many states. These are properties that have been forfeited back to the state because the land owner did not pay the land taxes. Often these are remote recreational secondary properties that the owners felt were extra baggage in tight times and let them go. Many are undeveloped because they were not the owners primary property. These are usually able to be acquired for very low prices when you agree to pay the back taxes. Check state websites for these tax sales. We were able to secure a 10 acre remote parcel between two national forests for just $4,000. We used some of the trees to build and we have no neighbors for miles. 

It all started for us when we decided we wanted to have good clean food. We were locked into a suburban area and couldnt leave right away due to our debt load, but we decided that we did have enough room to grow our own food. We hunted on public land for red meat, we raised chickens and ducks for poultry, just a few. They gave us meat and eggs. We fished local lakes in a cheap boat & canoe we bought off craigslist which gave us a way to harvest our own fish. We dug the worms in our own yard and collected them after the rain, we stored them in a cooler full of dirt with a screen over it and then used them as needed.  We also planted our yard into strawberries, asparagus, and alfalfa. We used cherry and apricot bushes for shrubbery, and planted apple and peach trees for our yard trees. We planted grapes for a hedge row on the fence between our place and the neighbors which made a nice privacy screen as well. We also tapped the few maple trees in the yard to learn how to make maple syrup and sugar. We planted a vegetable garden and learned to can them for storage.  We therefore gained some practice before we actually headed into our wilderness. Having all this knowledge really helped us feel more in control and much more secure in our abilities to succeed on a homestead.  We were already heating with wood at that point and I had made many 1 pot suppers on the heating stove, but I soon ventured into the idea of having an oven too so finally bought a wood cook stove. It was marvelous! But thats a story all on its own!  I learned to make jams, jellies, juices, jerky, soups etc. all stored away for winter, all organic, all healthy. So the move to a remote homestead was smoother for us than it might be for some, but one of the things that was not so smooth was getting accustomed to a lack of electricity. Our income primarily comes from the internet, through making buckskin clothing and other mountain man items, and through the sale of homesteading items we acquire at vintage auctions and estate sales. So we needed a way to have internet access and the ability to run our laptops at our remote location. The solution came through Verizon Wireless. We purchased a smart phone which had hot spot capabilities which meant we could get internet signal to our laptops through the phone. We then purchased a few solar panel kits and some batteries, as well as a cheap 1000 watt generator. This gave us adequate power to run two laptops on internet for work, and by streaming movies through Amazon Prime and netflix where we can view movies of our choice as well as documentaries, independent films, National geographic, History, Discovery etc for $7.99/mo - if we can find the time to watch them! So we stay connected with the larger world inspite of our seclusion.

Getting into homesteading and wilderness living is really just taking measure of what is really really important to you and finding a way to preserve that while deciding what is NOT important. Then going through the steps of peeling that away, until you have centered on what is your essential character and pursuing that character. Your wilderness homestead can be exactly what you want it to be, that is the freedom and liberty of remote living. There are still laws and regulations to some degree, but fewer restrictions than in areas of more concentrated populations. That is the essence of wilderness living...Freedom to live, not just exist, but to grow, learn, stretch your mind, and physical abilities, to really LIVE!

WILDERNESS LIVING in a tent! ~ HOW MUCH FOR PEOPLE IN A CANDY WRAPPER?

 

         THIS IS A SHORT VIDEO THAT IS SO INCREDIBLE, THE REAL DEAL, WELL DONE, BY A GIRL LIVING IN THE YUKON IN A TENT IN TOTAL WILDERNESS. WELL WORTH A FEW MINUTES TO WATCH. I WISH SHE'D MAKE MORE!
             
       My first summer in northern Canada and Alaska was a real eye opener for me.  I had very little money and was making the trip in a little Geo Prism and a tent. I left from Michigan's Upper Peninsula. I had a car top carrier full of dehydrated food, a trunk full of tents and gear, and a backseat full of sleeping bags, a dog and a 6 yr old.
       I wanted to see ALL of ALASKA so that I could come home and shop "online" for a piece of land there knowing what the general area and terrain was like in a given location.   I ended up going 11,000 miles that summer. (My car died about 60 miles after returning home) ~ that was a close call. Sure glad I didn't head up to the Arctic Ocean like I was thinking at the time.  

