Eliza McNannay

Eliza McNannay wrote:We have successfully harvested, traded for and preserved about half what I was hoping to have for the year - ha!
Never seems we quite get to 400 jars...

We butchered a hog and have this in the freezer. We did all the actual cut and wrap this year, no sending to the butcher shop this go-round.
Cure happens as we go for bacon and hams.

Continuing to cut firewood and prep for winter.

And, we are still looking!
Drop us a line for more info or to schedule a visit.
Cheers,
Elizabeth

Still looking - many years into the process.
Are there people out there that REALLY want to live like this??...

Eliza McNannay wrote:We live off-grid with a 2.7kw solar system and 24 deep-cycle Rolls S460 batteries in 3 strings of 8.
Baby do we baby these!! Want to get the most out of this investment possible.
The grid is 1.5 miles away up a winding canyon road. It is not coming without an investment of over $100K and we do not want the option anyway.

Regular maintenance is key! Know how your system operates and monitor, monitor, monitor.
Equalize at least twice each year, as the main season changes happen.
During the hard part of winter we cannot leave the property - no vacations in the tropics.  
Our generator is also connected to the battery bank and we rely on this interconnected system for all our electric power needs.

On the MAJOR positive end of this - when our little local town has been without power for up to a week, we were fully operational with freezer, fridge, lights...
Cook on a beautiful wood cookstove, too.
Getting snowed in is not a burden!

Also, I do quite a bit of work in the RE field as a consultant primarily for small commercial (think small/med ag and small rural business) funding opps. Love the tech side and the LOW-tech side equally.

We are 4 years in on this grand adventure and keep learning lessons along the way.
Would not trade this life for anything!!

Always love hearing about what people are doing. Love reading/lurking on the permies site for all kinds of great info and insight!

An update 3 yrs+ later. Still going strong. Still love our system.
Completely off-grid and would not trade this life!!

There must be others living like us, though without wifi.
We live miles from cell service, off the grid.
The house and shop have electricity from a solar system and we have satellite internet at the house only.
Balance of property (20+ acres) is wire/wireless free.

Good luck with your search!

Hi Sunny,

We are still open to meeting like minded folks to share the land we are purchasing.
You can look at our previous posts to get an idea of who we are. Should be able to find them by looking at my profile...

A bit has changed since the last posting, though our land base is the same and we really could use a great plant person!
Let me know if you would like to begin a dialog.
Elizabeth

Excited to see things (and people) moving!

Glad to follow along on your adventures as we look for a similar situation on our little slice of heaven.

It will be great to "listen in" as you all work through the initial stages of cohabitation.
Thanks for sharing your experiences, this will be a help to many others along the way!

We live off-grid with a 2.7kw solar system and 24 deep-cycle Rolls S460 batteries in 3 strings of 8.
Baby do we baby these!! Want to get the most out of this investment possible.
The grid is 1.5 miles away up a winding canyon road. It is not coming without an investment of over $100K and we do not want the option anyway.

Regular maintenance is key! Know how your system operates and monitor, monitor, monitor.
Equalize at least twice each year, as the main season changes happen.
During the hard part of winter we cannot leave the property - no vacations in the tropics.
Our generator is also connected to the battery bank and we rely on this interconnected system for all our electric power needs.

On the MAJOR positive end of this - when our little local town has been without power for up to a week, we were fully operational with freezer, fridge, lights...
Cook on a beautiful wood cookstove, too.
Getting snowed in is not a burden!

Also, I do quite a bit of work in the RE field as a consultant primarily for small commercial (think small/med ag and small rural business) funding opps. Love the tech side and the LOW-tech side equally.

We are 4 years in on this grand adventure and keep learning lessons along the way.
Would not trade this life for anything!!

Always love hearing about what people are doing. Love reading/lurking on the permies site for all kinds of great info and insight!

Thanks for sharing this great adventure!

Pigs have been my favorite farm animal to raise, BY FAR!!
Thought I would love raising steers more and then got the first four piggies. I was sold!
And, oh - they taste soooooo delicious!

Just harvested this years hog. Did all the cut and wrap ourselves, as well as all the on-going smoking (bacon/ham...) and sausage making/seasoning.

Enjoy reading your posts!

Keep up the work... It is ALL good!

We have successfully harvested, traded for and preserved about half what I was hoping to have for the year - ha!
Never seems we quite get to 400 jars...

We butchered a hog and have this in the freezer. We did all the actual cut and wrap this year, no sending to the butcher shop this go-round.
Cure happens as we go for bacon and hams.

Continuing to cut firewood and prep for winter.

And, we are still looking!
Drop us a line for more info or to schedule a visit.
Cheers,
Elizabeth

Summer is rushing past and we awoke to a morning in the 40's multiple times in the last week. A welcome relief, though the days remain very warm.

Sorry to be mostly away the last coupe months - wrapped up some big projects and now home quite a bit more - hooray!

Ross Raven - thanks for the funny comments. Truly gave me a good laugh!
Hope things are progressing well on your property...

Tonya - feel free to message me with a bit more info.
We would anticipate a phone call and visit before someone moves more permanently to the space.
This is a different way of life, interesting, challenging and amazing!

Lis - if you are still looking, send us a bit more info about what you are looking for and we would love to have a deeper conversation.
Again - a phone call and visit would be great before moving to something more permanent.
Always good to see how well we mesh, even initially, before making big decisions!

For anyone looking at this, as stated in previous post, a willingness to connect deeply to the land and "place" is really key to us. Allowing the space to guide what we do is. in my opinion, important for a true connection!

Cheers,
Elizabeth

Thanks to all who have made contact!

We have had a couple of great visits with folks interested in this life / lifestyle.
While we are looking for someone(s) who are very specifically a great fit- and, while we have not yet found that, it is nice to meet others on the journey to greater sustainability.

A connection to the land, a desire to work with the natural rhythms of the space - this is our main focus.

Our quest continues...

Elizabeth