Is anyone looking for the perfect climate?

Please anyone interested in permaculture and looking for a mild winter mild summer and beautiful location to build your permaculture homestead look into sequim and port angeles WA! We desperately need more people of the permies mindset to mass migrate here. We are in the process of organizing something big. I want a collection of families to go in on a large property and make a super homestead oasis! So if you haven’t visited Sequim or Port Angeles and you’re trying to figure out where you want to wade out WW3 and potential famines. Sequim and Port Angeles might as well be Islands they’re so remote and isolated. With an aging population dying every day your homestead could be waiting for you!

I want more permies friends in real life so please if you’re interested in permaculture and this area to live hit me up let’s be buds! Bonus points if you’re a family with small baby… like us!

The thing that always has worried me about Washington is the higher propensity for natural disaster. It always seems that the nicer climates have bigger risks IMO.

Luckily, it seems that some research has been done and if you are outside of some zones you can avoid things like Tsunami damage. I tried to hyperlink a report from the US Military about the area but it didn't take so I'll just post the URL (https://mil.wa.gov/asset/5ba420a822c5a#:~:text=The%20City%20of%20Sequim's%20vulnerable,by%20a%20solid%20red%20line.)
Do you experience any pressure from natural disaster, or have you adapted in some way?

Love the idea regardless, wishful dreaming from New York.

Timothy Norton wrote:The thing that always has worried me about Washington is the higher propensity for natural disaster.

Personally we have no hurricanes, tornados, ice storms that freeze everything like the Midwest. No temperatures in the summer over 120 degrees F no temperatures in the winter below 20 degrees F

If a natural disaster happened and I had to rely on resources available natural and man made I’d be super happy I moved to the isolated peninsula.

Good ol Teddy Roosevelt set aside a huge natural resource back yard to explore and enjoy. Natural disasters can happen anywhere. To live in fear is nonsense. The best you can do is ID a location you could live pretty comfortably in a wood heated school bus all year long… because the best support system for any natural disasters is the availability of resources.

Notice hwy 101 is the only access point.  Unless you have a boat.

Sequim has most days of sun in Washington state.

Timothy Norton wrote:The thing that always has worried me about Washington is the higher propensity for natural disaster. It always seems that the nicer climates have bigger risks IMO.

The link you sent was interesting I think anyone south of hwy 101 would weather a 300 foot wave of water no problem. The impacted zone in the picture is where the casino is. No non tribal entities are allowed to build that low on the flood plain. Also a large swath of coastal homes on Jamestown road are also owned by tribal members. The tribe in sequim is the S’klallam tribe and they’re pretty amazing for the community. They are also very very well off, if a tsunami happened it would hurt them the absolute most because of their locations with all their businesses so close to the water front. However they would recover the quickest because of their deep ties to the community. They hire a lot of people. But the strait of Juan de Fuca protects us in sequim from the brunt of a large wave coming in off the ocean.

South of the Hwy I must add is where I recommend for natural disasters and privacy! Also land on the north side is considerably more expensive and controlled on what can be done.

I just want to say, you have gone above and beyond to provide a feel for the area! I appreciate the time and information that you have provided!

Looking at a map from so far away, its easy to paint an area with broad strokes so to speak. Now to convince the fiancé to get her license to practice in Washington haha.

Timothy Norton wrote:I just want to say, you have gone above and beyond to provide a feel for the area! I appreciate the time and information that you have provided!

Looking at a map from so far away, its easy to paint an area with broad strokes so to speak. Now to convince the fiancé to get her license to practice in Washington haha.

Please do the ecovillage will need a lawyer lol 😂

Do an image search of Olympic national park and say “honey we could live butted up against this! next to a bunch of crazy permies I met in a forum online. We will grow all our own food and raise the next generation in a loving way coexisting with nature and using natural systems to make a legacy oasis in a trust forever to be like a living park!”

If she says no work on the approach 😂🤣

I was a backcountry ranger in Olympic NP, and it is as beautiful as anywhere on Earth.

Beautiful area!
On a long train trip back in 2000 we stayed at the hostel outside Port Townsend and did not want to leave....explored into the port angeles area.
At the time someone around PT had a strawbale house for sale that was only slightly tempting but the land seemed so livable
Since then we've settled in the same area in the Ozarks where we have been since the early seventies...kids, grandkids and old friends here.

So many looking for land now...this idea should prosper

Ben Zumeta wrote:I was a backcountry ranger in Olympic NP, and it is as beautiful as anywhere on Earth.

