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I've been reading the posts here for the past couple of days, a lot of good information. My husband and I are strongly considering a move to Wyoming within the next few years. We currently live in the Seattle area and tired of the rat race, too many people, traffic, etc. I've lived in Washington all of my life but lucky enough to have traveled to Wyoming a number of times and just love it there. First trip 20 years ago to the Cheyenne area and since then have traveled to western Wyoming a number of times.
I know that we'll have no problem with the excellent access to skiing and snowboarding at Snow King, Jackson Hole, Grand Targhee, etc.....along with other outdoor activities we enjoy (hiking, fishing, snowshoeing, cross country skiing).
Looking for recommendations on best places to live in western Wyoming. We are both fairly introverted and while we enjoy family and friends, we do just fine with one another and wouldn't mind living out a ways. Definitely a place with good internet access (I attend college online).
And I'll admit we do like Jackson, as a place to visit and go skiing. We have no aspirations nor any where near the money it would take to live there. That said I first fell in love with Wyoming many years ago with no stops in Jackson - found much later on western Wyoming just fits our recreational life a bit better and we like mountainous areas. I am an avid skier (30+ years) and generally ski every weekend from opening day into July (summer skiing - Mt. Hood, Oregon near Portland).
What about places like Alpine? Lander? Pinedale? Thoughts on Victor or Driggs over in Idaho? None of our kids are of school age so we don't have those concerns, just us and our 3 dogs would be moving.
Jobs....both my husband and I work for state government in WA; I work in the engineering field and husband works in Human Resources/law enforcement. We aren't necessarily looking to stay in those fields (or working for any branch of the government for that matter) but neither of us have seen much in western Wyoming in any related field. Current employment situation in that area? I recently learned state government in Wyoming implemented a hiring freeze, same thing here in WA. We are both hard workers - have to be to make a living and with 2 of our 3 kids in college - and I would love to consider a job where I'm not tied to a desk, for once in many years. The right desk job would be ok too.
All good picks. Pinedale would give you closer access to western Wyoming than Lander, but there's nothing wrong with the Lander area either, other than a lack of major downhill skiing.
I've been reading the posts here for the past couple of days, a lot of good information. My husband and I are strongly considering a move to Wyoming within the next few years. We currently live in the Seattle area and tired of the rat race, too many people, traffic, etc. I've lived in Washington all of my life but lucky enough to have traveled to Wyoming a number of times and just love it there. First trip 20 years ago to the Cheyenne area and since then have traveled to western Wyoming a number of times.
I know that we'll have no problem with the excellent access to skiing and snowboarding at Snow King, Jackson Hole, Grand Targhee, etc.....along with other outdoor activities we enjoy (hiking, fishing, snowshoeing, cross country skiing).
Looking for recommendations on best places to live in western Wyoming. We are both fairly introverted and while we enjoy family and friends, we do just fine with one another and wouldn't mind living out a ways. Definitely a place with good internet access (I attend college online).
And I'll admit we do like Jackson, as a place to visit and go skiing. We have no aspirations nor any where near the money it would take to live there. That said I first fell in love with Wyoming many years ago with no stops in Jackson - found much later on western Wyoming just fits our recreational life a bit better and we like mountainous areas. I am an avid skier (30+ years) and generally ski every weekend from opening day into July (summer skiing - Mt. Hood, Oregon near Portland).
What about places like Alpine? Lander? Pinedale? Thoughts on Victor or Driggs over in Idaho? None of our kids are of school age so we don't have those concerns, just us and our 3 dogs would be moving.
Jobs....both my husband and I work for state government in WA; I work in the engineering field and husband works in Human Resources/law enforcement. We aren't necessarily looking to stay in those fields (or working for any branch of the government for that matter) but neither of us have seen much in western Wyoming in any related field. Current employment situation in that area? I recently learned state government in Wyoming implemented a hiring freeze, same thing here in WA. We are both hard workers - have to be to make a living and with 2 of our 3 kids in college - and I would love to consider a job where I'm not tied to a desk, for once in many years. The right desk job would be ok too.
Will wait to hear responses (can't wait!).....
I think it's nice to think about Wyoming.
I really thing you need to rethink moving. Why do you want to move, to here. What draws your attention.
Sorry, I'm an old fart that lives off the grid. Don't have phone, cable, nothing. I use a Cell modem on a laptop. So, saying that, you can make it. You can collect all the data and computer time you need. I can't even see a street light from where I live.
Have you looked at either the state site or the gov site on jobs? Need to check that out.
Yep, I work for state government here in WA so we tend to here information about other states and what's going on with things llike employment, hiring freezes, etc. Working for a state or any other branch of government is not necessarily a requirement for either of us. I agree with you that thinking and rethinking reasons for any type of major move is a good plan of action. We already don't have a landline phone (waste of money) and nor have we had cable in about a year or so (waste of money and time). And hey, a lack of street lights isn't such a bad thing.....we have one that annoyingly shines into our living room window now, could live without that. We have cell phones for our kids/work to get a hold of us.Outdoors, wildlife, my skiing addiction, lack of crowds....just a few reasons. Could list a lot more.
All good picks. Pinedale would give you closer access to western Wyoming than Lander, but there's nothing wrong with the Lander area either, other than a lack of major downhill skiing.
IMO, virtually anyplace in Western Wyoming that has employment for you will work out just fine.
