ND is probably the worst when it comes to wind and wind breaks and trees. You can tell where the ranch houses are by looking , in the distance, for small clumps of trees. There is a lot of research there on what trees might work. Most do not last long. We where there collecting petrified wood. We could spend the day parked in the middle of the road and roaming the countryside. No one ever came along. Once though a rancher did appear on his ATV. Asked us what we were doing. Mentioned that it might have been nice if we had stopped at his house first and asked permission. I looked around. You could easily see about 14 miles in any direction. No telephone poles, no buildings. I asked how we were supposed to discover his house. He laughed. (Whew.) Told us how great the land was. How it was some of the best soil in the whole country for raising grass. But, they got less than 10" of rain a year. I asked how big his ranch was. He laughed and said his was just a small place, way below average. Only 5800 acres.