Personally think it’s the most beautiful and most relaxing place to backcountry hike and camp. But I’m bias it’s my home. Other places are beautiful don’t get me wrong but home is home:)

Judith Browning wrote:Beautiful area!
On a long train trip back in 2000 we stayed at the hostel outside Port Townsend and did not want to leave.
At the time someone around PT had a strawbale house for sale that was only slightly tempting but the land seemed so livable
Since then we've settled in the same area in the Ozarks where we have been since the early seventies...kids, grandkids and old friends here.

So many looking for land now...this idea should prosper

Most people are like where to go? So I’m here to say Watch “back to Eden” and come see sequim it’s a worthwhile homestead location. My family settled here in the 1890s as the first horse and buggy mail person in sequim!

I currently live in Sequim. The downside is it's a retirement city with a high density of millionaires so everything is expensive from food to land compared to the surrounding cities. Not to mention Clallam County is horrendous when it comes to building codes. If you want a desert climate that's been irrigated & greened then it's an option. I'd also recommend "Back to Eden".

T Simpson wrote:I currently live in Sequim. The downside is it's a retirement city with a high density of millionaires so everything is expensive from food to land compared to the surrounding cities. Not to mention Clallam County is horrendous when it comes to building codes. If you want a desert climate that's been irrigated & greened then it's an option. I'd also recommend "Back to Eden".

If you need any landscaping done call me my number is on my bio

Worth noting that Port Angeles is the backup capital for the United States and has a large navy presence with lots of nuclear submarines. I'd have no doubt there is a big ol' nuke target on it meaning Sequim would be caught in some fallout. Something to consider if "wading out WW3".

I live on the big Island north of you (BC, Canada) and I spent a bunch of the dark nights last winter, hand sewing while watching some excellent US based geology programs. Very interesting stuff there!

So we're likely still a couple of hundred years out from the Cascadian Subduction letting go, but with all the weird stuff humans are doing like pumping out aquifers and fracking, I'm not taking bets - I'm looking at what the likely losses would be in my region.

So first off, I'd want land and my house not just above the highest know tsunami inundation, but to have a decent margin. I'd also want that house to be built with the best practices for the house to survive that earthquake. Our current building codes are all designed just to keep people alive during the event, but as the people of Lytton BC have found out, they lost their homes to wildfire two years ago and still don't have homes. Consider our damp, dark winters and consider if living in a tent for 2 mnths in that is something you want to do, and then consider it could be longer yet? Speaking of Lytton, fire-resistant homes and properties is equally important.

In a really isolated place, food and water security would be equally high on my priority list. I'd be making sure that my land wasn't going to be at risk of land-slides that could take out my food forest! Currently, do the Olympic mountains still usually get winter snow which melts gradually to keep water flowing during the dry season? That seems to be changing - at the very least going through more extremes, so I'd be planning for those extremes as well.

The ocean can be a great source of quality food and resources, but finding good land that's still an easy day trip on a bicycle to catch crabs or fish would be a consideration also. Alternatively, you make this a "stealth intentional community". Yes, in a perfect world you get a bunch of people on properties side by side, but consider treating it like a "co-operative model" where everyone agrees to put "member first" when buying/selling/bartering goods and services. That way, you could have members living near the coast providing seaweed/fish/shellfish inputs, and people living on high ground refuge with space available to house your coastal members if the worst happens.

"Perfect Climate" is relative! Yes, generally fewer extremes, although we've had a couple of heat domes that suggest more extremes are in our near future. I don't think my property has been this dry in the 20+ years I've lived here. We're very dependent on electricity to pump from deep wells and I'd like to improve that with better surface water storage. Certainly, areas of our big field have been staying green longer and longer in those years, as I've built soil. But the cedars are dying, and that's a bad sign from the weather point of view.

My land grows fruit quite well, and meat of various types but with external inputs which have also seen disruptions and huge cost increases in the last 4 years. However, I'm still finding it difficult to grow veggies that my family will actually tolerate, let alone enjoy. Sigh... tomatoes are beloved, and that would take a greenhouse to grow enough for serious storage.

Speaking of storage, a cold cellar of some sort could be very helpful in this climate. If the SHTF* in a big way, a community icehouse could be a great asset if you have someone with property and a pond high enough up that serious ice could be harvested!

I think anything is possible. I don't believe any place is "perfect", but humans are pretty adaptable, and I think there's been far too much "independence" being seen as the greatest thing. So how about the goal being "a perfect community of humans cooperating for the good of the group" and an "adequate climate"?

T Simpson wrote:Worth noting that Port Angeles is the backup capital for the United States and has a large navy presence with lots of nuclear submarines. I'd have no doubt there is a big ol' nuke target on it meaning Sequim would be caught in some fallout. Something to consider if "wading out WW3".

