Moving to the Mountains. HELP

[Citrusheights5]

We are moving up to the sierra on the first.Many good things are coming out of this move. DH will be volunteering in Yosemite over the summer, and so we will be closer. Our rent is going to be reduced by half (moving about 150 miles.) We will be renting a house on 5 acres (compared to our little city plot). The house is bigger. The kitchen is larger!! But I am scared.. I have always lived in the city... My idea of rural is the suburbs.. When they mentioned we had well water..I had visions of the kids running buckets of water to the house (and so does everyone we know lol.) We have never had to deal with propane.. It is going to be dark.. and quite.. It is going to be an adjustment!!!! Anyone have any advice??

Lee

[TwinMominTX]

What elevation will you be living at? I grew up at 6000 feet. High, but certainly not as high as some are likely to be. It will be chilly in the evenings. Warm sweatshirts and long pants chilly.

The air will be dry. Expect a few nose bleeds. Likely the well will be plumbed to the house - no buckets necessary! Expect the water to taste yummy - especially compared to chlorinated floridated city water!

You guys will have a fabulous time. Enjoy it and take lots of pictures and then post them here for us to see!!

[Citrusheights5]

We will not be that high... I think we are at 3000.. Compared to where we live not (at the ocean) that is high enough.. .The water is plumbed in.. but we are trying to figure out how the pump works.. No one has lived in the house for 2 years so we were told that we "should" replace the paper filter..Of course we have no idea where it is located.. The kids loved it.. and ran the property both times we were there.. I guess I am just worried about being "out in the boonies." When we went into town for pizza, and told someone where we were moving to.. they said that we were out in the boonies.. How can the town that I consider to be out in the middle of nowhere call my house out in the boonies.. I guess this city girl is just afraid of adjusting to "county life." Any tips for helping the kids to adjust?

Lee

[Melinda in VT]

You might want to call a well drilling and service company or a pump service company to come take a look at your well and pump. They should be able to point out the locations of filters, show you how the pump works, etc. Be specific when you call for an appointment, so they can steer you to someone else if they don't do what you need.

You might also check with the health department about what kinds of tests are required on the well.

As for helping the kids adjust, I'd make it an adventure. Take one day each week to explore somewhere different. Get familiar with the library. Find your favorite hike.

[Scarlett]

Oh what fun! Is this a long term plan or just for the summer? As for country life, it does take some planning because you dont want to spend your time and gas running up and down the road for every little thing.

Do check the well water....in this day and age, it could have polluted run off in it, but probably not if you are moving to the mountains.

[Liz CA]

We are moving up to the sierra on the first.Many good things are coming out of this move. DH will be volunteering in Yosemite over the summer, and so we will be closer. Our rent is going to be reduced by half (moving about 150 miles.) We will be renting a house on 5 acres (compared to our little city plot). The house is bigger. The kitchen is larger!! But I am scared.. I have always lived in the city... My idea of rural is the suburbs.. When they mentioned we had well water..I had visions of the kids running buckets of water to the house (and so does everyone we know lol.) We have never had to deal with propane.. It is going to be dark.. and quite.. It is going to be an adjustment!!!! Anyone have any advice??

Lee

we informed ourselves on the inner workings of wells, pumps, pipes etc. It's not hard to understand, it's just different.
Propane is no problem: you shop around the area among the propane suppliers, find the one you like best and order propane. It's expensive like all things associated with gas or fuel.
If you own (or your landlord owns) the propane tank, you can choose any supplier. If the tank was originally supplied by a certain company, they will fill it and other companies cannot. This is the rule here, anyway. We are a couple miles north of you on the western slope of the sierras.

It will likely be very dark at night - LOL - good for star gazing. There will likely be no / very little street lighting depending on how close to any town you are.
Check into buying a freezer if you don't have one. Buy in bulk and freeze or can.
Get in the habit of creating shopping lists all week so the list is fairly complete by the time you venture into town once a week - or once every other week.
This is what we have done. Nowadays, I am working part-time again and don't have to consolidate all my shopping into one day. When this was not the case, I reduced my traveling to once a week.
This all depends on how far you are from grocery stores, etc. For me, it's 40 minutes one way.
Enjoy! The kids will probably love all the space and the critters that will visit you on a regular basis - oh, I almost forgot! Get a trash can with lockable handles or sturdy bungee cords. :smilielol5:Bears, raccoons and squirrels are crafty *shoppers* from everything that is left outside, unprotected.

[dragons in the flower bed]

As for country life, it does take some planning because you dont want to spend your time and gas running up and down the road for every little thing.

:iagree: If it's not something you do now, you'll probably want to make a meal plan which includes a shopping list for every item you'll need for a week, and get a membership to a Costco, BJ's or Sam's Club.

Also consider your information and entertainment needs. Often hooking up can be hard out there: no wifi + no wires = super slow dial up.

