The people who’ve turned to living off the land

Community is a crucial part of making the homesteader lifestyle sustainable, writes Chris Moody in North Carolina

Alex O’Neill, left, and Jess McClelland on their 16-acre property in Triplett, North Carolina (Alycee Byrd/The Washington Post)

Every morning before commuting to full-time jobs in town, Jess McClelland and Alex O’Neill tackle a long list of chores. Eggs in the chicken coop need collecting; the vegetables need picking; a pair of 400lb pregnant pigs need their medicine. After working all day in nearby Boone, McClelland, 24, and O’Neill, 27, drive home, descending a steep curved road to their 16-acre property in the mountains of western North Carolina. Then they work their land until nightfall.

They are modern-day homesteaders who have traded contemporary conveniences such as Uber Eats deliveries and a reliable internet connection to grow much of their own food and – as much as possible – live off the land in rural Appalachia.

“There’s a good sense of gratification that comes from it,” O’Neill says. “It’s pretty hard to grow all of this stuff and it’s satisfying when you see that first beautiful tomato.”