        Since my journey really started after crossing the Minnesota border into Canada.  I quickly found us in very rural countryside heading north.  We drove in 20 hour stretches looking for a camp ground.  Only when we were completely exhausted of looking at mile after mile of countryside did a campground seem to appear. We had a goal of getting into Alaska as quickly as possible.  Prior to crossing the border,  we had spent the night at a camp ground was in Northern Minnesota. We had pulled in around midnight, set up our tent quickly, thinking we were going to FINALLY get some sleep.... WHAT WERE WE THINKING? Sleep is NOT something you get on an adventure! 

About a half hour after we arrived at our first campsite,  a van drove up to our peaceful setting, it was full of some interestingly intoxicated occupants who were certain they were suppose to meet us there. We reassured them that we had NO IDEA who they were and that they were the last thing we needed for company in our endeavor to get a good nights sleep. We urged them to depart, which took some convincing, but they did finally leave and we had our trusty double barrel shotgun join us for the night instead. So wearily we turned in to once again try to sleep. Suddenly there was a loud SMACK on the water behind the tent    ....There was a large canal behind our tent and unbeknownst to us it was inhabited by very large carp or gar jumping from the water and coming down with an awful tremendous SMACK. That went on all night until day break. So we awoke almost rested and headed north. We crossed the border in the middle of the night around 2 am in North Dakota. The Canadian border guards had a million questions, (really just 2 questions asked a half a million different ways. Namely why were we coming into Canada and when are we leaving...welcome to Canada! This was doubly interesting because we had a son with us who was born at home and didn't have a birth certificate at the time. This bit of information would come into play later, however with some explaining they let us cross.)  The border agents kindly let us in with the small $25 fee per firearm , so lightened our wallets of about $150 right off the bat.  We traveled hours and hours into Saskatchewan where you you could see so far across the horizon that you could see the curve of the Earth!  Its easy to see there how so many millions of bison/buffalo could roam those vast prairies. The prairies are enormous! There's just no way to describe how you can drive for days and never reach the horizon. Coming along a back road we spied a sign for a camp ground at a lake. So we turned off expecting to come upon the campground within the first couple of miles. A few miles further on we see another sign telling us to turn at the road up ahead, after about 17 miles of signs we finally arrive at the campground to find a bewildered hostess who had no idea what to charge for two people and a kid in a "candy wrapper" (a tent -in bear country), so she tells me to wait a second while she calls the owner and I hear her whispering, "yeah, they're wanting to stay in a candy wrapper, how much do I charge them?" This was our first initiation into bear country where people, sane ones anyway, just didn't camp in tents. The owner arrived at a price which included all the cut campfire wood we needed and just a tip that we should keep our food packed away, there's been a couple bears off and on around the campsites, particularly in the back more secluded areas such as we had asked for....Well that was comforting!
    As it turned out we spent a couple of months wandering around Alaska after leaving Canada and never saw a bear near our tent. We were assaulted by storms so bad the winds pushed the roof of our tent down into our faces as we slept, rain that poured like a river requiring a second tent to be put over the first to keep out the driving rain, motes to be dug to divert the raging torrents coming off the tent. We had a moose cruise past the side of the tent on the one foot of space of the tent pad that stuck out past the tent. It was pretty unnerving to think of hooves carrying 1200 lbs just inches from my face. There were the unknown silent things (probably bears!)that we could neither hear, see, or smell that sent our dog into a barking ruckus in the middle of the nights, but overall our tent stay was fairly uneventful. The Alaskan nights (mind you its still broad daylight at night) in June and July did surprise us by dipping down into the 20's and 30's in some places particularly in higher elevations.

Homemade Homestead DRINKS & BREWS & REFRESHMENTS

There are a surprising number of natural things to drink on a remote homestead, and they of course vary based on the natural plants & trees native to the area you are in.