You might want to get safety strips for your kids coats or light up shoes so you can see them if you need to be outside at night (or think they might go outside at night). At our cabin in Wyoming, we couldn't see ten feet in front of us, and I was always terrified my toddler would unstrap himself from his car seat and run loose. Thankfully he was just as scared as I was, but my second born is a different story. He would have taken off in the direction of the coyotes as soon as he heard them calling him.

Make sure you have a very good first aid kit because the hospital and take a basic emergency medical skills course because the hospital and rescue workers are now far away.

[Brigitte]

And, when you find the propane supplier, get on his automatic delivery service. You don't want to be bothered with having to remember to check the meter on the tank all the time and making the call for them to come out.

[Jenny in Atl]

Very cool adventure! And an awesome learning experience for all I would imagine.

[Unicorn]

Take me with you! I am sooooooo Jealous!! :drool5: Or, you can have my house here in town, and I'll go in your place. Honestly, I think it sounds like heaven!

[Citrusheights5]

Thanks for the great advice!!! I usually make a shopping list and go twice a month. I do this mostly for $$$ reasons, so if I forget something.. meals change.. I have a large freezer (for the same $$ reason).. so I am feeling better knowing that I am doing some things right without even trying!!

Lee

[Citrusheights5]

[QUOTE
Also consider your information and entertainment needs. Often hooking up can be hard out there: no wifi + no wires = super slow dial up.
[/QUOTE]
I know we have super slow dial up.. We are lucky to be on a southern facing side so we can get direct TV.. I wonder if they have internet.. and how fast it is.. Thanks the reminder going to look into that!!

Lee

[Citrusheights5]

I need to look into who owns the propane!! I did not know that I could only use 1 supplier if it was not owned.. I am excited to learn all of this.. and it sounds like it is going to be a great adventure in life... I am just a little scared to be so far from what I know.. I will definately be looking into trash cans with locking lids. We had all kind of critters around there where we visited last.. Apperntly they took up residence were we lived since it has been vacant for over a year.

Lee

[LG Gone Wild]

I don't want to be a downer but I really detested it.:thumbdown: You should follow all the advice given so far but I will add that you might want to get a tractor to maintain your property. We had only 2.5 and we needed a tractor.

Also, no electricity means no water,too. So make a back up plan for that. And make sure all your pipes have insulation, including the ones in the pumphouse.

[Carol in Cal.]

Buy a telescope and take up astronomy. You will be amazed at how many stars there actually are!

I would not want to live out there without 4 wheel drive, just in case of a medical emergency. Always have radial tires, Michelins are the best that I know of. Pricey but WEP. Carry emergency gear routinely. Every year people die or lose limbs or digits because they assumed that their car would get them from point A to point B. Your gear should include a gasoline defreezer, oil, windshield wiper fluid, antifreeze, a candle, a sleeping bag, flares, matches, a flashlight, a cell phone, extra water and snacks, toilet paper, and one of those cans of tire pumping stuff that lets you limp longer on a flat. A long chain or cable with hooks on both ends comes in handy, too. Carry chains, even though you have 4 wheel drive. Remember to slow down in the ice and snow--Californian or not, there is no inherent God-given right to go the speed limit in a storm. And 4 wheel drive helps you go, but does not help you stop.

Take up a winter sport, so you don't huddle inside all winter and get cabin fever.

Introduce yourself to all the local Forest Service people. Visit them often. They are underutilized, and they know the land better than anyone. After you have been there for a while, start asking them for 'off the beaten trail' hikes or what seasonal cool stuff you should look for. Ask them for their recommendations about which are the best local field guides.

Be very nice to everyone, and help people out whenever you see a need. People out that way are SO nice--the norm is very different there than in the Sacto or Silicon Valley areas.

Enjoy that well water--it usually tastes great!

Be careful about what you put down the septic system. Check on the local recs for that.

It gets quite cold at night in the Sierras, except for about 2 weeks in July. Always be ready for that cool down--it is quite abrupt and can be quite startling on hot summer days.

[chai]

I grew up in the middle of nowhere. I loved seeing the stars at night. (I really miss that now.) However, there were times when a big bright yard light felt really comforting.

[WTMindy]

we'll be in Yellowstone in June.

[Margaret in CO]

Oh, you're going to LOVE it! We live at 8000' and have a well and propane and lots of land. Definitely have the well tested and you DO need to talk to the kids about running around at night. Talk to the neighbors about wildlife in your area. There ARE times here that the kids can't be out because of the mountain lions, but it's not any different than being careful about the homeless that live on the corner of my dd's block in Ypsilanti. I'll take a mountain lion any day! (and so will she, she's moving back to CO--yay!) This is going to be SUCH a special time--your children will never forget it! Talk to the septic pumping guys and have the septic system checked. You'll have to learn a few new habits about what can and can't go down the drain.