Cabin and land OR more land

[Tracker0721]

So I'm looking at property, tired of living with my parents and I'm separated from my wife now so the cabin on the mountain can happen. I found a deer hunting cabin on 20 acres, 2 story with solar and gas(650sqft) for 60 grand. No power though and it'd be expensive to get a line ran up to it OR I found a 40 acre chunk in the middle of the national forest on literally one of the tallest mountains. Perfect hunting spot for deer and bear. No buildings on it or even within 5 miles except maybe some old late 1800s cabins. That's for 50 grand. And last but not least, 45 acres 2 broke down cabins, 2 springs, bear deer elk and moose filled backed against timber land for 48 grand.

So this is going to just be my choice in the end but what would you all choose? Primitive cabin, 40 acres, or 45. Cabin surrounded by private property, only person with land in the middle of a national forest, or neighbors close by but a million acres of public land behind you.

[Gsulfridge]

Wow, tough choices. Sounds like you're on the right track no matter which one.

[Chippintuff]

Being retired, my main concerns would be:

1. How far is it to the nearest good hospital?
2. What water is available?
3. How accessible is it in bad weather?
4. Do you really want to cut enough fire wood for heating and cooking?
5. How will you make a living?
6. Solar energy is getting more affordable every year.
7. Is there any cell phone service available there? What about other communications?
8. Is there enough wind year round to make a windmill practical?

WA

[Tracker0721]

Great questions actually! Answers time.

1. The good hospital is 3.5 hours away. 20 minutes to the new clinic and 45 to the local hospital. Nearest rattlesnake venom is about 1.5 hours.
2. There's a spring on both 40 acre chunks, the cabin has a water pump.
3. #1 and #2 both have a road to or almost to the property that is maintained by the county. #3 is about 4 miles up a logging road but a snowmobile would be required winter transport with my truck at the bottom. No other weather besides fires would effect the properties.
4. For heating, heck yeah. 4 cords this year to fight off fat(didn't work). For heat and cooking I'm not too sure. That's why I like the idea of a big propane tank which all of them could have installed cheap.
5. I start wildland firefighting next month. Around here 40K is made in about 3 months of fire season.
6. All 3 spots have a perfect set up for solar!
7. Great ole AT&T has a tower that got upgraded to 4g last summer! Covers all properties. Internet would have to be through a satalite provider or I'd just drive down to my parents haha. Land line phones would be a pain to have ran to #2&3
8. I didn't even consider wind, but since property 2&3 are on south facing slopes they'd get quite a good bit of wind in the summer.

[Pat B]

What part of the country are you talking about?

[Knoll]

Have the time/energy/commitment/$$$ to build a house?

[Tracker0721]

We're talking north eastern Washington. And I've worked custom home construction with my dad every summer and some in between until a few years ago. I know how it's done and how to do it so yeah. I'd be up to it. I'd just be lacking in the financial department but most veterans as a GI Benefit can receive a home building loan from the VA that covers buying land and building a home. But honestly the kinda home I have in mind is a super simple single story ranch style house/cabin, they're cheap to build, easy to heat, easy to maintain, and have plenty of room. Not to mention easy to build off of if I ever want more storage or another archery room or something like that. Cabin styles. Style 2 is more what I'm thinking. Pictures were from Google. I'd use a framed style over logs though, logs move and shift so much. Fine for a single room but no way for more then that.

[Del the cat]

Blimey... can't even buy enough land to build a toilet on for 60 grand in the UK, and if you could, they wouldn't gibe you planning permission.
I'd go for the land and cabin, it gives you a good start point... you can add the shopping mall, multi storey carpark and cinema later on
Good luck with your move.
Del

[DC]

No matter which one you buy you gotta have a porch like the second one Just sit there sippin' corn and watchin' the world go by

[bow101]

If I was young I would jump at this opportunity.  60K is nothing in todays dollars.  When I was young it would take a wolf bite, a slap from a grizzly and a fall from a cliff to stop this old cowboy.
Buy it...................

[Tracker0721]

The porch will be the foundation of the cabin without a doubt. Just found out an old high school buddy lives on the property joining the cabin property. He got 40 acres there but all barren hill side. The 45 acres with the springs might be out of the running. A family of preppers said they wanted to buy it and the joining 45 and 90. 200,000 bucks in "cash". Damn city people keep making all this money by Seattle then buying all the property over here! And the good ole boys let you hunt there land and drive their roads to the forest land behind, the city guys build gates and started "pay per hunt" over here.

[mullet]

I'd go with #3. A National Forest at your back door is just like having all of that property.

[gifford]

Well, as nice as the private holding in a National Forest sounds, I'd be more than a mite leery of that site. If the access is via a logging road, the access could be cut off with a stroke of the pen by some USFS bureaucrat. Access is to National Forest lands is being restricted each year. Sure you could still hike or ride a horse into the holding but vehicular access could easily be cut off or highly restricted. The Forest Service of yesteryear, when I worked for them, is not the Forest Service outfit of today. Just my opinion.

I'd opt for the second site, more land and forest abutting, better access, and neighbors can be right handy to have in most cases. In any case spend a bit of time getting the feel of the place and how long it will take to get things ship-shape.

[PEARL DRUMS]

Cant lose with any of them, really. Your land is damn cheap out there. It would be close to 300-500,000 for any of those choices around me.

[Tracker0721]

These raw mountains that are so secluded are all about 1-1.5K per acre. Finding the ones with water, good hunting, no illegal drug farms, crazy people, and accessibility in the winter is the challenge.