Backwoods life is the life of any person, who lives outdoors on a homestead. Survival in the backwoods can be very dangerous, but also rewarding for its simplicity. Life on a homestead is often referred to as living off the grid because it provides almost everything needed to live life without all the modern amenities many people are constantly kept hostage by today.
There are many rules and regulations about how life should be lived “properly” whereas living the backwoods life has no boundaries or limitations on how one should live their life, which makes this lifestyle so appealing to some people. This article will cover just about anything you would need to know if you were interested in making this choice for your own life. First, let’s talk about life on a homestead.
Backwoods life will include life as a hermit, which means that one would have to leave the modern world and live life off the grid or life is going to be extremely difficult. The first thing you’re going to want to do if you want life as a hermit is to find a way out in the middle of nowhere with very minimal population exposure.
This makes it much easier for you not to get caught doing illegal things such as trespassing or building structures without the proper permit from the government.
If you cannot afford an actual piece of land then try to find a place in the woods that nobody uses to build a shack and live life as a recluse. To keep life simple, life should be lived with less than 100 or 200 dollars and it is advised you don’t bring any personal documents such as I.D., social security number, birth certificate, etc so life can be easier for yourself if caught by the authority because they will have no way of arresting you. After all, you do not exist officially in the eyes of the law.
The first thing that needs to be posted here is how dangerous life on a homestead truly is. One has to be very prepared to live this life because even though life off the grid can seem too free and relaxing, living life like this is extremely stressful and one must be prepared for anything life may throw your way.
What’s the difference between life on a homestead and life off the grid? Life on the grid means living life with all of life’s modern luxury amenities, such as electricity, running water, etc. while living off the grid means life without all of life’s modern luxury amenities like electricity or running water (in some cases).
Life will be much more dangerous because one has to build everything they need to survive by themselves. This includes housing structures, growing food, providing water for drinking and bathing, etc. These are several of the most overlooked things that people do not think about before trying to live life like this.
One cannot just decide to go into life without these skills so it is highly advised to learn how to survive life in the wilderness before actually going out and thinking life will be free from all the dangers life has to offer.
What living life off the grid entails
- life as a recluse with very minimal human contact if any at all
- hunting, fishing, and trapping for survival will be your only means of food unless you know a lot about gardening which can produce a decent amount of food throughout the year because growing seasons are short in many parts of America
- building shelter structures by yourself such as log cabins, tipi’s, etc. These structures should use sustainable materials such as wood logs harvested from trees on your land. All structures require permits from the government so it would be illegal for you to build structures without the proper permit.
- life will be dangerous. There are many life-threatening situations that one may encounter in life bears, mountain lions, flooded stream areas, etc.
One way to live life is by moving into the backwoods and building a shack or something small to live in while slowly accumulating land until you can eventually buy enough land for whatever it is you want; whether it’s for farming purposes or having your hunting ground to hunt down your food for life.
Backwoods living can be very simple if planned out properly, but life should stay laid back and carefree throughout life because this isn’t always an easy life choice (especially when you live life like this alone). One cannot just go off on their own and expect life to be a lazy life of relaxation.
This life choice is very serious because life on the homestead is more dangerous than life living in society because of all the dangers life has to offer from wild animals, flooding, etc. If you think life as a recluse is the life for you then start living life as a recluse away from civilization today!
Start-up costs
$0 – 100 or 200 dollars for anything you need
Starting land
Free – any size depending on how many resources one acquires over time
Tools/materials needed
Hunting, fishing, trapping equipment; axes, knives, saws, blades of all types including knife sharpening tools; er; nails; wood boards; wood logs; building tools like hammers, screwdrivers, clamps, etc.
Skill level needed
A life off the grid requires lots of life skills to know how to hunt and fish wild game for survival purposes. Life on the homestead also requires life skills to build structures by yourself without any help from another individual. This life choice is very dangerous because life will be laid back and carefree but life living this way is more challenging than life living in a society full of modern luxury amenities.
How to live backwoods life?
Living life off the grid in the backwoods can be a very rewarding experience. A life of living off-the-grid includes prioritizing experiences over materialism and valuing life’s simple pleasures: spending time with family, enjoying nature and practising self-sufficiency.
For many people, life in the backwoods means life without electricity, life without the internet and life without running water. However, life in the backwoods can positively be life-altering, life-affirming in a simple way that many people are searching for today.
Since life backwoods life is very different from life in the suburbs or city, it’s always a good idea to ‘practice’ before you go and buy land and hope for the best. If you have already purchased some land and want to start living life off the grid right away, that’s fine too. I’m not going to get into the issue of how much land you should buy because that’s all very relative to your life and how much you can afford.
How living life in the backwoods is different than life in the city, however, are some key factors to consider before buying your property or starting life off the grid.
Some major things to think about before living life in the backwoods off the grid are:
- How will you approach the topic of building your house? Are you going to build it yourself or hire someone to do it for you? Are there local building codes that might constrain where you can put your house, how big it is, whether or not you need a permit, etc?
- How are you going to get around? Will you have a car or will you use your bike? You’ll need some sort of method of getting supplies, hunting for food, and transporting the meat that you harvest. If you live somewhere where winters are harsh, you might also want to keep this in mind when choosing your transportation method.
- How are you going to get your water? Where do you plan on getting the materials for your house? Where will you get your food? Are there grocery stores nearby, or will you be hunting and growing your crops? Is there a source of food in the area that isn’t already over-harvested (take note of what animals and plants the locals are harvesting as you buy land)?
- How often will you need to go into town? Will you have a car, or will you be keeping your life simple and only going in when necessary? There might also be local laws that require regular check-ins with the sheriff. For example, there was a case where some people killed a guy for murdering his family, and then the people who killed the murderer were put on trial.
- How much money will you have initially to build your life? If you’re going to be living life off the grid by yourself, this can be a very difficult thing. The life of a hermit is incredibly solitary, and it’s difficult to find people who want the life of a hermit for themselves. It’s far easier to build a life with a group of people. However, if you have a family this might be near impossible as well because life in the backwoods can be an incredibly harsh life, which is why babies and children need so much care.
Conclusion
Life in the backwoods is not for everyone. If you are thinking about doing it, give life off the grid a try before you jump into life in the backwoods. Try to find some land that you can build on yourself. You don’t have to do everything yourself, but I’m sure there are men out there who would love to help you build your life, which will be much cheaper than paying someone. The life of a hermit is usually not accepted by neighbours or townsfolk, so I’d say that it’s not the life for everyone.