Awhile back I did a sort of thought experiment; I tried to figure out how to make a ranching and forestry operation totally portable, such that a camp could be broken down and moved in just a few days. The idea was to move onto a property, partially log it, graze it, and develop it into a campground, a housing development, or whatever the property was best suited for, and then move on. I figured out most of the details on how to do it, using RVs, shipping containers, semi trailers, and tents. I even invented a 24×40’ barn that compresses down to eight feet wide for transport, and can be set up or taken down in just a few minutes.

The drawbacks to this sort of operation are that it would require a lot of additional staff, the camp’s movement would be limited to overland travel, and it would cost a lot at the front end to get started. I still like the idea a lot, but its limitations combined with mine make it unlikely that I’m going to attempt it anytime soon.

Where things get a little more interesting to me is when I apply the concept to a move abroad, as a means of developing a new property. The main advantage this has over the nomadic farm concept is that the animals don’t move at the same time as the buildings and equipment, and that simplifies the logistics considerably.

I figured out how to put a large, professional workshop into a group of shipping containers. These can be, you know, put on a ship, moved to a new location, and easily set up and secured. All that’s needed is a flat patch of ground and some gravel. With that workshop in place, along with an RV or a small container house, work can begin in developing the new property: building fences, erecting barns, building a house, setting up guest facilities.

Clearspan canvas structures make great barns for most animals. My expandable barn design works, too. Anything that can be fit into a shipping container or semi trailer is feasible. The emphasis is on structures that can be erected and taken down quickly, used, moved around, and sold when no longer needed, so that animals can come to the new farm as soon as possible, before their permanent housing is in place.

With this concept, I can essentially start building a farm in Panama before I own any property there, taking advantage of good deals I find along the way. I can even test the structures and equipment out before I move, so I know what works and what needs improvement.

Along with the containerized facilities, a few pieces of equipment would be needed, and these could be bought at either end of the move, depending on availability. An excavator, dump truck, forklift, and some other heavy equipment make the list, plus a gen set capable of putting out at least 10,000kW.

Getting everything from Texas to Panama, assuming that’s how this ends up going, is pretty easy, between container ships and ro-ros. I’m pretty into this idea, and I already have my first container.