Been Walking Around The Property
Found 3 of the survey pins, but one corner can't find the survey pin. The neighbor said he tried to help find it for the previous owner with a metal detector, but couldn't, he thought it might be under a rock pile that is back there. But looking at the pile, it looks more like natural broken basalt instead of like someone dumped a bunch of basalt rocks there so I am not sure the pin would be under there. In that corner there is 5 wood stakes sticking up (all within a 20' radius), They are marked with comments like "Corner 3' west under rock", "Corner 5' north under rock pile," "Corner 4' west under boulder." The neighbor told me the previous owner had some friends come out with gps to find that corner and each one got a different location. Looks like I will have to pay for a certified surveyor to find the actual corner. I do have the northwest and northeast pins so I can work the ground in the northwest corner for a deer feed plot there, to help keep them away from my garden area.
Around most of the upper treed area of the land, I can see all the wild strawberries and wild roses starting to bloom, it is so calming. Also watched for a half hour 8 does walking calmly and doing some grazing across the north side of the property.
The bowl on the property (dips a good 60 to 70 feet lower than the rest of the property), looks nicer than those expensive manicured lawn in town, with thick natural grasses. The 60' to 90' pine trees around it keep it mostly in shade all day with sunshine filtering through the branches and it stayed green all last year without me watering it at all. The water depth has to be a lot closer to the surface here, so I'm thinking I might hand dig a well down there, for a second source of water on the property. Going to build a 14'x14' (less than 200sqft so no county required building permit needed) saloon, that was my wife's idea, with tables for board or card games. Took another half hour to watch a flock of 15 or 16 turkeys eating and walking around the edge of the upper west side of the bowl.
On the back west portion, a field of scrub grasses and basalt, I 'm starting to lay out the boundaries for a pond. I just need to run a line between the 2 corner property markers to make sure I stay on my own property with the pond (that is where I need the survey mentioned above). Looking at a nice 6' or 8' deep pond, to stock with fish, put in a solar pump to run a water wheel for generating a little power and keep the pond from completely freezing in winter, also setting up a nice calming "dock" area. I think the deer and turkeys, that cross the property often, will like it too.
Yes, the property is only 10 acres, but it has 3 distinct area and so much potential. My in-laws are calling me stupid for not just cutting down all the trees, leveling the land and building a 3000sqft home and a huge 2 story metal shop with big bay roll up doors and put in a lawn. I saw what this property could be and it wasn't a cookie cutter McMansion to show off or be the cover of some magazine, but a nice small homestead that can provide for me and my wife and a quiet place for us to relax.