Montana? Anybody lived there recently?

We are planning to move to Montana to be near my husband's son and his grandchildren. I have found I loathe homeowners insurance here in Florida even more than I loathe the cold.

My two favorite states, other than West Virginia, are Montana and Wyoming. I visited there for a lengthy period back in my young hippy days (worked at Yellowstone; lived in Missoula after that), and all of my memories are good, except for the night I spent in a tent afraid to go outside and tinkle because I just KNEW I heard a bear circling the tent (there were plenty of mule deer droppings there in the morning, but no paw prints.)

So.....has anyone lived there? Especially during the winter? Does anyone have any suggestions about towns to live in or towns to avoid? We are not interested in the sovereign state types, so we want to avoid towns they frequent. The children live in Billings, but we don't want to locate in the same town.

Our dream is five acres in the wild with a small cabin that has a sleeping loft. We intend to sell most of what we have and start over with only the bare necessities., such as two four-wheel drive vehicles and a mattress.

All I can think about is Frank Zappa singing...

Moving' to Montana soon
Gonna be a dental floss tycoon...



I have only been there once.

I don't think you're gonna need air conditioning.

I didn't know any one lived in Montana...other than Ted Turner.

An adventure! How fun!

I would check out Bozeman. It would put you a couple of hours from Billings, it has a fabulous view of the Rockies and the alluvial plains, puts you well on your way whenever you want to go to the mountains without having to cross them to see your kids. Bozeman gets a fair amount of orographic snow but it's view of the mountains make it will worth it.

Because it is the home of MSU, you will have the amenities of a college town. more culture, coffee shops, restaurants, music, etc. There a a lot of expensive homes in the foothills which add to the tax base for infrastructure and amenities. It's about as central as you can get to anywhere you might want to go (Glacier, Washington, Canada, Wyoming), and I expect your kids would actually be heading your way quite a bit for recreation.

Brr, it's cold though. It's gonna take a good coat, a four or all wheel drive and some sturdy boots .

When are you going to host a forum party so we can come visit?

Thanks, SheSurfs!

PB, you're gonna still stay with us, I hope?

YAY! You're going to fulfill one of MY dreams, too (well technically mine is to retire to Wyoming, 2nd place is Montana). My recommendation would be Red Lodge, but then... you probably already knew that.

Eric wrote:

PB, you're gonna still stay with us, I hope?

Of course I'm going to stay with you! Heck, we won't be moving for at least a year. We're in the pre-planning stage of planning to move.

Besides, my computer goes with me wherever I go, so of course I won't be leaving.

riceme wrote:

YAY! You're going to fulfill one of MY dreams, too (well technically mine is to retire to Wyoming, 2nd place is Montana). My recommendation would be Red Lodge, but then... you probably already knew that.

Yep.....Red Lodge has been my dream for decades. It's just too expensive now. Geez, how I loved that place!

PBulldog2 wrote:

riceme wrote:

YAY! You're going to fulfill one of MY dreams, too (well technically mine is to retire to Wyoming, 2nd place is Montana). My recommendation would be Red Lodge, but then... you probably already knew that.

Yep.....Red Lodge has been my dream for decades. It's just too expensive now. Geez, how I loved that place!

Keep playing the lottery.

riceme wrote:

PBulldog2 wrote:

riceme wrote:

YAY! You're going to fulfill one of MY dreams, too (well technically mine is to retire to Wyoming, 2nd place is Montana). My recommendation would be Red Lodge, but then... you probably already knew that.

Yep.....Red Lodge has been my dream for decades. It's just too expensive now. Geez, how I loved that place!

Keep playing the lottery.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKeDcF1v_Y4

Rice, I'd like to think these old cowboys were all ridin' around in the Big Sky Country. I betcha they were Montana cowboys.

yelladawg wrote:

riceme wrote:

PBulldog2 wrote:

riceme wrote:

YAY! You're going to fulfill one of MY dreams, too (well technically mine is to retire to Wyoming, 2nd place is Montana). My recommendation would be Red Lodge, but then... you probably already knew that.

Yep.....Red Lodge has been my dream for decades. It's just too expensive now. Geez, how I loved that place!

Keep playing the lottery.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKeDcF1v_Y4

Rice, I'd like to think these old cowboys were all ridin' around in the Big Sky Country. I betcha they were Montana cowboys.

FANTASTIC version of that song AND fantastic video / slide show!! EXCELLENT! Went to the top of my YouTube "Favorites" file. Thanks, yeller!