You might start looking in places like the Star Valley area, which is South of Jackson, but has as much natural beauty and a number of small towns that will meet your needs.
You might also want to consider NW Wyoming, near Yellowstone. Cody is a nice town. There is a ski area close by, but I'm not sure what status it's in right now, as it has been closed off & on. I have heard that it is opening again this winter, but not sure. My daughter & her husband just moved to Cody and really like it. They are moving into a brand new house (1644 sq. ft., 3 br, 2 1/2 ba, 2 car garage, 2 story) that has beautiful finish work. Because it is on a very tiny lot, they are getting it for only $185K. So housing isn't as expensive in Cody as some might think. Of course, if you want a big lot and especially land in the country, it would be MUCH more. Summers are busy in Cody due to the tourist attraction of Yellowstone, but the rest of the year isn't bad. Also, Powell is a little farming community about 20 some miles from Cody. Daughter & family lived there for 2 years when her hubby first started college and loved it there. He graduated from UW (Wyoming, not Washington!) in May and had a job lined up beforehand with WYDOT (state dept. of trans.) as an engineer. So there are government jobs in the area. I'm sure other Wyoming folks would agree that you should come out for at least a couple of visits before deciding on where you'd like to live. You are at an advantage that you have time on your side. Take that time to make some trips and really check things out. Only you guys can decide where would be best for you! Best wishes!
Georgia
I have a bias towards Lander since I was raised there (but it doesn't fit my life now)...
To narrow it down a little more, think about how Small you're willing to go. Do you like to eat out, go to movies, fly anywhere for vacation, shop 'whole foods', etc... just how minimal are you Really willing to go. I say this because in Fremont county (Lander, Riverton, Dubois, Shoshoni, Jeffrey City) alone you can go from a town with a Walmart and Kmart, regional airport, number of local and national restaurants, 2 movie theaters, etc... down to a town that has not even a real grocery store and a population of roughly 60 people. From an emotional point, I love Dubois... beautiful small town, close to everything outdoors, just a place that always appeals to my sense of natural beauty. But there's no way I could live there because of the lack of, well... variance is probably the best word. Heck, even Lander didn't fit (just sold our home there), no matter how much I wanted it to.
Somehow I suspect that location will be determined more by where you can find employment than the perfect fit for you. I'm sad to say it, but that's just kinda how things seem to be working out for most people.
You might also want to consider NW Wyoming, near Yellowstone. Cody is a nice town. There is a ski area close by, but I'm not sure what status it's in right now, as it has been closed off & on. I have heard that it is opening again this winter, but not sure. My daughter & her husband just moved to Cody and really like it. They are moving into a brand new house (1644 sq. ft., 3 br, 2 1/2 ba, 2 car garage, 2 story) that has beautiful finish work. Because it is on a very tiny lot, they are getting it for only $185K. So housing isn't as expensive in Cody as some might think. Of course, if you want a big lot and especially land in the country, it would be MUCH more. Summers are busy in Cody due to the tourist attraction of Yellowstone, but the rest of the year isn't bad. Also, Powell is a little farming community about 20 some miles from Cody. Daughter & family lived there for 2 years when her hubby first started college and loved it there. He graduated from UW (Wyoming, not Washington!) in May and had a job lined up beforehand with WYDOT (state dept. of trans.) as an engineer. So there are government jobs in the area. I'm sure other Wyoming folks would agree that you should come out for at least a couple of visits before deciding on where you'd like to live. You are at an advantage that you have time on your side. Take that time to make some trips and really check things out. Only you guys can decide where would be best for you! Best wishes!
Georgia
Thanks for all the great info! Never been to Cody but it may be on the list when we head out there later this year. We have good friends who lived in Greybull for a couple years and they spent a lot of time in Cody - had the same things to say about the tourists.
Interesting your son-in-law works for WYDOT - I work for WSDOT here in Washington. I'm a tech but do a lot of different work besides just engineering.
I have a bias towards Lander since I was raised there (but it doesn't fit my life now)...
To narrow it down a little more, think about how Small you're willing to go. Do you like to eat out, go to movies, fly anywhere for vacation, shop 'whole foods', etc... just how minimal are you Really willing to go. I say this because in Fremont county (Lander, Riverton, Dubois, Shoshoni, Jeffrey City) alone you can go from a town with a Walmart and Kmart, regional airport, number of local and national restaurants, 2 movie theaters, etc... down to a town that has not even a real grocery store and a population of roughly 60 people. From an emotional point, I love Dubois... beautiful small town, close to everything outdoors, just a place that always appeals to my sense of natural beauty. But there's no way I could live there because of the lack of, well... variance is probably the best word. Heck, even Lander didn't fit (just sold our home there), no matter how much I wanted it to.
Somehow I suspect that location will be determined more by where you can find employment than the perfect fit for you. I'm sad to say it, but that's just kinda how things seem to be working out for most people.
Cheers,
Brian
You are definitely right, we do have to think about how small of a town we can be happy in. I was born and raised in the Seattle area and definitely won't complain about some of the conveniences. For 15 years (up until about 3-4 years ago) we lived in a very small town about 3 hours east of Seattle, about 1,500 people. However, there were little to conveniences to speak of - I had seen smaller towns than that with more to offer. It wasn't a bad thing by any means, the only real downside was the lack of natural beauty there.....wasn't exactly scenic.
You're also right on about the employment issue......gotta go where the work is.
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