Comments on Bear Ridge Project: My Survival Cabin - Building a Cabin

WOW,can't believe it.Found other people like m...

2011-05-10T00:07:57.814-06:00

WOW,can't believe it.Found other
people like me.I just bought land on indian creek rd.Any info on this
area would really help.Planning on
green power,and like to pan for a
hobby.I see ufo/bigfoot stuff on
this area all the time.Sounds like
an exciting place to put a home.My
bro,lives in Loveland.I saw the
Rockies and was hooked for life.
Besides tools,will bring blue steel,and Brass,ye-haaaa.

This group may help some people.. here http://grou...

2011-05-05T19:14:43.382-06:00

This group may help some people.. here
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/San_Luis_Valley_Property_Owners

Survival is not a game , losing is not a option ....

2011-03-17T09:49:15.432-06:00

Survival is not a game , losing is not a option . Carry on mate carry on . SEMPER FI

eliberewhat a great post keep up the good work and...

2011-02-26T13:23:31.756-07:00

eliberewhat a great post keep up the good work and ill follow you have motivated me to get that land on the eastern shore of virgina thanks again

Hello Bigbear, I was looking up cabins and Sangre...

2011-01-18T00:29:30.950-07:00

Hello Bigbear,
I was looking up cabins and Sangre de cristo ranches and came across your article.

I'm living in western NC Mountains at about 4000ft now and I recently got some land in sangre de Cristo at around 9000ft to stay part time, I really noticed the elevation change the first few weeks.
I Also and was planning to build a cabin myself out of the pines on the land. I thought I better do it in sections in order to get it to 600sqft at least, then connecting them at the end.

I was told to cut down the pine in the winter so the sap seeps to the bottom and leave the sappy stubs long and use the upper wood on the tree to prevent freezing sap problems in the wood later on . I really never built anything before except a two story large deck with my dad once and a few dog houses So small sections would be my safest bet especially doing it myself I have my girlfreind to help out a little bu she would be able to carry any heavy log with me .

So I don't have problems later form new people you mentioned at the HOA I figured to get a permit first ,thanks for the info on that!.

I looked all around Sangre De Cristo till I decided on a property, I think I might have passed by your cabin a couple times. I have no clue where though ,I was all over that place and it's huge , must have seen 40 properties in Sangre De Cristo alone.

I could really use some advice since I'm really inexperienced at building things especially cabins in you have the time E-mail me at Shnmks@aol.com.

how is the snow removal situation in those subdivi...

2009-01-06T16:08:00.000-07:00

how is the snow removal situation in those subdivisions? do you or your neighbors plow or just use a big old truck to get through? what is the accumulation like? thanks for the good work

Nothing at the moment. It is painted painted OSB. ...

2008-07-05T20:47:00.000-06:00

Nothing at the moment. It is painted painted OSB. When I can afford it I will be using metal siding...probably corrugated sheet metal. I like the fireproofing quality.

Hi, I was wondering what siding was used for the c...

2008-07-05T20:20:00.000-06:00

Hi, I was wondering what siding was used for the cabin?

Colors of Creation,

Thanks for your input. ...

2008-03-21T15:37:00.000-06:00

Colors of Creation,

Thanks for your input. I am seeing the exact same thing starting to happen in my area. A revived HOA filled with new implants who have nothing better to do than bug people.

Sorry, this is a little old, but I have some relev...

2008-03-21T15:09:00.000-06:00

Sorry, this is a little old, but I have some relevent info as to covenents and associations from that area.

We were living in the Colorado Springs, Pueblo area, had 70 Acres. We purchased in one of those minimal covenant areas that the county left alone. That is why we picked that location!

After 5 years of slowly building the growth was tremendous in our development. All of a sudden all the East Coast, West Coast types started buying and putting in "instant homes". They took over the Assoc from the developer and we were living a nightmare.

Neighbor turning in neighbor, getting feed and fined for established homes, being told you had to tear down and build to completion within a year if you wanted to be allowed to reside on your own property.

We had a rammed earth home 90% finished and the county made us move out and live in a motel 1 1/2 hours away for over 3 months until we could buy a 30 yr old trailer to move back on OUR property. They felt this tied down unskirted tin can would be more safe that the home we had built. We lived in one of the most tornado prone areas in all of CO.

Being left alone one year, does not mean you will not be encroached on and stuck in a different environment in later years.

Sorry for the length.

To mirror Ryan's input, this series of articles is...

2008-02-13T09:07:00.000-07:00

To mirror Ryan's input, this series of articles is EXCELLENT. Getting a camper/trailer and putting it out there first would have be a way to go (Bisonsurvivalblog style), but nothing wrong with your approach, and I commend you on the pay-as-you-go incremental approach.

I had a thought this morning. If you kept records...

2008-01-23T14:49:00.000-07:00

I had a thought this morning. If you kept records of costs (even approximate ones) that would be really useful. The trailer idea makes lots of sense. I have also seen many people start with an outbuilding and then work on the main structure.

ryan,

The two things I needed was to keep t...

2008-01-23T06:44:00.000-07:00

ryan,

The two things I needed was to keep the ongoing building cheap, no huge lump payouts, and be able to stay in the structure while building it. Building in stages let me do that. Lumber is relatively cheap so building a livable shell over time is very affordable. The big ticket items like solar power, septic, well and wood stove are what kills you.

Looking back and seeing what my neighbors did, a cheap trailer parked on the land would be a real nice way to go. If I would have done this the cabin would look completely different and probably would have cost more but who know what the best method is.

Urban Survivalist,

The county that I have b...

2008-01-23T06:35:00.000-07:00

Urban Survivalist,

The county that I have built in has a land use policy and requires permits...But the citizens of the county wisely did not grant the county any enforcement mechanisms.

So no I have not yet had any problems with permits. What they do is make you pay for all the county permits when you go to put in a septic system, which is a state mandated permit. They are very laid back for now anyway.

Down here there are several huge subdivisions full of 5 or 35 acre plots. All have very basic covenants dealing with set back and minimum house size (600 sq ft). The other large subdivision, with cheaper land, does not have a homeowners association so no one cares what you do.

I the bought this parcel for the view, trees and solitude but in retrospect a plot down on the valley floor would have made much more sense. Open land, lower water table, easier access, better solar ...ugly but practical land at about half the price. If you look you can get land on the floor for about $3000 to $4000 per 5 acres.

To do it over I probably would have gotten land down there and built an underground passive solar house with glass wall southern exposure. It would be hidden, easy to heat and very secure.

This post and the series that will follow are AWES...

2008-01-23T01:41:00.000-07:00

This post and the series that will follow are AWESOME. Far too much of what we survivalist bloggers do overlaps significantly with a bit of individual spin. I am not sure if a full live in retreat is ever going to be practical for me but a cabin on a small piece of land is probably realistic. This information is outstanding and will hopefully let me (if I go this route)avoid some of your mistakes though I am sure I will find some of my own to make.

Keep up the great work.

Thanks for that post. Did you have trouble gettin...

2008-01-22T23:39:00.000-07:00

Thanks for that post. Did you have trouble getting the permits for everything? I've noticed that there are a LOT of small parcels down in that area. How are the covenants? I'm looking forward to more on this topic.