Desert Southwest opportunity for the right person(s)

Celebrating my 300th post by bumping my own thread! Thank you Permies.. for the platform, and all of the wonderful people, information, and most importantly.. the inspiration that this community provides! Love always..

I'll come out there abbey what you want to do?

philip hernandez wrote:I'll come out there abbey what you want to do?

Philip.. thank you for the reply here and elsewhere. I will send you a PM.

Ted Abbey wrote:

philip hernandez wrote:I'll come out there abbey what you want to do?

Philip.. thank you for the reply here and elsewhere. I will send you a PM.

He said no deal guys.

philip hernandez wrote:

Ted Abbey wrote:

philip hernandez wrote:I'll come out there abbey what you want to do?

Philip.. thank you for the reply here and elsewhere. I will send you a PM.

He said no deal guys.

    Oof.. sorry for the delayed reply. I remember replying to you Philip, and I never used the words “no deal”. I explained to you that while I do appreciate your offer of a visit and help, what I am looking for is fully committed co-creators. I do have visitors from time to time, but truth be told, the result is always a net negative. It’s nice to have some company, and a helping hand for the moment, but preparing, entertaining, explaining, etc. takes away from my precious time in the tight rope balancing act of my daily routine. I have bitten off way more than I can chew, and this whole project is an exercise in flirting with disaster. Please don’t take it personally if I say “no thank you” to an offer that doesn’t suit my needs.

    That being said, I am still hoping to find the right folks to help bring this miracle to life.. but forgive me for not holding my breath while I wait!

Magic moments..

Wish you were here.

Very interested and in northern Nevada gimme a call 7752999967

Sunday bump from the middle of nowhere.. still looking for good folks.

This is a tough post I've been in the same situation with trying to find some help on 140 acres that I purchased in Northern NM. I have had a nightmare of a time with the people that actually show up or I get responses like 'I want housing, utilites and a paycheck $20 an hour'. I get these responses so often I've pretty much given up on finding the much needed help. You would think that free rent, no utility bill and lunch on the days you work would be good incentives, there is even a small community about 12 miles away with jobs, full time, part time or odd jobs. I work my a$$ off working on my place as well as having a full time job to keep dumping money into this place and I get people who finally experience off grid living here for the first time and realize what it's really all about, they don't last long, either its too hard, too dirty or they do more damage costing even more money . Like you I've come to realize I can't do it all on my own but I keep doing, all on my own. Good luck to you and your oasis.

Jaxon Faught wrote:This is a tough post I've been in the same situation with trying to find some help on 140 acres that I purchased in Northern NM. I have had a nightmare of a time with the people that actually show up or I get responses like 'I want housing, utilites and a paycheck $20 an hour'. I get these responses so often I've pretty much given up on finding the much needed help. You would think that free rent, no utility bill and lunch on the days you work would be good incentives, there is even a small community about 12 miles away with jobs, full time, part time or odd jobs. I work my a$$ off working on my place as well as having a full time job to keep dumping money into this place and I get people who finally experience off grid living here for the first time and realize what it's really all about, they don't last long, either its too hard, too dirty or they do more damage costing even more money . Like you I've come to realize I can't do it all on my own but I keep doing, all on my own. Good luck to you and your oasis.

Thank you, friend.  I am sorry to hear about your experience with finding help being similar to mine. It may be the greatest frustration that I deal with in this project. However, I knew that finding help would be the biggest challenge from the beginning. Most people that are worth a darn are already involved in something productive, and the rest.. well, you know.

Have you looked into posting this with
CamperGigs.com
KamperJobs.com
or WOOFER.
I unfortunately did not qualify for these due to my property being 100% off grid for the first 2 mentioned and the 3rd I wouldn't offer 3 vegan meals a day.

Thank you. I am aware of these options, but haven’t utilized them for various reasons.. the main one being that these tend towards folks with a more transient interest. I am looking for fully committed team/family members who are willing to endure to make this special place work.  I also have some past experiences with WWOOF’ers, and while I am certain that genuine and productive ones do exist, I have yet to encounter that sort. The LAST thing I need right now is to babysit and play tugboat to layabouts who resort to playing dumb and “hurt feelings” when it comes to doing their part. Being that this was historically an RV park/ campground, I would consider a “camp host” just to have another person(s) on the property. Security has always been an issue, and that has grown due to a recent event where I caught two thieves on an elderly neighbors property. I promised them great bodily harm should they return, and told them to spread the word that their game is up. This led to a few similar encounters in town with the local low lives and usual suspects.  I am quite certain that they know I am serious, but their addictions and ingrained behaviors will not allow them to behave. Such is life in the Wild West.

