Beaver Island Michigan

This is a question mostly directed to the full-timers.

I'm thinking of moving to the island. I want peace, quiet, isolation, and a more old-style sense of community. I have a few questions that maybe some of you can answer for me.

Whats it like in the winter, in terms of dealing with the isolation?
Whats it like in the summer, with tourists all over the place?
Whats the Catholic church like? We were there in November, and it seemed nice, but the regular priest wasn't there.
How do people make a living?

My wife and I run a small commerical farm and cidery in lower Michigan. We raise nearly all of our own food, and some extra to sell. Are there any farming operations on the island, besides horses? Is there any affordable land on the island anywhere? I want interior grazing land, not lakeshore stuff. Land with apple trees on it. I fear I'm going to have to win the lottery to buy land and build a house.

Any help or discussion is appreciated!

Scott

Edit: One last question - how are new people accepted by the old-timers?

Before any locals answers that, do you have a half million dollars or so laying around?

Don't I wish. Part of what I'm trying to figure out is if being wealthy is necessary to make this happen.

If you are resourcefull you can survive here just fine. 10 acres, on average, is 40k. If you like to work there is always a job available for someone who shows interest.

The price of freedom is high; often retail plus 100 percent

If you're interested in apple trees you might want to talk to Roy Elsworth at the Erin Motel. Roy is an agricultural engineer.

I had a far-reaching enough memory to recall that someone had inquired about old apple trees a few months back on the forum, so found that topic and "bumped" it. As soon as I did, I realized that person and the person now making a similar inquiry are one and the same. Oh, well....good try.