Set goals/progress milestones I did when I built up there. Building up there was hard, and I bought and built no where near the off grid desolation or acreage your buying, although when I started hitting milestones I knew I'd complete building my cabin and I knew it would be a great place for me and eventually my family for taking year round vacations for extended periods(not as extended as I'd like though) shh lol. For example before I even started building 1st for me was replacing the existing submersible well pump and backwoods rigging a water supply to my old camper from well, also getting rid of a old uninhabitable snake and rodent infested 50' mobile home. Biggest milestone I recall wasn't when I stood up the 1st wall on my new cabin I was building but was when I stopped staying in my camper and started staying in my unfinished cabin after I got one of the bathrooms somewhat operational. Do You have a camper? but no way to get it out there due to condition of road? Is there a shorter way in there maybe building a new shorter road in, right now sounds like your going to have to literally re build a mile long road that wasn't done right in the first place. Like I kind of said on a way earlier post when your property becomes hospitable to your standards hopefully you may take great pride in what you accomplished.
hayden
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Arly, can you summarize what ammenities this property has? I've lost track. And do you plan to live there full time at some point, or will it always just be a camp? I'm completely off grid and have to maintain the road into my place. We probably get similar snow accumulation. So I may be able to offer suggestions.
I assume there is no electric? Or is there a battery/solar system of some sort? Or just generator?
Does the property have running water, and if so, what's the source?
Does the property have a septic system, or is it an outhouse?
It sounds like the road in is rough, but how rough? UTV only? Car or truck with high ground clearance and 4WD? Can a small commercial truck get in, at least seasonally? Like a propane deliver truck, or a dump truck?
We have had to solve all of these problems over the years, all successfully, but some took multiple tries.
I assume there is no electric? Or is there a battery/solar system of some sort? Or just generator?
Does the property have running water, and if so, what's the source?
Does the property have a septic system, or is it an outhouse?
It sounds like the road in is rough, but how rough? UTV only? Car or truck with high ground clearance and 4WD? Can a small commercial truck get in, at least seasonally? Like a propane deliver truck, or a dump truck?
We have had to solve all of these problems over the years, all successfully, but some took multiple tries.
shooterdon
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My closest neighbor has a cabin he uses part time with no water and a hillbilly septic "system". He brings potable water in and comes to my place to fill two 30 gallon drums he empties into a buried IBC tote. He uses that water for showers and to flush the toilet. The toilet does not get used much unless he has females visiting. He has an outhouse for most of his business. He uses disposable plates, cups and utensils; and burns the waste.
He has power. Makes living a lot easier with a fridge and microwave. A small 5000 BTU window unit cools the place to a comfortable level during the summer when it can get hot and humid. When the weather sucks, he can watch TV or listen to music.
A wood burner provides most of his heat and he has a propane wall heater as well. He uses 100 lb cylinders.
He has been there for over 20 years and it works for him and his hunt buddies.
This coming year he is going to put in a well as he is spending a lot more time at the cabin since retiring.
During the winter, he has a local guy who keeps him plowed for $50 per event. Typically, less than 4 inches of snow does not get plowed. I would plow him for free but do not want to take money for the plow guy as he is living hand to mouth and desperately needs the money.
He has power. Makes living a lot easier with a fridge and microwave. A small 5000 BTU window unit cools the place to a comfortable level during the summer when it can get hot and humid. When the weather sucks, he can watch TV or listen to music.
A wood burner provides most of his heat and he has a propane wall heater as well. He uses 100 lb cylinders.
He has been there for over 20 years and it works for him and his hunt buddies.
This coming year he is going to put in a well as he is spending a lot more time at the cabin since retiring.
During the winter, he has a local guy who keeps him plowed for $50 per event. Typically, less than 4 inches of snow does not get plowed. I would plow him for free but do not want to take money for the plow guy as he is living hand to mouth and desperately needs the money.
OP
ArlyA
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I'll try address the many comments and questions.
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No well or septic. The owner claims that its sold rock just below the surface but we will confirm this in time. They gathered roof water for showers and washing, then carried in potable for drinking.
There is a outhouse now.
The road in is a logging path that has deteriorated over the years from the lack of maintenance and that mean heavy haul were using it then. So we do not own it but can repair it which might be costly. Nonetheless we will check it better after weeds are cut back making it visible. Today, no one is using it other than atv type machines. Actually, there are no other cabins out there and surrounded by state forestry land.
We can not bring power in so will remain off grid and we do not plan to make it into a year-a-round residence.
They used two wall-mount propane heaters in the cabin plus a cook stove. Looks like we'll get gas in via 40lb tanks but in the winter, primary heat will remain wood stove. Again, all the wood stoves will be replaced with higher efficiency, safer ones.
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No well or septic. The owner claims that its sold rock just below the surface but we will confirm this in time. They gathered roof water for showers and washing, then carried in potable for drinking.
There is a outhouse now.
The road in is a logging path that has deteriorated over the years from the lack of maintenance and that mean heavy haul were using it then. So we do not own it but can repair it which might be costly. Nonetheless we will check it better after weeds are cut back making it visible. Today, no one is using it other than atv type machines. Actually, there are no other cabins out there and surrounded by state forestry land.
We can not bring power in so will remain off grid and we do not plan to make it into a year-a-round residence.
They used two wall-mount propane heaters in the cabin plus a cook stove. Looks like we'll get gas in via 40lb tanks but in the winter, primary heat will remain wood stove. Again, all the wood stoves will be replaced with higher efficiency, safer ones.
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paulsharvey
Elite Member
Ok, I for some reason thought this was a seasonal cabin, to eventually a primary residence.
