Best state to take up residency

[Slm864]

My wife and I have been kicking around the idea of relocating to the west. Due to our professions we are both blessed/awarded the opportunity to pursue the idea. I am addicted to all things hunting, primarily whitetails and turkeys where we live in the East. I love elk and mule deer hunting and have been lucky enough to travel west a few times to hunt both. I was wondering what everyone’s thoughts are on what state is the best for a resident when it comes to hunting, tag allocation, seasons and just the outdoors in general. I’ve looked up a decent amount of stuff on my own but it’s nice to hear other opinions. Thanks everyone.

 

[nrpate05]

Wyoming.

 

[madtom]

Best state to be a resident?

A lot of us spend time looking for opportunities as a nonresident, but what about resident opportunities for the guy looking to relocate? What states stand out for having realistic opportunities to try for quality tags while still offering a good "backup" opportunity so that you're out there...

www.hunttalk.com

 

[dirtclod Az.]

Arizona if you like it HOT!!

 

[Pucky Freak]

Wyoming.

 

[Carl 9.3x62]

Anywhere BUT Wyoming! Haha, just kidding. I've only ever lived in Wyoming. Its been pretty good so far.

 

[Mtolliver]

I relocated to Arizona last year from Kentucky and I love it. A lot of hunting opportunity and not a far drive to Colorado and New Mexico.

 

[Deleted member 16014]

Let the buyer beware, it isn't a coincidence only 600K people live here. We do have the out of doors in spades however.

 

[MooseCaboose]

Right now pretty much everyone is moving to Boise and Bozeman right now it seems like. So maybe that’s good or bad depending on your profession / preference. Both are great towns with burgeoning outdoor companies and a younger population of people that continues to attract new places to eat etc.

Your question is pretty generalized so it’s hard to distinguish what factors you value most highly.

 

[MooseCaboose]

Best opportunity hunting states for residents are going to be the least populous, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana.

 

[Slm864]

Thanks everyone. I do like the idea of low people populations but I do realize my question was pretty general. I just like the idea of not driving 36 hours to enjoy the western outdoors.
Madtom- I did dig up that old thread but with ever changing rules, regulations, point creeps, etc I didn’t know if anyone had a different opinion 6 years later. Thanks though

 

[Slm864]

Right now pretty much everyone is moving to Boise and Bozeman right now it seems like. So maybe that’s good or bad depending on your profession / preference. Both are great towns with burgeoning outdoor companies and a younger population of people that continues to attract new places to eat etc.

Your question is pretty generalized so it’s hard to distinguish what factors you value most highly.

The larger city aspect of does play into our favor with our professions but I

Right now pretty much everyone is moving to Boise and Bozeman right now it seems like. So maybe that’s good or bad depending on your profession / preference. Both are great towns with burgeoning outdoor companies and a younger population of people that continues to attract new places to eat etc.

Your question is pretty generalized so it’s hard to distinguish what factors you value most highly.

From some of the research I did it seems as though Denver was like the 2 cities you mentioned. I understand it’s a larger scale but At one point everyone started moving there and now a few million people live in the greater Denver area. It’s not that I dislike Denver, I just hope the 2 cities you mentioned don’t experience similar. I could imagine it making an uncrowded town feel a little packed after a while.

 

[Sweetmeat]

Jealous of your situation! I've been trying to talk my girlfriend to get out of Illinois and move out west. At least before they start taxing us to move out of the state!

 

[thusby]

Alberta

 

[rwc101]

I just hope the 2 cities you mentioned don’t experience similar

From a pure geographical sense, I doubt they ever reach Denver proportions. Denver wouldn't be quite so bad if the entire Front Range from Fort Collins to Colorado Springs weren't one big, congested suburb.

 

[Buffs35]

If you move to Wyo, save me a spot. I have Sheridan circled for retirement.

 

[AvidIndoorsman]

The larger city aspect of does play into our favor with our professions but I

From some of the research I did it seems as though Denver was like the 2 cities you mentioned. I understand it’s a larger scale but At one point everyone started moving there and now a few million people live in the greater Denver area. It’s not that I dislike Denver, I just hope the 2 cities you mentioned don’t experience similar. I could imagine it making an uncrowded town feel a little packed after a while.

Bozeman =111k
Boise = 710k
Denver 3,572

Multiple Boise by 4 then add 5 Bozemans and you still aren't the size of Denver. The scales here are just wildly different, medium size town, small city, major metro area.
The cost of living is a huge factor as well, you really can't find a house in the Denver metro for under 400k (from the outskirts of the metro to downtown can easily be 45min to 1hr drive). At the 400k mark you are looking at a 2 bed 2 bath no garage and tiny yard, and it's going to need a ton of TLC. For a reasonable house 3 bed 2 bath, yard, garage, 1800-2000 square feet, that is in good condition you are easily looking at 650k min.
So in order to do an apples to apples comparison to Bozeman you should be looking at home prices all the way from Whitehall to big timber.

I think you really have to be honest about what you want, if your focus is 100% on outdoor activities WY is great, if you are a 90% outdoor actives but want a couple of okay restaurants to choose from and an occasional town event ID and MT have a few tons that would be great. If you want access to the outdoors but want lots of cultural events, good restaurants, etc. you should be looking at OR, WA, and CO.

The last factor to consider is the social one, everyone wants to find their tribe, you should think about conservative v. liberal leaning of various areas, but also the fact that a lot of western towns will be dominated by agg and outdoors. This is definitely something to consider when raising kids. Everyone is either from a ranching family and are going to be taking over the family farm or wants to be a pro mountain athlete. I'm sure if you didn't grow up with it's fun and novel but the outdoor side can get pretty obnoxious after a while. I've watched a number of people move out west dig in like a tick and stay forever, but I've watched 4x the number move out here for a 5 year stretch and then move back home.

This article is 13 years old, it's tongue in check but also has some truths and definitely applies to a ton of western resort towns, Bozeman, Crested Butte, Telluride, Aspen, Vail, Sandpoint, Whitefish, etc. etc.
https://www.outsideonline.com/1886676/gore-tex-vortex

My wife and I grew up in Eagle right outside of Vail, we got out of there as fast as we could after highschool, she went to Chicago, I went to VT, we came back to CO for a while then did 3.5 years in Bozeman, now are back in Denver. Will likely be moving in the next year or so for her work... right now Michigan is at the top of the list followed by Minnesota.

Who knows where we will be but a house on a lake with a ski boat for the price of our 1 bedroom with an hour commute is pretty appealing.

 

[hank4elk]

"Ain't no elks in NM"

 

[Hunting Wife]

“The West” is rapidly changing with all the people flocking here in droves. Don’t count on hunting or the outdoors remaining the way it’s been for much longer, resident or no. It’s not sustainable at the current rate of growth.

 

[SBAHunts]

Aside frim the hunting aspects - from a tax perspective, Wyoming is the best state...think Big Fin would agree