I’ve never heard of a submarine In the shallow harbor of port angeles, but I appreciate you trying to scare anyone with useful knowledge away. I don’t understand your point or why you live in sequim if you think it’s so dangerous.?

Dalton Dycer wrote:

T Simpson wrote:Worth noting that Port Angeles is the backup capital for the United States and has a large navy presence with lots of nuclear submarines. I'd have no doubt there is a big ol' nuke target on it meaning Sequim would be caught in some fallout. Something to consider if "wading out WW3".

I’ve never heard of a submarine In the shallow harbor of port angeles, but I appreciate you trying to scare anyone with useful knowledge away. I don’t understand your point or why you live in sequim if you think it’s so dangerous.?

Also how can a town that even president Lincoln said had an inadequate port ever even remotely be the backup capital for the USA. The town can’t even handle the population it has little alone an increase.
T where are you getting your information?

Not trying to scare anyone but I've seen nuclear fallout weather models that place the city of Sequim in the fallout zone if PA gets hit (mainly the west side), The Olympic mountain rainshadow blocks fallout from Seattle.

Nuclear submarines travel under the Hood Canal bridge all the time, and millions of dollars in infrastructure projects have been done to link PA harbor, Hood Canal, and Vancouver Island for the Navy/Coast Guard since Lincoln was president. Large cruise, navy, and cargo ships dock in PA all the time now.

Port Angeles is considered the backup capital since there hasn't been any other city publically designated since the Civil War.

It is speculative. Sequim is probably as safe as any other coastal city.

T Simpson wrote:Not trying to scare anyone ……Sequim is probably as safe as any other coastal city.

Thank you for reassuring people T! We desperately need more permie minded people in sequim / port angeles regardless of what might happen.

Personally I don’t believe the E.T.’s our dirty deep state government made filthy deals with will allow a nuke to be deployed anywhere. Earth is a huge experiment for the federation. A nuke being deployed is not going to happen. Our technology is sticks and stones compared to what the creators who left us here have. The only place I see being safer than sequim is inside the earth. Which may trigger another feed all together! T I really want to be friends in real life, seeing as you’re on permies and reading my posts. If you have any work please feel free to hit me up I’ve got loads of knowledge about deep underground military bases and agenda 2030 details. So yeah hire me and I’ll entertain you with the Tea 🫖 while I do some cool project. Also if port Angeles is really the backup USA capital ….like I’m guessing if the whole east coast gets blown up or “natural disaster’d up” then what a cool spot to rebuild America the permaculture way. Just saying this place has potential. The post is meant to trigger people coming and seeing for themselves that’s all!
Thank you for sharing what you did T it was cool to learn.

It's true there are a lot of black-budget bunker projects in the mountains here. I think there is a shared Gates/Bezos facility, I know people who worked on it. But yeah, the weather is nice here that's why all the rich folks buy up the land here and make everything political.

I was in PA yesterday and there were Blackhawks flying around, woke up to some flying low in Sequim today. I just watch and try not to get involved. I'm not much for conspiracy theories.


But hey weather is nice if you don't mind the wind. You can grow fig trees, cacti, peaches, and blueberries all in the same climate and be a stone's throw away from a rainforest or mountain range. The geography is unique.

Fighter jets all day today. It’s no conspiracy at this point, we are in a hot zone I’ll admit. But really where isn’t and we are talking about the CLIMATE of Sequim NOT the potential for it to be the be all save all Mecca. 😂🙏thank you anyone who has not been lost to this crazy feed. This was fun but a tangent we are talking about how many things I can grow with no irrigation at all!

Prickly Pear, orchard trees, lavender, Doug fir, hemlock, spruce, pine, rhododendron, all sorts of berries thrive here black blue rasp amla goose berries strawberries of many kinds calendula, borage, and lots of succulents and cactus can survive with no irrigation here. Here’s the cool thing about sequim it has irrigation ditches throughout so you can grow non desert plants too! If you have a spot that has ditch access and you pay the tax man his cut you too can grow more foods with river water.

Sequim is super amazing and the sunny days in Washington is super amazing. They call
This the blue hole. But like T said people are buying it all up. When I was a kid it was all dairy farms now it’s mini malls and Home Depot and Walmart and the whole. Round abouts and ol folks homes.
Corporate takeover.

So move south of the hwy if you come where not as much expansion has happened… yet. Stay positive. I love y’all for even throwing two cents in it cracks me up!

Some pictures of the area.