Jaxon Faught wrote:Have you looked into posting this with
CamperGigs.com
KamperJobs.com
or WOOFER.
I unfortunately did not qualify for these due to my property being 100% off grid for the first 2 mentioned and the 3rd I wouldn't offer 3 vegan meals a day.

Really? I guess I didn't follow, I don't know why to not be doing that

Ted Abbey wrote:
    The opportunity is to live and work at an historic hot spring “resort”/ RV park and campground. It has been closed to the public for about 6 years due to a need for a complete upgrade on the septic system, which I am currently working on.

Ted:  It's been seven months now, is the septic up and running?

Long story short.. no.

This is actually a pretty intriguing challenge from my POV

I've often thought about turning a desert location into a teeming paradisal Oasis which I know would not be easy where humidity is low to non-existent, wind LS are often high enough to suck all of the moisture from a soft tissue plant, and just about every pest, fly, and mosquito  within 100 miles radius will be swarming and snakes will be attracted to the pret.

Even still so much of what I do and how I do things has my interest piqued by the prospect of plenty of water and a space to garden in death valley.

I'd be interested to know more about the offer:

How long term are you thinking?

What happens once you've got septic fixed?

Why isn't the septic fixed?

What is the climate of your location and elevation?

Who owns the place, and what's the big picture there?

Any interesting minerals or gemstones for the avid rock hound?

Nearest town? Anywhere or way to earn some income?

Realistic idea of what your expecting of a potential collaborator; a helper? An independent worker contributing  in their own way/niche? Or what?

More details on the food situation?

In no way specific, yet some how this seems like it could be a dangerous situation in that it becomes a endless and fruitless deadened where funds are dwindled, dreams are never realized, with no way to get out of.

Or by way of issues with the actual owners, or maybe you yourself are someone with a million partially finished projects that may or may not be what the person signed up for etc. who blames and kicks out to make excuses for your own short comings

But also seems like it could be a great opportunity and chance to do something pretty cool and memorable rewarding experience.

I definitely understand the concept as far as offering a person a chance to do what they feel driven to do or have a vision that they can actualize,, but it is hard to get a clear idea of what's up with the place and who owns it and what they think, and also hard to tell what you're wanting or asking.

Maybe if you could provide like 2-3 examples of the types of situations that could possibly work that would help myself and others with seeing what you mean and maybe even inspire some people to think of their own situation to approach you with.

And I'm asking out of genuine/serious interests.

Adam Gardener wrote:This is actually a pretty intriguing challenge from my POV

I've often thought about turning a desert location into a teeming paradisal Oasis which I know would not be easy where humidity is low to non-existent, wind LS are often high enough to suck all of the moisture from a soft tissue plant, and just about every pest, fly, and mosquito  within 100 miles radius will be swarming and snakes will be attracted to the pret.

Even still so much of what I do and how I do things has my interest piqued by the prospect of plenty of water and a space to garden in death valley.

I'd be interested to know more about the offer:

How long term are you thinking?

What happens once you've got septic fixed?

Why isn't the septic fixed?

What is the climate of your location and elevation?

Who owns the place, and what's the big picture there?

Any interesting minerals or gemstones for the avid rock hound?

Nearest town? Anywhere or way to earn some income?

Realistic idea of what your expecting of a potential collaborator; a helper? An independent worker contributing  in their own way/niche? Or what?

More details on the food situation?

In no way specific, yet some how this seems like it could be a dangerous situation in that it becomes a endless and fruitless deadened where funds are dwindled, dreams are never realized, with no way to get out of.

Or by way of issues with the actual owners, or maybe you yourself are someone with a million partially finished projects that may or may not be what the person signed up for etc. who blames and kicks out to make excuses for your own short comings

But also seems like it could be a great opportunity and chance to do something pretty cool and memorable rewarding experience.

I definitely understand the concept as far as offering a person a chance to do what they feel driven to do or have a vision that they can actualize,, but it is hard to get a clear idea of what's up with the place and who owns it and what they think, and also hard to tell what you're wanting or asking.

Maybe if you could provide like 2-3 examples of the types of situations that could possibly work that would help myself and others with seeing what you mean and maybe even inspire some people to think of their own situation to approach you with.

And I'm asking out of genuine/serious interests.

Adam,

    Thank you for your interest. That is quite the list of questions, and I will answer some here when I have more time, and PM you also with details that I don’t wish to make so public. Busy time of year with animals, planting, watering, etc. as the temperatures rise.. although we have been experiencing a beautiful stretch of high 80s in the day with cool nights. Yesterday and today were a spike into the low 90s, and delayed my full moon transplants.

