You are the real deal though @scottyt my "homestead" is more gentleman farm in an established area on 13 acres. I do have 2 old wells (one with hand pump) and one with electric to a spigot but we turned on the county water because we heard the water is "no good" it does have a sulfur smell and is a little slimy. It also has a year round creek that I want to put a turbine in. So my ideas for homesteading are to be able to be prepared to be self sufficient if I need to. I hope to sell excess power back to the grid and cut the county water at some point.

How much land do you have? I haven't done my maple syrup post yet but I made a half gallon of the most amazing pure maple syrup... that was a last minute decision because I had an arborist point out a large sugar bush in mid winter, did some research, and tapped them. Now the leaves are out and I have hundreds of sugar maples so I'm investing in that which is a product I never even thought about! Same thing with sassafras (tons) and the same with paw paw fruit (tons). We're doing bees next year and a 30x100 high tunnel so maybe heirloom tomato starts? But make sure you explore every inch of your homestead and talk to your neighbors. you might stumble on something valuable that you've never heard of or dreamed of producing