Jay Angler wrote:I
So we're likely still a couple of hundred years out from the Cascadian Subduction letting go, ….

.
, do the Olympic mountains still usually get winter snow which melts gradually to keep water flowing during the dry season?

Yes they do, however this year is the earliest I’ve seen so much snowpack melted. Climate is drier here, but has springs and the raging Dungeness river.

That seems to be changing - at the very least going through more extremes, so I'd be planning for those extremes as well.

I agree water catchment and earthship style rammed earth construction for homes. no lower than 500 feet above sea level to get away from a lot of the land that has been disturbed by development. (Most landslide prone )
Fire danger would be a real thing but with proper forest management and creating access points for crews to wage a good fight against any fire would be as good of a defense as any. And being that the cedars are Turning into tall dead match sticks around here maybe cull them and Replace with more drought tolerant trees.  

Your farm sounds super cool and productive don’t be down playing it. Our daughter was born in march so we have 2 cows and a huge area of thistles where our garden used to be. And lots of insane volunteers who have been entirely neglected but keep on trucking!

Speaking of storage, a cold cellar of some sort could be very helpful in this climate. If the SHTF* in a big way, a community icehouse could be a great asset if you have someone with property and a pond high enough up that serious ice could be harvested!

Yes an icehouse would be cool, Sepp version underground ones would be coolest. I’ve helped build some. None on my property though.

I think anything is possible. I don't believe any place is "perfect", but humans are pretty adaptable, and I think there's been far too much "independence" being seen as the greatest thing. So how about the goal being "a perfect community of humans cooperating for the good of the group" and an "adequate climate"?

I agree the climate is nothing compared to what the people matter. I see so many resources here being squandered and wasted. The way construction is built around here is a joke if you ask me. Rammed earth with reinforcement and concrete outer layers with thick walls 2’ thick exterior 10” thick interior load bearing subterranean walls. With windows facing south.

Jay I appreciate your long comment I wanted to do it justice in a reply so I did the best I could without getting to rabbit trailed off. Houses need to be designed to have less inputs and more outputs! Wish you and your family an abundant harvest!

Dalton Dycer wrote:Prickly Pear,

Do you have recipes you like?
How quickly does it grow in your climate?
Fast enough to be a serious vegetable, or just enough for "variety"?

(I consider both to be factors. We need to meet our calorie requirements, but food tends to be a social event and some foods are best eaten in only small amounts for various reasons.)

Jay Angler wrote:

Dalton Dycer wrote:Prickly Pear,

Do you have recipes you like?
How quickly does it grow in your climate?
Fast enough to be a serious vegetable, or just enough for "variety"?

My wife is from AZ and I had a customer growing it, so until like 2 years ago I had no idea it was edible.  Right now it’s just a one leaf looking thing with a flower growing another leaf…My client who has the prickly pears has them planted against a steel pole building south side in mulch. They have a cinder block border and it looks like 6 new “body” sections happen a year on hers. She doesn’t water them. They do die at her altitude in the winter she must be at 600’ above sea level.
More as a spiritual once and a while meal with that long lost friend from out of town type of a plant. We bought some from the store and stir fried it like any other veggie it was meh. Maybe a different way prepared would be better.
But you could being it’s so easy to propagate make many of them with a couple big ones and scale up over time into a cactus farm. I’m not prickly enough to dyce that pear 😂🤣
Squirrel brain I’ve seeeeen where ranchers in Texas and AZ use propane torches to burn off the quills or spines the pokies whatever their plant name is. Then the cattle come and graze and eat them! It’s wild to see look it up. Prickly pear has other uses not culinary too. I see they came out with a plant leather made from prickly pear loook that up too. Great offshoot Jay. This is why permies is so good for my squirrel brain each question leads to another better question!

Hey there Dalton...I have been traveling the country for nearly a year with my love, Eric, in our camper, searching for folks doing what you are doing...love to come check it out! We have 2 awesome ford trucks and a tow behind camper and all we need to be self sufficient - but we desire to be IN COMMUNITY and share all we have and would be awesome to finally receive as well...been doing a good amount of work trade for folks who seem to enjoy being "stuck" in the system

We are currently in southern Oregon, and have had the intention of exploring Washington for some time....your thread is very informative...we have loads of complimentary skills, time, etc.... please give us a call (802) 430-3852  

Stacy Ll wrote:Hey there Dalton...I have been traveling the country for nearly a year with my love, Eric, in our camper, searching for folks doing what you are doing...love to come check it out!

Stacy welcome to Permies first off!

