Goat Herding couple looking for land opportunity or community in SW New Mexico/ SE Arizona

Hello everyone this is my first post on permies but I thought I’d give it a try as some other close friends have successfully found community via these forums.

My wife Emily and I are in are early to mid 30s, both hail from the Midwest but have been living out west for 15 years (Emily) and 5 years ( Landon). We have lived very wild lives by modern standards, spending the majority of our last decade living outside whether it be out of a backpack, bicycle, in community, or most recently, with a herd of goats! We have studied ancestral crafts extensively and both taught and well respected survival/primitive skills schools. When we have not been roaming public lands we often have lived in a diverse range of community dynamics from eco villages to wwoofer exchanges. Landon has studied permaculture and applied practices across the U.S. We have lived most of our lives with only the possessions we could carry on our own backs. Currently we desire stepping into the next chapter of our lives together. Creating family and forming deeper roots with a land base and community.


We are currently living in a remote part of the canyon lands of Southern UT. We live with our herd of goats ( currently numbering at 10) either out on public lands packing them or rotationally grazing them on local properties in the small town nearby.

We are planning to head south in February with the goal to find a more permanent home base. The bio region of the Gila/San Francisco watersheds and surrounding areas are the lands that most make our hearts sing.

Our ever evolving vision for the future is a desire to live intimately with a land base again. To work with goats (and potentially other livestock) to pack, produce dairy and meat.

We desire a space to grow gardens, create home structures (permanent structures is the long term desire but we have lived out of temporary structures most of the time and can continue to do so), practice rainwater harvesting principles, beneficially work with animals shepherding them as a practice of land tending, and generally build home amongst our family and the outer community. We would love to live with other families!

We deeply believe in the role of the shepherd in working with animals on the land. We constantly are observing the land, our animals and making adjustments to how we might move them. We both have previous experiences working with other herds, mixed species, cattle and general animal husbandry. We seek a balance of a sedentary homestead life alongside frequent pack trips into wilderness. We have already experimented with passive gardens, perennials, and desert growing conditions and have a good plan for what we could cultivate given the space.

Emily also desires a space to craft and potentially teach others her knowledge from:
Hide tanning
Basketry
Felting
Modern Dance
Movement/Exercise
Singing

Landon’s deepest passions are:
Animal husbandry /shepherding
Wilderness Living
Community “prepping” ( creating networks of food abundance)
Music
Mysticism
Field games

We are hard working, intelligent, honest and loyal. We are sober and care for good food and good movement. We know what it means to live in community in this less than ideal modern era…
Within that there is a lot of compassion for what every human individual has to carry and the deep desire to work together and live with empathy and understanding.


Some quick other details on what we would be looking for ( but not deal breakers)

- A land base big enough to sustainably support animals in a rotational paddock system (currently 10 goats ( 5 are pregnant and will kid in April/may)

-Land bordering or in close proximity to Public lands is a big plus.

- A place to garden/permaculture/cultivate food forest

-Clean Water to drink and wash with

- Space to either set up temporary infrastructure or build natural building dwellings.

- Community to work together with and share together.

-Land to practice Rainwater harvesting earthworks ( would be done with all manual labor unless owner/land mates had more large scale vision)

-Potential place to host a mini craft/skills share/school. Teach hand crafts. Wilderness skills.

Within these desires we are very open to helping with others visions, land projects and help needed. Please present any ideas or offers, we will be open to consider all!

We are interested in
-Buying land
- Joining intentional community
- work trade
- Ranch work/handyman
- going in on land with others
- Wilderness living / nomadic community

That’s a lot to share and we can elaborate much further to those interested. Thank you so much and we pray to dig our hands into the same soil some day with you!


Landon and Emily