1. Teas - are generally any edible plant material that is steeped in water, and can be drank hot or cold.

Trees commonly used for refreshing drinks include, but are not  limited to:
                      
a. PINE - Needles made into a tea makes a drink high in Vitamin C and        helps fight scurvy.
b. BIRCH - Sweet drinkable sap, can be made into syrup, sugar, sweet tea, and beer.
c. SASSAFRAS ROOT - Makes a sasparilla sassafras tea
d. MAPLE - Sweet drinkable sap, can be made into syrup or sugar or sweet tea
e. STAGHORN SUMAC - the red spire seed pods are steeped into a lemonade drink

Plants commonly used for drinks include, but not limited to:
a. MINT - Found in moist areas
b. JUNIPER BERRIES - give drinks a "gin" flavor
c. RASPBERRY LEAVES - This tea helps with female menstrual cramps
d. ROSEHIPS - Are steeped into a tea also high in vitamin C

2. Coffees - are generally made from roasting things in combination to make custom coffee flavors.

Grains, nuts, seeds, roots are usually roasted in an oven or over a fire and then ground and then brewed.

Things commonly used for coffee include but are not limited to:
a. CHICKORY ROOTS
b. CEREAL GRAINS - wheat, oats, barely
c. BEECH NUTS
d. PINE NUTS
e. DANDELION ROOTS

3. Juices - are generally made from locally available fruits. In the north, these include but are not limited to:
a. CRANBERRIES
b. GRAPES
c. BLACKBERRIES
d. RED RASPBERRIES
e. BLUEBERRIES
f.  APPLES
g. MULBERRIES
h. STRAWBERRIES
             I boil fruit with a bit of sugar to taste into a concentrate, I filter the juice through a t-shirt to remove the pulp and then I "can" it into jars. Later I use these concentrates mixed with water when I serve them as glasses of juice. They make wonderful cocktail juices.

4. Wines - are made by fermenting the fruit juice with yeast. A balloon can be fastened over a jug and about 1 teaspoon of bread yeast or wine yeast (old-timers used a bit of sour dough starter, which does produce wine albeit a bit cloudy) in 1 to 5 gallons of juice. Fasten the large heavy duty balloon on top of jug secure with string, tape or zip strip . When the balloon deflates in about 2 to 4 weeks your wine is done. It must be bottled quickly without alot of air exposure or it could turn to vinegar. (Which is not a total loss as the vinegar can be used for cleaning or cooking, pickling etc.) The alcohol content in homemade wine is usually 9-12%

5. Beers - this is easily made Alaska bush style by buying hops flavored malt in a large can and mixing with water to make 5 gallons.Heat, then cool, Add the yeast at about 105 degrees f and an airlock or a balloon as above and wait for fermentation to stop and the balloon to deflate or the airlock to stop bubbling. Beer is temperature sensitive and ferments best around 45 degrees fahrenheit so makes a good springtime endeavor for those who do not have thermostat heat. 

Attention:
****As with any food related suggestion make sure you use proper identification methods for identifying plants, please be aware of possible food allergies, and risks involved in canning, preserving, and brewing. Local laws could prohibit some of these activities in your local, so please check your ordinances.****

             

WILDERNESS LIVING ,TAKES TIME! No Worries, No Hurries!

            One of the hardest things to get used to in wilderness living on a remote homestead ... is how long everything takes! As a people, we humans in the developed countries have become so accustomed to having instant gratification!  Our automated world is literally at our fingertips! From instant entertainment, to instant food, to instant money. Our desires are fulfilled without hesitation. 

NOT SO on a remote homestead!  EVERYTHING TAKES LONGER!

STEP 1
Let's take morning coffee or tea for instance... There's no expresso machine!
You get up, get dressed including your coat,boots, hat and gloves and go out to fetch some stove wood (which hopefully is already cut otherwise you have to do that too).  You come in and take off all your snowy gear. Drop the wood next to the stove, fetch the matches and firestarter (paper, kindling, firestarter cheat sticks) put the firestarter and wood into the stove, light it and squat there on the cold floor in a cold cabin blowing on the little flame to coax it to life.  Once there is a reliable flame you close the door, adjust the damper, and fetch water - that's the interesting part... its usually frozen. So you put the ice in the pot and WAIT for it to melt, then you WAIT for it to boil.
When the water finally gets hot enough your real coffee starts to percolate, or, if you're impatient like me, you pour the hot water into a cup of instant coffee. This whole scenario just to get that first cup of coffee takes up the first hour of your day!

This whole project happens over again if you leave your cabin long enough for the fire to burn out and allows the cabin to get cold.  So when you get home, you start from scratch with a new fire and there is no instant heat like with a thermostat electric or gas heat. It takes a long time for the wood stove to reheat the walls, floors, furniture and air inside the cabin. Patience is definitely in order there!