Still formulating excuses.. oops, I mean answers.. but I wanted to share my first rattlesnake of the year. Safely relocated out of my area, as I never harm the buzzworms!

Ted
After reading your plea and all the responses, I thought I'd leave you on a positive note that I understood from the start exactly what you were saying and what you are looking for. And you're right, if people read it wrong they're probably not the right people anyways.

If I was a few years younger and not in a wheelchair at this point in time, it might have had more potential for me. Even though, pioneer woman that I am, with a lot to share tho not so much in the physicality, I might pursue it further. I tend to go where no man or woman has ever gone in a wheelchair. But not sure this would be the right venture for me.
I wish you the best and hope the right people come to you.

Andrea Cronrod wrote:Ted
After reading your plea and all the responses, I thought I'd leave you on a positive note that I understood from the start exactly what you were saying and what you are looking for. And you're right, if people read it wrong they're probably not the right people anyways.

If I was a few years younger and not in a wheelchair at this point in time, it might have had more potential for me. Even though, pioneer woman that I am, with a lot to share tho not so much in the physicality, I might pursue it further. I tend to go where no man or woman has ever gone in a wheelchair. But not sure this would be the right venture for me.
I wish you the best and hope the right people come to you.

Thank you Andrea. I really appreciate your comprehension, understanding, and positive feedback. I knew from the beginning that finding help would be a challenge, and my experiences here and elsewhere only serve to confirm that knowledge. I would like to talk to you more, so please feel free to email me at: mad4782@gmail.com  
I hope you have a great day, and know that your kind words just made mine a little better! Love always..

Thread theme song.. haha!

Thread update.. STILL looking for good folks. Summer seems to be over, as we have temps forecast in the 80s and 90s starting next week. This was the coolest summer I have experienced in my nearly six years here. Didn’t even reach 100 degrees in June. A short spike around 110 in July, and already “cool” again?!?

Busy time of year nonetheless, with watering and animal care. All other projects on hold, as living things take priority. My focus here has always been the water.. protecting it, and putting it towards beneficial use, and I KNOW that there are people out there that would resonate with this and embrace the challenge.

I knew from the outset that finding the right people would be the greatest challenge, and that has proven correct. This place is not “easy”.. and neither am I. This project is one of sacrifice, and passion.. and I believe that while rare, I am not unique in my outlook and approach. If fighting for what you LOVE appeals to you, in a desert oasis with abundant water and hot springs, please feel free to reach out. As for naysayers, critics, and timewasters.. please spare me.

Thank you, and love always..

Magic moments.. a cool Sunday morning after days of rain. Wish you were here..

Ted,
I just read your thread and emphasize your struggle to find your collaborators. You’re right, those with the vision are usually somewhere in the process of creating their reality. From what I’ve read here it seems you don’t really have a grad plan and just hoping for someone to come along and make “it” all happen. That’s not a judgment necessarily, it seems you have a subsistence farm and that is a lot to keep one person busy. I am however interested in what the grad plan is. I’m intrigued by your idea in one of your posts of a membership based hot spring resort/rv park, is there a business plan in place? You also mentioned the owners are hands off, what is their stake in any future business conducted here? And of course where does the capital for large improvements to the property come from, such as septic systems?

I think the land sounds enchanting and the prospect of starting this business is intriguing. A little about me and my partner Peter. We’re middle aged in good health. I’m a massage therapist of 25 years and, big surprise, there is no retirement when you’re self employed. Peter works in IT and trading stress for a retirement. We’re looking for just this type of opportunity and would do it on our own if we only had the land. We have other skills more pertinent to this project, such as permaculture design, farming and gardening skills, some carpentry and handywomen skills, as well as entrepreneurial business and marketing, hospitality and spa business management. As mentioned I’m a massage therapist, Peter is a qigong and meditation teacher and we are both hot spring enthusiasts. I would love to chat more about your property and opportunity if you’re still interested. ecrowmassage@gmail

Ted - have you tapped into the Deep Springs community nearby?  There may be some young people both strong and smart who would welcome the chance to practice some community and homestead building in real time during breaks or after graduation.  https://www.deepsprings.edu/
  I'm sure that they would respond to someone named Edward Abbey

Hi Ted its been a bit, hows it going? I wanted to talk again but cant find your email. You ever think about supplying architects with plants? With your primary water and road routes to babylon could be an idea. I just talked to one in LA who wants olive trees, in portugal i can get many could be a great convo.