Best Area for Ranching (Work & Lifestyle) Near Mountians and City

[branDcalf]

You make some good points, Urbex. Of course, I'm in agreement about recommending people come visit before making the investment of moving.

I'm just going to ramble about some of the things I like about being here.

One of the things I like about Wyoming is that living here requires one to be resourceful.

I make do with the available shopping and find that I don't need much of what I thought I needed. There are fewer people with whom to socialize, so I broaden my interests and preferences to include more of them. And I appreciate that others do likewise to include me! My friends and relatives in other areas seem to have constricted social circles.

Fewer service providers (plumbers, electricians, carpenters, welders) and not a lot of disposable income has made me learn skills I otherwise may have hired to have done. I'm a crummy welder, but all three of my daughters are pretty good at more than one kind.

I think it is better to be challenged these ways, but I know from meeting and working with people from more populated areas, some find it completely unacceptable and are not happy. Others embrace the challenges and thrive.

[urbex]

Originally Posted by branDcalf

You make some good points, Urbex. Of course, I'm in agreement about recommending people come visit before making the investment of moving.

Oh, that's a mistake I'll never make again! The last time was more of a spur of the moment, woke up one morning and decided it was time for a change. I think it was less than two weeks between that moment, and actually getting on the road. Ahhh....the stupidity of youth, lol. This time is a planned move, with plenty of time behind it, and I'm thinking it will be a couple years out at least, as I'd like to at least get the associates degree part of my schooling done first. I don't plan on going into ranching/farming as a career, despite wanting to move to a ranching/farming area,lol, so I figure having a degree under my belt will only help to open up more opportunities.

[countryway]

Originally Posted by urbex

I think part of the problem here is that everyone's definition of things like "authentic western", or "cowboy culture" is different to everyone, and I suspect that the OPs desires are based more what he/she sees on TV and in the movies than what exists in real life.

I'm not one to get easily aggravated, but I continuously feel that many folks on here are getting the wrong impression of what I am looking for. I have repeatedly explained it in as much detail as I can do, but many of you are misunderstanding what I am saying. Its starting to wear me slick, I tell you what.

Urbex: I am not looking for something from TV. That is preposterous. This lifestyle I am talking about I have seen all over the Midwest, AND ARIZONA, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oklahoma. Its not some secret society at all. We could move to Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma or Texas and get this in a heartbeat. However, we were inquiring into Wyoming for the sake of the mountains nearby among other reasons.

Its not John Wayne, Roy Rogers or Gene Autry. Its not Cowboy Gatherings or any of that sort. I am not looking to mosey along the range on my trusted horse, Ol' Paint, singing a song about prairy dogs with a band of guitar-slinging crooners alongside.

My OP explains it as well as many following posts give more of an expository. In short, I want a ranching/agrarian based community that is too "big", "cosmopolitian", or just plain full of traffic and modern-paced lifestyle, but that is nearby a city that has medical facilities, within an hour or so (give or take). Folks that enjoy country living and values. Cheyenne and Casper are too big. My fear is that Sheridan is becoming or will become like Casper and Cheyenne. We want to live in a more rural-type community but that is not too far removed from a city with medical services.

I am not looking for cowboys roaming the streets with spurs that go jingle-jangle-jingle. I'm not looking for a town full of dimestore cowboys either. We want a simple, country lifestyle with a ranching community around, that is in proximity to the mountains and within an hour of medical services. I'm not trying to be in a western at all. If I wanted something like that I could live in Tombstone. Which I did for a time, but not for that purpose. I like an environment that celebrates traditional Western life in moderation with the best of today's life.

Thanks for posting your ideas on the thread. I wish you luck on your move as well. If you have any questions for me about Southern Wyoming, I am quite familiar with the I-80 corridor of communities. You might even like Fort Collins or Loveland Colorado. I live in that area and could give you help with that too if you like. I am moving from this area soon, because I don't like it at all. I would give you objective observations though. Take care.

[countryway]

Thanks you folks for your involvement. I appreciate the help I got from many of you. I don't feel the need to continue on with the thread.

Thanks again, and take care.