As to the drive? I wish it was closer than 9 hours. I have to plan out my trips to Ohio. I typically come down here for weeks, months at a clip. My NY property is only 3.5 hours so I could shoot up there after work. If I leave for Ohio on Saturday morning at 8 I'm here by dinner time, it's not too bad. I don't mind long drives.
The locals have been Ok. Since the property was uninhabited for so long, a few of my neighbors took liberties with the land that I needed to address. One of my neighbors required a confrontation and that appears to have worked. Time will tell. My cell cameras and security systems have worked wonders. Once people realize they are being watched the behavior corrects itself quickly.
I have a full-blown farm here. 130 acres + a house, with 30 acres tillable. We went this route because eventually I would like to downsize and leave Connecticut behind forever. It's a horrible place to live if you're a conservative, you believe in the 2A, and you are an avid hunter. Ohio, is the complete opposite, low taxes, incredible hunting, and it's basically a solid red state.
A couple of things to consider: Ohio land is not cheap, its roughly 40% more than Kentucky. I struggled with the decision between KY and OH and the deer hunting is similar in both states. Plan to spend 2500/ac in KY and 3500+ in OH. I ended up choosing OH because it was much closer, and the deer season structures are overwhelmingly favorable to bowhunting. Plus, I got the sense that I would have more neighbor problems in KY.
Let me know if you have any more questions.