Cooking... Most rustic cabin living does not include microwaves!  There are no TV dinners, or store bought bread. A quick sandwich means going through step 1  then instead of heating coffee water you will either fry bread, bake biscuits, or begin a batch of sourdough yeast bread which adds a couple hours time to the chore to accommodate the bread "rising" before baking. As for meals, canned meats can really speed up the process as the meats are already pre-cooked and just need reheating, so I pressure can grouse, fish, venison etc. for various meals. Otherwise the meat has to be brought in and thawed out then sliced or ground up then fried, baked or boiled along with veggies, beans, potatoes, or rice until tender and soft. How long that takes depends on how hot your stove is. Often times baking a cake can take 2 or more hours if the oven temp is only 200* f. 

Laundry... well, that could take a long time just to type all that is involved but its already been well said by another blogger and she really hit the nail on the head.... check it out on her blog...SWEET HOME ALASKA (<=click)  http://remotealaska.blogspot.com/2010/06/doing-laundry.html

She says it so perfectly that she deserves full credit, and I couldnt have said it better! I do my laundry the same way except I wring out the clothes through a wringer attachment on my washing machine and hers spins them but takes time both ways, this job takes 2-3 hours and a little longer if you have to carry the water in 5 gallon pails any amount of distance.

If you want to take a shower or bath, you do not just "turn on" a faucet and jump in.  You have to follow step 1 above then fetch the water, heat the water  in quantities sufficient for the shower or bath which takes a couple of hours, "not super fast" like heating a pot of coffee water, but big pans and pots of water. It takes alot of wood to keep the fire going hot and steady, so there is the constant feeding of the stove in there as well!  Then you hook up whatever shower apparatus you have for your cabin, (there are many) either gravity fed which involves transferring the water from the stove to a container high above the shower unit, or a pressure sprayer then pump to pressurize, then shower some then pump some more etc etc., or the electric showers offered by Cabela's and similar stores, but that method involves having gas or solar or generator which must be turned on in addition to heating water... So, you see after all that work to get the shower ready, you are sweaty and definately in need of one!

One of the characteristics wilderness living will develop in you is PATIENCE! Some native tribes had wise elders who knew from long living this wilderness lifestyle that "IT TAKES AS LONG AS IT TAKES!" There is no hurrying in the wilderness. Hurrying causes carelessness which causes injury or death. The key to living in the wilderness is to live intentionally, with care and thought put into every action.

WILDERNESS LIVING - Getting AFFORDABLE Supplies! ~for frontier, mountain man, survival homesteads

Supplies and mail by dog team

     Wilderness living - getting affordable supplies!~for frontier, mountain man, survival homesteads.   One of the biggest struggles of the remote homestead and wilderness living is... getting supplies!

As seen in the pic above, before UPS our mail and supplies often came by dog sled team or snow machine, and still does in many outlying areas of Bush Alaska, Yukon, Northwest Territories etc. This method of getting supplies has a couple of significant issues, first, there are weight constraints on the teams and there is alot of time involved. Often summer supplies had to be ordered and delivered during the winter months while the snow is good, and that meant storing your supplies after they arrived in a cabin space already too small often times confining in the winter.  

I read about a fellow once who got into a spat with the dog team driver who delivered his mail to his wilderness cabin back in the 1904, I think.  After a good natured argument over getting supplies delivered, The cabin dweller, being a self proclaimed "wiseguy" and wanting to "get back at" his mailman ordered 20 giant boxes of "CORNFLAKES" cereal. The mailman had to deliver them because they were within the weight limitations, and the mailman cursed the guy up one side and down the other. The cabin dweller got a good chuckle out of it each time he got mail over the next couple of years, as he only got about 4 of his boxes at each delivery (because of the combined load of all the other supplies being delivered to other residents) and the mailman complained about having to store those "dang boxes" at his cabin until they could be delivered. .....Guess there's more than one way to get the last word! :)

Today, with mail and supply delivery by airplane, and with more roads by UPS, Mail Order is still THE EASIEST WAY to get your supplies. The advent of the INTERNET has made compiling supplies in a "one stop" shopping method about the easiest its ever been for the remote homesteader and wilderness living families. Satellite signal and cellular phone signals have also create ease of access to the internet for ordering supplies and goods through the mail. Take this blog and many others, focused on the experience of wilderness living, who have gathered together in one spot links to many of the companies/suppliers and "know how to" resources that help make wilderness  living in remote areas, or wilderness tripping simpler, easier, and more comfortable.  Many times supply runs to town for supplies or mail can only be done once a week or once a month, and in very remote locations, once a year.  So being able to order your goods online and knowing that they will be at the post office waiting for you when you arrive makes planning easier and the use of your time and resources for fetching them more efficient.  