The road, passable is Way cheaper and easier than "good". Don't know if there is a rock mine near by, or what the trucking situation is like, but, often some selective improvement turns a road from unusable to just, unpleasant.
Power, even a Honda Whisper generator, with propane for stove, heat, ect; can go a long ways. Sure, it would be nice to have 100 amps; but an outlet for a fridge, 4 lights, phone charger, ect is enough for a camp. I might look into a 8000 watt, propane mobile generator. It's not too hard to bring in a couple 100 gal propane tanks by truck, and those last.
Water; even bring in drinking water gets old, but its doable for a few weeks per year pretty easy. If it was more than a few weeks per year, still, you could have 5 gal bottles delivered to the hard road, and bring them in by ATV. Looks like there is plenty of water for general use, just not the potable. Id consider a 12v pump, and a 275 gal tank on trailer, for washing.
waste water; id dump all the gray water just to the woods. Actual septic/ really toilet only... thats up too you. If there is no gov issues; an 5x5x3 ft pit, with PT wood cover, down hill, is what I would do.
dodge man
Super Star Member
For the road I’d get a couple loads of what is known as oversized gravel here. It a little larger than your typical gravel, roughly 3 inch sized, and has no fines. You can have that dumped in your parking area and dump some in the bad spots on your road on. I’m guessing with some careful evaluation and maybe a couple of smaller culverts you can get the road in so you can drive a pickup in.
You’re used to doing this with trail maintenance but now you’ll have a tractor for it.
You’re used to doing this with trail maintenance but now you’ll have a tractor for it.
paulsharvey
Elite Member
On the road;
1) I would bush hog about a 16 ft path if possible; and use loppers, chain saw, battery pole saw to clear a 12 ft tall path, 12 ft vertically. So you can see what your working with. I assume its either platted road, or a legal easement; atleast 20 ft wide, so, hate me if you want, but OnX, BaseMap, ect should be "good enough" to stay in the easement/road.
2) identify the Bad areas, and just how much Has to have something done, to get a 4wd normal truck in/out.
3) price that those Bad areas out. Keep in mind, you really only Need 8 ft of width in those areas, and there are often, "alternative, cheaper" ways to deal with them. Keep in mind, your money could be destroyed next time they do a major logging job in there, so "nice" isn't the goal.
1) I would bush hog about a 16 ft path if possible; and use loppers, chain saw, battery pole saw to clear a 12 ft tall path, 12 ft vertically. So you can see what your working with. I assume its either platted road, or a legal easement; atleast 20 ft wide, so, hate me if you want, but OnX, BaseMap, ect should be "good enough" to stay in the easement/road.
2) identify the Bad areas, and just how much Has to have something done, to get a 4wd normal truck in/out.
3) price that those Bad areas out. Keep in mind, you really only Need 8 ft of width in those areas, and there are often, "alternative, cheaper" ways to deal with them. Keep in mind, your money could be destroyed next time they do a major logging job in there, so "nice" isn't the goal.
hayden
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Our place has evolved over time, with increasing utility. Each major step in improvements has opened up broader use. I’ll outline them to show at least one set of steps.
The house is old - 1799 - but was never modernized and utilities never brought it. In 1985 it was essentially the same as it was in 1799. With no running water and no flush toilet, use was limited to a few days before you really wanted a shower badly, and only hardy guests would go.
In ‘85 we put in a gravity feed dug well and a septic system, plus a propane water heater. Then a regular bathroom. New also wired the house because we had all the walls open to insulate, but all you would do was plug it into a portable generator. This transformed the place completely, and made it accommodating for anyone, and you could stay as long as you wanted. Heat was via a wood stove only, and the road was not plowed. We designed the plumbing carefully so you just needed to open a couple of valves and everything drained so it wouldn’t freeze.
In 2000 we took another big step and installed central heat via propane, and put in a small solar+battery system to run the furnace circulator and to have lights. Refrigeration was all propane. We also hired a neighbor to keep the road plowed. With this, the place was usable year round, and you could just roll in at any time because we kept the heat at 55 when not there. We also added a full laundry, making it a fully functional house.
Since then we have made further improvements and expanded to include a full shop. One big step was a major fix up on the road, filling soft spots with rip rap and then covering the whole road in hardpack. Prior to this, the place was inaccessible during mud season.
Now we live there full time. It’s still off grid, but we barely think about power.
Somewhere in this spectrum I’m sure you will find what fits your needs and goals.
The house is old - 1799 - but was never modernized and utilities never brought it. In 1985 it was essentially the same as it was in 1799. With no running water and no flush toilet, use was limited to a few days before you really wanted a shower badly, and only hardy guests would go.
In ‘85 we put in a gravity feed dug well and a septic system, plus a propane water heater. Then a regular bathroom. New also wired the house because we had all the walls open to insulate, but all you would do was plug it into a portable generator. This transformed the place completely, and made it accommodating for anyone, and you could stay as long as you wanted. Heat was via a wood stove only, and the road was not plowed. We designed the plumbing carefully so you just needed to open a couple of valves and everything drained so it wouldn’t freeze.
In 2000 we took another big step and installed central heat via propane, and put in a small solar+battery system to run the furnace circulator and to have lights. Refrigeration was all propane. We also hired a neighbor to keep the road plowed. With this, the place was usable year round, and you could just roll in at any time because we kept the heat at 55 when not there. We also added a full laundry, making it a fully functional house.
Since then we have made further improvements and expanded to include a full shop. One big step was a major fix up on the road, filling soft spots with rip rap and then covering the whole road in hardpack. Prior to this, the place was inaccessible during mud season.
Now we live there full time. It’s still off grid, but we barely think about power.
Somewhere in this spectrum I’m sure you will find what fits your needs and goals.
