Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Montana relocation info

You have two choices, go East and you wont have as much snow but bitter cold and windchill and possible blizzards. Go west and you have deep snow, gloomy gray days. If you don't want to spend all day feeding a stove and shoveling snow you might be better off elsewhere. Several months of the year I cant cross my property without snow shoes.

I know where I'd go but sorry ain't sayin'!

My yard and this is a mild snow year...

I moved out west from NYC 14 years ago. But I grew up in NW WI on a dairy farm and have lived in many places so I knew what I was getting into.You have a lot to learn

You want to
Live in a remote area of NW Montana in a remote location off the grid and not cut wood feed the stove and not deal with snow removal. And just hunt and fish?Wow. Good luck

FIXT...

Actually, the renting suggestion has a good bit of merit to it. Renting one place for a couple years. Or, renting a couple places for a year each. Give you time to get to know the area, and possibly see something you might like better, BEFORE you spend the nest egg. A lot easier to do recon when you are local.

I'd like to meet your dog. Good looking sumbish.

You will Gruff, when we go fishing she goes....

Saw it right off.

Montana and Idaho both see a lot of folks with the same thoughts as yours about the great west and living it rough, most of them make it a year or two and then they are back where they came from.

Most small towns are cliquish and regardless of whether you want interaction with locals or not it is a necessary part of life. As far as not having to spend most of your winter dealing with snow and firewood, the idea of spending your time hunting, fishing, and trapping are pretty much a fantasy.

There is a fellow who moved in near me (about 30 miles away) from your part of the world. He did the same thing you are proposing to do - he came out in late spring and again in early fall - he fell in love with the country even though he was told he should spend a winter before purchasing, he failed to heed the advice. The first winter he was constantly posting pictures on forums and talking about how great it all was, now he is going into his second winter and is already talking about selling and moving closer to a city for more conveniences. Reality hits when you realize that it is 30 miles or more, to a gas station, or even a place to buy a loaf of bread. It is neat to think about snowmobiling out to get supplies, etc but the day the snowmobile doesn't start and you have no cell service reality sets in quickly.

Spend a least a year renting to see if the country fits you and you fit the country, and even then there are no guarantees. Last winter I had 3 ft of snow and it was a constant battle just to keep my 300 yard lane open to the nearest plowed road - this year I haven't had more than 2 inches of snow on the ground at once.

I have a friend in the Flathead that sells real estate, he says it is the greatest place in the world to be a real estate salesman -
Folks come see it in the late spring, summer, early fall and fall in love with it. Then after one winter of not seeing nothing but gray skies and shoveling snow the property is back on the market waiting for the next dreamer.

drover

Hey, ass*hole. You don't even know the guy.

He asked a thoughtful question and that's all you've got?

What a pos.

We live in the 'fancy' part of town and my neighbor is currently plowing 'our' street. No HOA strictly REZ.



Granted in town and .5 acreage but I'd let the palace go for $300k.

And that would include 1 month per year of super prime beaver and coyote trapping rights.


And firewood rights.

I live on the Westside of the state and you better like snow. You will not be out hunting or trapping or whatever you think you will be. You will be filling the fire place and plowing snow and shoveling your roof and digging yourself out. Trips to town for will be an all day event. Did it today. 100 miles to Missoula. Left at 8am. Home at 4:30. It is what it is. We have lots of implants in our community. They seem drawn to it for some reason. They last on average 2-3 years and gone. Many places for sale as a result. Our local population is sick on the invasion and will treat you as such. Money has no influence on that either. Most people don’t have much money and are content that way and won’t be nice just to get some of yours. If you have an east coast acsent it will be even harder. All the public land is virtually inaccessible during winter months due to snow. All the good land is occupied/owned and what’s left is unoccupied for a reason. Towns are clicky and might take many years to be accepted. They six months of spring/summer/fall are great but a lot of your time will be preparing for winter and doing maintenance on the structure and property. Many years we are covered up in choking smoke from forest fires come summer and fall. Premium tags are getting harder and harder to draw even as a resident. Every man woman and child hunts so while the population is low the woods are crawling. Taxes aren’t as good as one would think. Insurance premiums are higher than most states.
Vehicle registrations are high on newer vehicles. You spend half of hunting season cuttin wood for the coming winter.

I am sure I am missing a bunch of other things I commonly hear. Montana is a mindset and without the proper one, it is NO paradise. You must charish the lifestyle to fully appreciate the state. Come visit and spend some time before doing anything. If you want less people the west side is the wrong side. But then again the East side is pretty vacant for a reason.

Living remote, the importance of maintaining my wood supply and keeping a steady fire burning some what parallels what keeping meat in my freezer, food in the frig and preparing and eating meals is like. It can be on a continual regular basis without option.

Folks living in town shovel and dig their way out of a snow fall.

Folks living rural have a truck with a plow attached, typically a dedicated unit so you don't beat the hell outta the pickup they drive regularly.

Folks living remote own heavy equipment, bulldozer, road grader, etc. I got by with a backhoe once but it kinda sucked.

It's sorta like keeping up with the wood stove or eating, ya can't let it slide. Often one good snow deserves another, if ya let it pile up well, that's where the D7 dozer comes into play.

I have 2 miles of road that's only maintained by a few folks, then there is the driveways, some upwards of a 1/4 mile long. We have a older gal that lost her husband 3 years ago, been doing that drive ever since. A young family that lives half ways to the hardtop road has two kids they have to drive in to town to school every week day, the husband is in the Marines and deployed right now, that's another one that is on the list until he gets back.

That's the basics, thats just getting the day started,,,,,

Must be close to spring, your snow drift is sprouting a dog.


I plow about 1/2 mile of private road to get to the county road, plus part of yard so the dogs can go potty. If you plan on heating with wood, even a small place will eat 4-5 cords a year. I burn 3-4 tons of pellets each year so I don’t have to cut wood.

Speak for yourself.

You are an A1 douche.

Yep

Good reality check. Between plowing, keeping for going, getting snow off roof, fixing plow, generator helping neighbor with ms get his driveway plowed have had very little free time this past week

That's a beautiful Akita, she's perfectly suited to the cold months too!
I haven't had one for 35 years but it's too warm down here these days for their luxurious coat anyway...

Lots of valuable information in this thread. I appreciate the input. Keep it coming.

Good looking dog !

The biggest mistake you’ll ever make is showing up and immediately buying a place... live here and rent for a couple years. Get a couple winters under your belt. Explore the state. Take your time. It’s a lot easier to buy rural property than sell it...