Our mountain life began almost a 9 years ago when we began looking for 10 acres of wooded mountain property on which to build our retirement home. We began our quest in November, found our piece of heaven in December, three times larger than we were seeking and basically open fields. We closed in January just as snow began to fall, walked the perimeter in flurries then headed home a day early in real snowfall to avoid getting snowed in. The following November the house was begun and almost two years later we moved in.
Our home is surrounded by farms. Each of these farms has rock piles where the past generations have painstaking hand collected them from the fields and gardens and piled them out of the way of mowers.
Because this county is so rocky the primary products are animals. Many raise beef cattle, a few sheep, pigs or goats, and horses. Fields of hay are mowed for winter feed and provide pasture for the cattle. Few have chickens for meat or eggs.
While each homestead has a vegetable garden and most households put away some produce, almost none of them harvest their grass fed beef for their own use. They sell to a fedlot where their beeves will be fattened on grain for commercial sale. It amazes me to see our neighbors in the grocery purchasing eggs, canned ir out of season fruits and vegetables and feedlot meat when we pay a premium at the farmer’s market for grass finished meat from one of the few who do eat and sell their own grass finished meat.
If this is something you have never considered and holds any interest, read Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.
Cabin Crafted 