Which cowboys, yeller? I'm sorry, I didn't follow your comment.

Have you ever been to Wyoming? There are both more head of cattle than people and more head of sheep than people there (last time I checked anyway), so it stands to reason that there are more cowboys and sheepherders per capita. (Sounds like good huntin' grounds for a girl like me. )

I think we need to have our first annual forum party in PB's back yard in the summer of '14.

And just think of all the pets you can befriend...

That is a phenomenal shot, Eric? Do you know the location?

I have learned so much about moose from my adventures in AK, always feeling sorry for the yearlings....you will often see them...teenage boys often hanging round in close proximity of one another, because their mothers literally kick them out when they become pregnant again. I was surprised by how many twins there were.

The are massive, incredible creatures and one of many reasons you won't find me tent camping in moose territory.

I don't know the location... got it off Imgur. Maybe there is a post with it that has the location. I'll see if I can find it.

SheSurfs wrote:

I think we need to have our first annual forum party in PB's back yard in the summer of '14.

The First Annual Forum Fun Fest, hereafter to be referred to as FAFFF-1, will include a barn raising.

Bring your pets, and don't forget your tools. Buses will be rented to accommodate those who will be bringing really large pets and tools. Moose should be readily available, so you may as well leave your Florida moose at home, Eric.

The family jet will be available to those who wish to bring only themselves. One small bag per participant, please. And NO FERRETS in the bags, please. Heaven forbid we have ferrets on a plane.

Early registration, at a deep, deep discount, can be made here online. The fee, only $3,000.00, is a 70% discount off the standard price of $10,000.00 at this time! Rates will go up on a daily pro-rated basis from now until July 4, 2014, so reserve your spot early!

Music will be provided by Gov't Mule and Jethro Tull, performing together for the first time, and just for us!

Tents and a stream for bathing will be provided for all, although sleeping under the stars and going dirty is highly recommended.

PBulldog2 wrote:

SheSurfs wrote:

I think we need to have our first annual forum party in PB's back yard in the summer of '14.

The First Annual Forum Fun Fest, hereafter to be referred to as FAFFF-1, will include a barn raising.

PB, do you offer financing for this expedition?

---

SS, can't see where they have a place listed, but there is at least one post saying it has been photoshopped. (I thought it looked big... Even for a moose)

Oh, yes. Financing is available.

$1000.00 down today, right this second, and I'll carry the rest via monthly payments till next year at a low 32.7% interest rate.

I just can't promise to where I'll carry it. Montana, maybe. Jamaica, possibly. But I promise I'll carry it somewhere.

Thank you for your interest, kind sir.

If you insist on bringing your moose, I shall have to rent an environmentally controlled 18-wheeler, so let me know soonest.

riceme wrote:

PBulldog2 wrote:

riceme wrote:

YAY! You're going to fulfill one of MY dreams, too (well technically mine is to retire to Wyoming, 2nd place is Montana). My recommendation would be Red Lodge, but then... you probably already knew that.

Yep.....Red Lodge has been my dream for decades. It's just too expensive now. Geez, how I loved that place!

Keep playing the lottery.

I won big yesterday. Because of that, we can skip the barn raising. I'll have my crew do it instead.

Here's a bull moose in a hurry.

(I wouldn't want to be in his way.)

Eric wrote:

Here's a bull moose in a hurry.

(I wouldn't want to be in his way.)

My cousin and his family, a little bitty thing of a wife and 2-year old girl (at the time), were charged by a moose on their homestead in Alaska. He could not take the shot because he was behind his wife and daughter and it all happened in a split second, but his wife was also armed and took the moose down with her 12-ga shotgun. Moose is not their favorite, but they eat whatever they kill, so he went in the deep freezer. When he was telling me the story two years later at Granny's 90th birthday celebration in Colorado, it still shook him up, and he does not scare easily.

I don't see antlers, so maybe it is female?

That reminds me about a good friend that dated a girl we called "Bullmoose"... but not to her face. It wasn't because she had a nice rack.

She be like the Chinaman named Ug Lee.

Eric wrote:

I don't see antlers, so maybe it is female?

That reminds me about a good friend that dated a girl we called "Bullmoose"... but not to her face. It wasn't because she had a nice rack.

She be like the Chinaman named Ug Lee.

Depends on what time of year it is... moose shed their antlers before winter each year and cows actually do have antlers too, they're just smaller.