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Retreat Owner Profile--Mr. & Mrs. Tico in Costa Rica
Present home : Farm in Northern Costa Rica
Ages : 54 & 57
Two sons 30 & 32, who are living in North Carolina.
Income $50,000 USD/year secure (many diverse overseas investments) and a tourism
business
currently at $120,000 or so per year ( I own a botanical garden) .
Additional income from fruit groves and tilapia ponds $15,000/year.
Profession : Gunsmith, nursery grower, waterscaper, fish farmer .
Vehicles : Two 1970s Toyota Land Cruiser BJ40's with 2.4 diesel engines, kept
in top-notch condition and a 2 cycle Ez-Go golf cart set up [with tires and suspension]
for
all terrain.
Firearms : 2 Mossberg Maverick 8 shot 12 gauge shotguns (best pump gun ever
made, never saw many broken in my 30 years of repair work ), Stainless Ruger
10/22,
Stainless
.223
bolt action in a custom bullpup stock, 2 Security Six 357 4-inch Rugers.
Ammo. 2,500 of each caliber and have reloading equipment-supplies.
Fuel : 235 gallons of diesel and 55 gallons of premium (stabilized)
Water : Gravity fed springs and 18,000 gallons of storage tanks, year round river,
roof water capture system, 25 foot deep well
Improvements : 4,800 square foot main house, all high efficiency lighting and
appliances.
Full wood and metal working shop.
Canning room, meat grinders, corn grinders, shrink wrappers, dehydrator etc.
One bedroom cabin with full kitchen near the main gate.
Rancho (like a tiki hut) seats 30 with a huge concrete smoker / barbeque and
baking
oven.
Another cabin with views down to the river and pasture below.
These structures are located so armed men can take out anyone entering the farm
with ease. Big Iron gate out front surrounded by Bougainvillea (thorny flowering
shrub-vines.)
Property tax: $90/year (Sorry guys, you're paying for imperialism)
Gardens: extensive. One of the largest collections of exotic fruit and vegetables
anywhere.
Livestock. 1,000 lbs of Tilapia and 500 lbs of Pacu at any given time. Five Goats. (2
milk goats, 3 goats for slaughter), 15 chickens at all times and 4 egg laying
hens.
6
rabbits (so far..LOL)
Cattle are not sustainable. Too big to store the meat and use way too much water
and acreage per head. I have one good trail horse.
There's plenty of wild game and fish here but no need in harvesting.We all have
livestock and many folks have ponds
Dogs: 2 American bull dogs that will shred anything I tell them to.
Security : Various cameras and motion detectors throughout the property with
an early warning to me before the sirens alert. Its a full perimeter system with
indicators so I can know precisely where the target(s) are.It has full battery
back up
Food storage: Maybe one year for us and the critters but not really necessary
here.
Communication : Cell phones, full intercoms throughout the farm.
Hobbies : Taking care of my exotic plant collection and building everything I
need.
Next project. We have good, strong year round wind here, so I am working with
the
boys
from Southwest on setting up a Skystream
3.7 [grid-tied wind generator]. Once
that
is
done
I'm
doing
an
underground walk in freezer.
Background : Grew up in semi-literate southwestern Virginia, escaped 25 years
ago
to semi-literate rural Miami. I got tired of the political lies and (designed)
ignorance
of the
average American voter and bailed to a truly free country that has no Nazis running
it
or nuclear weapons pointed at it. This is the most mellow, real place I have
ever experienced. It's like Fiji without being so remote. I first came here in
1986 for an orchid show and I knew this was my escape spot.18 years
later I sold everything I had, put my money in real currencies, and took off!
A one way trip. Pura Vida! (pure life)
Side note : When living in any Latin American country the rules are [essentially]
the
same
as up there [in the US]. Even Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala are no problem
provided
you
find the right spot and immerse yourself into the culture.
Stay far, far away from large towns and beaches. Get in the mountains
in a small
farming community. Where I live there is very little poverty since everyone
has a chunk of land and most are craftsman and farmers. There are many Costa
Rican
and South American medical professionals here and many are retired but own farmacias and
even make house calls! My neighbor is a cardiovascular surgeon with a huge macadamia
farm.
Another plus down here is there is no need for heat or air conditioning, and
nearly
all
of
the
water systems are gravity fed. No need for electric!
Fish, chicken, rabbits ( small meals) and fruits and veggies. No refrigerator
required.