Second we are still saving for land and looking for a couple more people/ families to go in on some acreage for the mega homestead. (As of right now we live and garden on my parents homestead, who are not as keen to permaculture as I’d like)

Here’s my other page for the build:

https://permies.com/t/225209/Olympic-Natural-Escapes

I’ll keep your number for when we get more invested!
If you guys wanted to camp somewhere cool near Sequim I’d recommend Salt Creek in Joyce WA super good camping.
Or depending on how offgrid camping you like Dungeness Forks campground in sequim. The latter is more private but more 4x4 ish.

If you come to sequim for a trip we should get the families together and talk about what type of build we are all interested in and see if it all vibes.

Oregon has lots cheaper land, I mainly like where I am if worst comes to worst because of the loads of resources available and lack of access.

Straight honored your first permies comment was on this feed!
🙏 thank you!

Best post & comments I've read and Ubuntu is awesome Dalton!
Will share your post with like minded souls. Much Love

Tesserak Clark wrote:Best post & comments I've read and Ubuntu is awesome Dalton!
Will share your post with like minded souls. Much Love

🙏Thank you Tesserak I’m busy with a lot of irons in the fire but as things get more slow with my business I’ll be able to work more on this plan.

I really need to make a video outlining my PowerPoint and introducing myself and the idea.

The light in me honors the light in you. Thank you again for the love. We really really want to build an Ubuntu one small village and expand from there.
I read Ubuntu back when Tellinger would still personally email you back…. I’ve been wanting this to happen for a while. A haven for creative thriving projects and people!

[quote= 🙏Thank you Tesserak I’m busy with a lot of irons in the fire but as things get more slow with my business I’ll be able to work more on this plan.
I really need to make a video outlining my PowerPoint and introducing myself and the idea.
The light in me honors the light in you. Thank you again for the love. We really really want to build an Ubuntu one small village and expand from there.
I read Ubuntu back when Tellinger would still personally email you back…. I’ve been wanting this to happen for a while. A haven for creative thriving projects and people!

Looking forward to the PowerPoint Dalton, that is a very good idea =)
Much Love from Tess https://harmonik.wixsite.com/harmony

Did the earth move in your area yesterday?

Biggest earthquake I've ever felt.

Edit:
There was a 4.3 quake in Port Hadlock, I was just on the edge of it, wasn't so bad.
https://earthquaketrack.com/p/united-states/washington/recent

Dalton, Any updates on building community in Sequim or nearby?
Much Love!
Tess

The state of Washington declared a state-wide drought April 16, 2024.

HELLO???

We live in Port Townsend (Jefferson County). Fifteen miles from Sequim as the crow flies.  You all should look VERY CAREFULLY at the rainfall statistics before considering moving here, especially if you want to farm.

Sequim is the center of a 'rain shadow' - an area of exceptionally low rainfall.  The utility department here in Jefferson CountyJefferson County PUD says "Despite recent bouts of unprecedented rain, eastern Jefferson County ranks as one of the driest coastal communities in the Lower 48."

As others have pointed out, the mild climate here is drawing people like a magnet. Real estate prices are very high and climbing, and everything here is amazingly expensive - Seattle expensive - not as expensive as the SF Bay area, but close. There is no income tax in WA state, so there are very high sales taxes that make day to day living quite expensive. There is a lot of building going on here - luxury houses, condominiums. Increased demand for ground water.

While the larger towns here are somewhat socially and politically progressive, the rural areas range from 'live and let live' to scary. The area is overwhelmingly white.  You may disagree, if you are a person of color / PGM in Jefferson or Clallum county I'd love to hear your viewpoint.

If you want to live outside the 'rain shadow' - which might be wise - you can go further out along the coast where real estate is cheaper. Just know that places like Forks have quite a well established reputation for racism and "non-inclusive thinking."

There is not a lot of work here. Or, there is lots of work, but it doesn't pay well enough for people to afford to live here. Common wages are $15-$20 per hour, 'living wage' is more like $31.  You got skills?

If you can work remotely, know that generally the rural internet isn't winning any awards.

Yes, there are HUGE naval bases and facilities in the area. There is the Bangor Trident Base and the shipyards in Bremerton. The Hood Canal bridge opens and closes to let Trident Nuclear Submarines go in and out.

Yes, there is more. It is a wonderful area, we love it. Perfect climate? No.  No. No.    

Yes, you want to think carefully about earthquakes and tsunami.

Would my coming to tour the area, meet, talk to you about possibilities be possible? I would be selling a house in Houston and relocating there, so that's a really big change. But I always wanted to do something like this and I like Washington State when I visited 30 years ago, always wanted to come back. I would hope to lure at least one adult child of mine.