It used to be that one went to the closest general store where goods were sold at huge markups by the proprietor and left the remote cabin dweller/homesteader with no choice but to pay exorbitantly inflated prices for his supplies.  One no longer has to resign himself or herself to that course. Mail/Internet order has created competition that keeps the cost of supplies low. The offering of "flat rate" boxes by the USPS also helps remote dwellers living in the wilderness by creating a way to have heavy objects delivered at a reasonable cost as well.

The internet has also opened up a wider variety or resources for the wilderness living population who wants a semi-modern lifestyle, linking the wilderness dweller with many new 12 volt items that can run on battery or solar and wind power. This has revolutionized the wilderness cabins, bringing many electrical tools and appliances that are perfect for solitary off grid dwellings. Many of these items are available through internet order as well. Another overlooked opportunity the internet and mail ordering  provides to the homesteader are returns, money back guarantees, replacement parts etc not commonly available at many outpost stores.

So when you plan your wilderness homestead or adventure take the time to really look around on the websites and blogs you visit because they are often put together by folks who are living that lifestyle and have a good idea of what you will need or want to make YOUR wilderness experience more enjoyable. You get the real deal. Not nonsense salesman suggestions, but experience  and practical suggestions. Such as; 

1. You'll need this...

2. You'll want that...

3. You'll wish you had purchased...

4. Shouldn't have bought the cheapest one...

5. Wish I would have got two of...

6. Wish I would've thought of.... Etc. 

Alot of us have been there and done that, so take a minute to look through all the resources on our sites and blogs, because there is probably something  you will find useful or interesting relating to cabin life.....
Cabin building, Dog sledding, book/stories/biographies of homesteaders and wilderness dwellers and wilderness lands like Alaska, Yukon, etc., wilderness based movies, food supplies, Gardening, useful tools, clothing, gear, hide tanning & leather supplies, Camp living supplies, tents, stoves , showers, water filters. There are also cabin supplies, wood stoves, fire starting equipment, matches, lighters, magnesium sticks, fire-starter sticks, wool & fleece rugs, footwear, Generators, chainsaws, Cooking on wood stoves, over fires etc., Home crafts like knitting,, crochet & sewing, Wood working and furniture building, Screws, glues, nails,Travel & hiking tools like GPS gear, Cameras and video cameras, journals, Snowshoes, knives, axes, hatchets etc. There are so many resources for mail order shopping, here are some we use;
1. Ebay
2. Amazon
3. Bailey's
4. Lehman's Homestead Supply
4. Alibris books
5. Google shopping
6. Janns netcraft
7. Cabelas

 (If I forgot something important jot me a comment with a heads up!  I love hearing from others!) I really want to help folks serious about getting into this lifestyle, with a real and tangible educated start. I want them to be successful and see how much the wilderness has to offer in enjoyable living! Another thing we found very helpful in planning our own cabin was the TINY HOMES SITES ...

www.tumbleweedhouses.com/

www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/...tiny-houses.../index.html
tinyhouseco.com/

or "tiny houses" on google images

Tumbleweed Homes

We looked at alot of pictures and websites and it really helped us in figuring 

Out how to best used our space while using as few resources as possible.

Which really helped keep the costs down.

We are here to help others find a way of fulfilling and reaching their dreams and goals of enjoying a wilderness lifestyle and sometimes you just have to get started...maybe with a how to book, or maybe stock piling supplies while you are still working a "real job", or by making your partner feel secure by having supplies that make them feel safe and secure... Taking that first step can help get you on your way...

Get a book on "How to build a cabin", buy "Food Supplies", get comfortable bedding, waterproof goods, warm clothing and footwear, books with "Back to Basics" know how info. You'll feel alot better and more secure in taking the plunge! Move from your "armchair dreaming" to action. You don't have to go full force into this lifestyle, you can slowly gain these skills, by practicing in your own back yard, your own garden, learn how to use the equipment, take some short hikes, rent a canoe for the weekend, go camping etc. GET YOUR FEET WET..... Maybe we'll be neighbors one day...

