Where in Texas for an outdoorsman? (Austin, Lubbock: real estate, lease, home)

[tnaz32]

We are getting closer to retirement and have had people say TX may be a place to look at. I am kind of overwhelmed with the size of the state and all of the diversity. Guess my question is.......where would be an area that has outdoor activities like fishing, hunting, with a rural lifestyle yet within a reasonable driving distance of hospitals and other amentities? Reasonable here is 60-75 miles. My wife drives 125 miles a day round trip to work so for us it isn't all that far.
I am a farmer and will never get that lifestyle out of me. Looking to purchase a smaller farm or ranching operation just to keep me busy if nothing else. My home state of AZ has become a joke and I am wanting out of here.

[Westerntraveler]

What is your budget....the Hill Country is a good area but it is expensive and mainly ranching.....you would need a good sized budget to buy a ranch there prolly.

[rwr]

Originally Posted by tnaz32

We are getting closer to retirement and have had people say TX may be a place to look at. I am kind of overwhelmed with the size of the state and all of the diversity. Guess my question is.......where would be an area that has outdoor activities like fishing, hunting, with a rural lifestyle yet within a reasonable driving distance of hospitals and other amentities? Reasonable here is 60-75 miles. My wife drives 125 miles a day round trip to work so for us it isn't all that far.
I am a farmer and will never get that lifestyle out of me. Looking to purchase a smaller farm or ranching operation just to keep me busy if nothing else. My home state of AZ has become a joke and I am wanting out of here.

Sounds like the Texas Hill Country might be your best bet. Try looking in an area roughly from Hondo on the south, Camp Wood on the west, Mason on the north and Dripping Springs on the east. This area would be your best bet for ranching, but not necessarily for farming. For farming you might look east of Austin, say LaGrange/ Schulenburg area. All these places have hunting and fishing opportunities, with my personal favorite being the area to the east of Camp Wood.
Good luck and welcome to Texas.

[hoffdano]

A town like Burnet might be a good start. Very close to Lake Buchanan, though suffering from drought now is still a nice lake. Burnet is a medium-small town - enough to have amenities but still not be too big. About one hour from the general Austin area.

[High_Plains_Retired]

Originally Posted by tnaz32

.where would be an area that has outdoor activities like fishing, hunting, with a rural lifestyle yet within a reasonable driving distance of hospitals and other amentities?

Except for a wide variety in fishing spots, my South High Plains farm would meet your requirements. I have nighttime videos of mule deer (large antlered bucks, does and fawn) as well as coyotes within 15 feet of my house. Texas caprock area deer lease hunting is just a few miles away and New Mexico deer, elk and pronghorn hunting on open Federal lands is just a short drive from here.

Additionally, we're only 40 miles out of Lubbock which has some of the State's best medical facilities. I like to say we are close enough to benefit from the urban world but not so close we have to suffer it. If there are degrees of "ruralness" in Texas, we are extremely rural.

We're neither an active farm or a "ranching operation." Anytime someone asks me if I plan to "farm" this place, I tell them "No way!" My years with U.S.D.A. taught me better than to think I could be successful at that tough job.

Perhaps you need to narrow your characteristics for a new living place a bit more? The only thing that surpasses the size of Texas is it's diversity of environments in which one can choose to live.

At any rate, whenever and/or wherever you decide to settle in Texas, welcome.

[tnaz32]

Thanks for the replies! You guys have given me a couple of good starting points. I am going to check out some real estate agencies in both of these areas and get my wife to checking out employment. Thanks again!

[Westerntraveler]

Originally Posted by tnaz32

Thanks for the replies! You guys have given me a couple of good starting points. I am going to check out some real estate agencies in both of these areas and get my wife to checking out employment. Thanks again!

Anytime and good luck

[tnaz32]

High Plains Retired, we drove through a small portion of NW Texas about 6 weeks ago. It looks like the drought has taken a toll on the farmers from eastern CO south into NM. It was sad to see so many abandoned farms. Hopefully the weather guys are right and a strong El Nino can help with the drought.

[High_Plains_Retired]

Originally Posted by tnaz32

High Plains Retired, we drove through a small portion of NW Texas about 6 weeks ago. It looks like the drought has taken a toll on the farmers from eastern CO south into NM. It was sad to see so many abandoned farms. Hopefully the weather guys are right and a strong El Nino can help with the drought.

You were probably here just before the recent rains. We've received over 6" of rain in the past few weeks. It's been many years since I've seen this place as green as it is right now. However, add millions of mosquitoes to the local wildlife here now.

[Antares45]

Originally Posted by High_Plains_Retired

You were probably here just before the recent rains. We've received over 6" of rain in the past few weeks. It's been many years since I've seen this place as green as it is right now. However, add millions of mosquitoes to the local wildlife here now.

All 6 of those inches came down in less than an hour.