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Old 09-14-2013, 12:03 AM
 
207 posts, read 440,953 times
Reputation: 54

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Hi all!

We are a family looking to get away from the humidity and somewhere we can live our little homestead dreams. We are from Memphis, TN, have lived in NW Arkansas, and are currently near St. Louis, MO - and we can't stand humidity. We spend entirely too much time of each summer indoors with the air conditioning on high, and the bugs here are just ridiculous. It seems like a great idea to go for a walk until we actually attempt it, then we are back to waiting most of our summers out until fall (our favorite season that seems to last only 2 weeks).

We are looking into moving to Western Nebraska or Wyoming, but we want a little farm to raise dogs, chickens, sheep - not huge, but decent - and to be able to grow a great amount of our own food (even in a greenhouse as I've been told we would need in Wyoming). I know one problem could be to find an area with enough water, as I've heard that it is difficult to grow anything in some areas. We are concerned about blizzards and areas with no trees because we'd like a wood-burning fireplace in case the power goes out. We would like to find a little-farm-friendly area, a homeschool-friendly area, and an area that is family-friendly. It would also be great to find somewhere that is a good sized area for most things without having to drive 2 hours to a general shopping area with a Target or Walmart (not only a population of 500 within hours). We are conservative in our views (or leaning slightly libertarian sometimes), would like to find farmer's markets, and it would be great if there were some midwives in the area as well. I realize that's a long list, but we are trying to see how many of those we could 'check' off the list....Oh - I forgot to mention - we work from home doing IT stuff, so high-speed internet is a must as well.

Since you guys are the 'pros', I thought maybe you could suggest why Nebraska would be better for us than Wyoming, and which areas might be a good fit for us please? I understand that Nebraska has a lower cost of living (at least from checking rent/house prices online) and both would probably get us enough away from this oppressive humidity that makes us feel so bad. I am allergic to mold, and that is another reason I am thinking I need to move somewhere drier - maybe not the hottest desert, but not so humid.

Can anyone please help us with some ideas to research/look into further? We have driven through (and stayed in hotels in) many areas in both states, but are still not sure which might be best - or is there somewhere else you'd recommend?

Thank you so much!

Last edited by movingagain2012; 09-14-2013 at 12:08 AM.. Reason: forgot to add something
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Old 09-15-2013, 10:16 PM
 
370 posts, read 1,349,143 times
Reputation: 195
If you want to be close to a "population center" you don't have too many choices in Wyoming. Cheyenne probably has the only Target in the state.

You would probably like western NE a little better. There are more areas with trees, and the weather will be a little better.
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Old 09-19-2013, 08:00 PM
 
207 posts, read 440,953 times
Reputation: 54
Quote:
Originally Posted by IsThisOneTaken? View Post
If you want to be close to a "population center" you don't have too many choices in Wyoming. Cheyenne probably has the only Target in the state.

You would probably like western NE a little better. There are more areas with trees, and the weather will be a little better.
Hi IsThisOneTaken! Thank you for your help! I did look online and found one also in Casper, WY. I'm not sure about western NE yet though. Are the winters in Nebraska more likely to have blizzards as the midwest is known for? Would you say they are worse or better than, say, eastern WY winters?

Thank you!
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Old 09-21-2013, 12:51 AM
 
370 posts, read 1,349,143 times
Reputation: 195
Quote:
Originally Posted by movingagain2012 View Post
Hi IsThisOneTaken! Thank you for your help! I did look online and found one also in Casper, WY. I'm not sure about western NE yet though. Are the winters in Nebraska more likely to have blizzards as the midwest is known for? Would you say they are worse or better than, say, eastern WY winters?

Thank you!
Less wind in Western NE. Barely...
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Old 10-09-2013, 08:32 PM
 
Location: Nebraska
5 posts, read 13,948 times
Reputation: 16
You will have no problem finding a place to build a small farm pretty much anywhere you choose. Water is only an issue for larger operations that require a ton of irrigation. Most of the cropland is going to be along the Platte River and I-80. As you get up into the Panhandle it is more dry ranchland. I haven't been through Casper, but I imagine that area is ranchland as well. You won't necessarily need a greenhouse unless you want to do more year around stuff, as we do have all 4 seasons here so you should expect snow in the winter. Humidity will be lower as you head west and north.

As far as trees, Nebraska isn't known for having a bunch of trees. Halsey National Forest is all human planted. Trees are more in the southeast part of the state. However, many acreages do have trees surrounding them for windbreak. If you're looking for a property that has enough trees to provide a windbreak and firewood, you should have absolutely no problem with that. Just know that we're arent Colorado or MO or TN. The power generally doesn't go out in the winter. If anything, it will go out during a good spring thunderstorm with high winds.

Anywhere you choose will be farm, homeschool, and family friendly. Many of the towns have a lot of school pride. You may find that you don't want to homeschool anymore once you see the quality of education and sense of community that we have. If you go too far to the north you're going to be out of wal-mart and target range, as most of them are generally along I-80 and Hwy 30. If you're really getting out to the northwest, you may enjoy some place in Proximity to Chadron or Scottsbluff. The people here are very much friendly, reserved christians, and conservative. High speed internet shouldn't be an issue anymore, but I would do some research like that on your own.

I'm not too familiar with Wyoming so unfortunately I can't help much for a comparison, but I believe Casper will be just about the only place you'll want to be near for shopping.
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Old 11-08-2013, 01:29 PM
 
Location: Western AZ
209 posts, read 430,807 times
Reputation: 217
From one who was born and raised in NW Nebraska, then spent many years in Wyoming living in 5 different towns in every part of that state, I recommend western Nebraska and especially NW Nebraska, in the Pine Ridge area. As the name suggests, there are trees and the winters are somewhat less severe than Wyoming.
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Old 11-14-2013, 10:25 AM
 
Location: Sioux Falls, SD area
4,817 posts, read 6,823,738 times
Reputation: 10078
Quote:
Originally Posted by MICHAEL J View Post
From one who was born and raised in NW Nebraska, then spent many years in Wyoming living in 5 different towns in every part of that state, I recommend western Nebraska and especially NW Nebraska, in the Pine Ridge area. As the name suggests, there are trees and the winters are somewhat less severe than Wyoming.
Just don't cross the border in the Pine Ridge area of SD. Not quite so appealing.
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Old 11-17-2013, 05:01 PM
 
Location: Western AZ
209 posts, read 430,807 times
Reputation: 217
Quote:
Originally Posted by jmgg View Post
Just don't cross the border in the Pine Ridge area of SD. Not quite so appealing.
Yes, you are quite correct. I've been there many times. Although I have to say that every American citizen needs to visit the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation at least one time as it is a real eye opener. This is proof positive of what happens when people are forced to give up their guns and forced to abide by the broken promises of our federal government.
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Old 03-05-2014, 12:56 AM
 
7 posts, read 8,254 times
Reputation: 20
Anywhere in the Nebraska Panhandle would be a great place if you are looking to escape humidity. I'm partial to the Scottsbluff-Gering area just because I grew up out there. The Chadron-Hemingford area is nice also. A very historic area with some big city amenities.
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