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Homesteaders of America Conference

By: Author Vanessa Hamlin

Posted on Last updated:

Back in October 2022, the husband and I headed to Front Royal, Virginia for the Homesteaders of America Conference. If you’re not familiar with Homesteaders of America and you have interest in being more self-sufficient, I highly recommend you check them out!

Not only do they host this massive conference each year, the offer a ton of helpful information for new and old homesteaders alike.

The Cabin

We rented this adorable little cabin on AirBnB and while it was certainly tiny, it was perfect for just the two of us. Inside was a full bedroom, bathroom and living room/kitchen combo.

But, outside was where we spent most of our time. As if the gorgeous deck hanging wide over the backyard forest wasn’t enough, it was topped with a hot tub to sit and relax after a long day, which is where we spent each evening we were there.

 

Homesteaders of America Conference 2022

A peek of the big tent from the parking lot. There were 3 or 4 of these giant tents set up for speakers throughout the fairgrounds and throughout the weekend there were speakers and tons of people filling the tents.

 

Jordyn Kelly/Working Aussies Homestead

Jordyn offered a wonderful speech on raising livestock guardian dogs, after which, she gave us all a little lesson in training the dogs.

And her dogs are amazing! Not only do they listen as soon as she speaks to them, but they almost seem to notice her body language before she even says a word.

 

Off Grid with Dog & Stacy

Yes, this is a terrible picture. Unfortunately, we got to Doug & Stacy’s speech a few minutes late and we were stuck way in the back of the tent. Their speech was about Leaving The City to Live Off Grid and while, full of helpful information for some, it really wasn’t for us. Neither my husband nor I have ever lived in a city and most of the things they were discussing are things that we’ve done our entire lives without even thinking any of it was “special”.

 

Joel Salatin/Polyface Farm

By far one of the best speakers of the day! Joel spoke about common fears and how to stop allowing them to hold you back from your homestead goals.

And honestly, his list of 7 fears are pretty relevant to most people…homesteaders or not.

It seemed that each word he spoke resonated through the crowd and every person in the room shook their heads yes to just about everything he said. He is an incredible speaker and insanely brilliant man.

Never heard of him?

Read some of his books and I promise, you’ll fall in love!

Until Next Year Homesteaders…

I hope you’ve enjoyed coming along on our journey. We had a lot of fun, met a lot of like-minded people (even a few from Vermont!) and left there feeling refreshed, renewed and ready to plan for next year!

Did you attend the Homesteaders of America Conference? If so, would you go again?

Interested in attending the conference? Head over to their website and get your tickets ASAP – they sell out fast!!

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Have an Awesome Day!

~Vanessa