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The Bureau of Land Management allows free camping on public lands; it's called "Dispersed Camping". I think there is a limit on how long you can stay at a site, but I don't know how strictly it is enforced. Usually, there are no amenities like bathrooms, running water, power, or paved parking areas.
Many people spend months on end camping free, in tents, RVs, cars, whatever.
14-16 days is the standard. It can vary from place to place though.
Digging a well is expensive. A lot of it depends on how many feet you have to go down to find water.
Do people run any stock in the desert? Because maybe there might be an acre or so to buy next to a ranch running stock. If so, you could approach the owner and ask to go halves on the well. He would get a watering trough out of it and you'd get water.
Just make sure the trough is far enough away from your water so there's no contamination. Also cattle make a huge muddy mess around troughs.
I've camped at alot of BLM land. I know there is LTVA (long term visitor areas) where you pay $180 for 6-7 months which is a great deal , a few of those areas have a bathroom/water as well.
Digging a well is expensive. A lot of it depends on how many feet you have to go down to find water.
And that is an important reason people need to plan for desert locations. AZ has over 80 reportable basins. Based on the data from each, one can plan and prepare for the likelihood of finding water and at what depth. But many look at desert water from a news perspective. Yes, the SW is suffering drought but that doesn't mean there is no water under the ground. It means that water extraction isn't viable for pumping on a water authority or agricultural level. Just isn't going to produce enough economically. As for the homesteader, again, you have those expecting on demand water like turning on the spigot and water comes gushing out.
For a person who planned living with solid practical water management in the desert, they can have the water they need.
Thanks for all the information and suggestions. I mostly just want a spot I can goto anytime thats mine only for when I want to sleep/live for when things get tough or just to get away. I know there are plenty of BLM spots , but when you find a good spot it's not guaranteed you'll always have that same spot or area to go to as it could be taken by someone else.
I don't really plan to build a big off grid area with animals and a well etc. The areas I was initially looking at were in the high desert of AZ around Williams, Camp Verde, somewhere not too far from the highway (maybe 15 minutes or so) . I am open to other parts of the country . Southern Oregon , Northern CA , Northwest NV , but nowhere east of AZ/ (draw a line at the east AZ border up and down the country).
I might have better luck buying from someone else privately.
???
Wouldn't it make more sense- no capital outlay, no taxes, freeedom to change locations at will-- just to rent a motel room whenever you want to, whrever you want to near a public access county, state, federal park for the couple days at a time that you'll be doing it?
In the desert??? ...Have you considered counseling?
And that is an important reason people need to plan for desert locations. AZ has over 80 reportable basins. Based on the data from each, one can plan and prepare for the likelihood of finding water and at what depth. But many look at desert water from a news perspective. Yes, the SW is suffering drought but that doesn't mean there is no water under the ground. It means that water extraction isn't viable for pumping on a water authority or agricultural level. Just isn't going to produce enough economically. As for the homesteader, again, you have those expecting on demand water like turning on the spigot and water comes gushing out.
For a person who planned living with solid practical water management in the desert, they can have the water they need.
Until the aquifer drops and it's too expensive to deepen the well.
Or the groundwater gets contaminated and you can't drink it.
I follow a homesteader in Canada via online sharing and let me tell you, homesteading is harder than it looks.
I canned and gardened as a kid and while rewarding, I can attest to exhausting that is.
I have relatives who homestead in Latin America and they usually have 20-80 acre lots they live on, and they work and barter to get whatever else they need for living. There's no shame in being a farmer in Latin America.
The short answer is no. Forget about camping. The main goal of buying a land is investment, not recreation. It will be nice to buy a land you can also camp on, but it should be valid investment.
First, land has very low liquidity, which means it is hard to sell. If you want to buy a piece of land, you should be ready to hold it for at least 10 years. And when you sell it, you should be ready to wait for another year or 2. So you shouldn't use the money you might need sometime to buy land.
Second, you shouldn't buy 1 acre of land in rural area for 5000, because it is just very unlikely to appreciate. Land parcels in rural area are most 10 acres and more. The larger the parcel, the more likelihood it will appreciate. Personally I wouldn't think of anything less than 40 acres. 1 acre lots in those "developments" are almost like scams. You might be able to buy 10 acres for 10K or less, but I don't think buying 1 acres for 5000 is a good idea. Also don't forget you need to pay property tax every year, and HOA fee if there is one.
The short answer is no. Forget about camping. The main goal of buying a land is investment, not recreation. It will be nice to buy a land you can also camp on, but it should be valid investment.
First, land has very low liquidity, which means it is hard to sell. If you want to buy a piece of land, you should be ready to hold it for at least 10 years. And when you sell it, you should be ready to wait for another year or 2. So you shouldn't use the money you might need sometime to buy land.
Second, you shouldn't buy 1 acre of land in rural area for 5000, because it is just very unlikely to appreciate. Land parcels in rural area are most 10 acres and more. The larger the parcel, the more likelihood it will appreciate. Personally I wouldn't think of anything less than 40 acres. 1 acre lots in those "developments" are almost like scams. You might be able to buy 10 acres for 10K or less, but I don't think buying 1 acres for 5000 is a good idea. Also don't forget you need to pay property tax every year, and HOA fee if there is one.
Good luck.
I find, I must agree.
Not about the 'one acre' though, the list of pluses, in my mind was not close to enough [potable water spring, energy source, organic garden, nudist resort] .
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