     

Wilderness Dwellers

I think that there is one chord that binds together almost all remote homesteading and wilderness dwellers, and that is the overwhelming inborn desire for freedom and liberty!  It is within this ideal that we pursue solitude, space, and freedom from the constraints that are required by society. The regulation that is needed to manage masses of people in a concentrated area become burdensome to those wilderness dwellers who require a higher level of individual freedom. Freedom that they are not willing to sacrifice for the sake of comfort, convenience and ease. So, it is with the blessing of Liberty handed down to us by our forefathers that we take hold of those freedoms and venture into the wilderness or homesteading self sufficient lifestyles.  Wilderness dwellers trade overstuffed sofas for rocking chairs and stumps, we trade grocery store aisles for forest trails....and hope we have success in finding our groceries. We trade forced air heat for forest 'ere heat. We do have running water, it runs for miles in both directions and is a brisk jaunt from the cabin, hauling ones water is great exercise  in place of going to the gym.  We leave "flick of a switch" lighting for   "light a wick" lighting. (Lighting -or a lack thereof, is a significant change from urban to remote living). For the most part we give up our wheels in favor of feet, we go less distances, but go further in many directions in our lives. Another thing that is often overlooked but is a significant loss to some is the loss of social outlets, no more friday night football with the guys, no more shopping dates with the gals. However, after an extended period in the bush, you will find that your interactions with others are much more meaningful as you find you now have a wealth of new experiences to share and are not reduced to the petty gossip that is common to urban groups conversationally for a lack of something better to talk about. Wilderness dwellers gain in the benefits of physical, emotional and mental health in being in a natural environment that heals the soul, inspires the imagination, strengthens the mind & body.  It creates a never-ending bond between man and the wilderness that creates more desire to go further, do more, see whats around the next turn in the trail. So much so, that what once seemed like a "BIG wilderness" upon arriving begins to seem small and creates a new desire to expand your horizons as your inner being expands, nurtured by peace and solitude and reflection and growing. So, Remote and wilderness living dwellers obtain more individual freedoms, but it does come at the  cost, often times of personal comforts. Most would agree though, THAT ITS STILL A GOOD TRADE!       

                              

Frustrated with lack of WILDERNESS LIVING content on Internet. Where's the REAL STUFF, REAL LIVING?

  Frustrated with the lack of wildness living content on the internet. Where's the real stuff, real living?

   WILDERNESS LIVING.... I don't know about you, but I am always on the hunt looking for interesting blogs, youtube videos and websites that have content that is interesting and stimulating about real people who are really wilderness living, (not just weekend warriors or day trippers), but on a day to day basis. Sharing their challenges, struggles, successes in their endeavors to manage their environment, needs, goal, and desires with limited man made resources. I know many folks just enjoy the entertainment that these postings provide in glimpsing into the activities of wilderness living individuals, but quality pertinent, relevant, and applicable knowledge is in great demand by those pursuing real wilderness living. 
      
I think one of the reasons for the lack of this type of content may be in the type of character that wilderness living is... in that those who are truly "Wilderness Living" have a lack of access to those things that connect us to society and the internet, such as..No electric, no internet services or even cell service, no desire to interact with other individuals etc.  So, at a great loss to the rest much of the lives and knowledge gained by real wilderness living individuals is not available to others through practical lacks of delivery or through a lack of desire to interact.  

Many times we get tiny windows and glimpses into these interesting lives through the endeavors of other individuals who take upon themselves the investment of time, effort, and money involved to retrieve their stories from obscurity. Wilderness Living individuals such as DICK PROENEKE - Alone in the wilderness, HEIMO KORTH & HIS FAMILY Living in the Arctic National wild life refuge The Final Frontiersman, RICHARD LEO - Way out here (Alaska) , Edges of the Earth, Olive Fredrickson - Silence of the north, I had to have a moose - a vintage Outdoor life magazine article(Canada), and many others who truly make their skill and knowledge available to the rest of us struggling to pursue the same road/trail/lifestyle/mountain that they have already summited, leaving thier words and pictures to entice us!