Moving to Montana

[MT257]

If she goes to an area in NE Montana she may qualify for loan repayment

I believe any teaching job falls in that catergory as long as you have your employer verify that you are a teacher each year.

 

[Okhotnik]

What are your reasons for not wanting to live these places? Ive grown up in one an spent considerable time in a few others, it is what you make of it.

A lot of people say they want to live the Montana experience but really mean the want “Montana lite” and then want to change Montana to resemble the place they were escaping

 

[hobbes]

What are your reasons for not wanting to live these places? Ive grown up in one an spent considerable time in a few others, it is what you make of it.

They are all Montana and I'd be happy in either one of them if they kept me in MT, but if I'm being asked and I have the choice, I'd prefer to not live in them for various reasons.

Cut Bank and Shelby are both nice small MT towns, but I don't care for the wind and the open and I prefer to be closer to the mountains. I misspoke about Shelby being too close to Browning, that's Cut Bank. Ruffle feathers or not, the reservations are rough places and I have no desire to all but live on one. Cut Bank is too close. However, I've met good folks in both.

I hunt around Roundup on occasion and have met some good folks there as well, but its barely keeping one restaurant afloat and appears to be a dieing town

Glendive and Sidney are ok, but the Bakken oil fields had them turned into a $$$#& show for a while. I have no interest in being in the middle of that if it cranks back up.

Hardin is all but on the res same as Cut Bank. I'd take Cut Bank over Hardin.

Livingston, as stated, has insane winds. I like the town, but dangit the wind that funnels up from the south is crazy.


As far as the statement above about "Montana lite", I'm assuming that's directed at me. It couldn't be farther from the truth for me. I have no interest in making MT anything like where I've been. However, I suppose I'll never measure up to those who believe you need three generations or more behind you to be a Montanan. All of those places mentioned are still Montana and I'd be damn proud to call any one of them home, but if I have an option (and I typically do) I'd choose other places in Montana. That's not to say there aren't good folks there, because there are fine folks everywhere in MT from what I can see.

 

[Billinsd]

A lot of people say they want to live the Montana experience but really mean the want “Montana lite” and then want to change Montana to resemble the place they were escaping

Eastern Montana seemed to be different. I stayed at a hotel in Baker that was owned by a California family. Parents had careers at the Mariott, saved their pennies and bought a couple hotels. The woman said she loved the life and wanred to raise her kids their. She had no intention or desire to change the place, because that's why she moved there. Instead she would leave for California once or twice a year to get her fill of everything avaliable there, that wasn't available in Montana. She also told me how eastern and western Montana/Wyoming are very different politcally and that's why she lives in the eastern part and why I like it too. At a liquor store the Manager said a lawyer from New York lived in town, but would travel back to New York. In Glasgow at an autoparts store and employee, I think from San Diego, said housing was cheap and he could afford to have his own place, living on his salary. He was tired of having to live with roomates. I didn't see any signs of people moving to Eastern Montana wanting to change it. I don't think Eastern Montana is very hip or cool and I love that....

 

[hobbes]

Eastern Montana seemed to be different. I stayed at a hotel in Baker that was owned by a California family. Parents had careers at the Mariott, saved their pennies and bought a couple hotels. The woman said she loved the life and wanred to raise her kids their. She had no intention or desire to change the place, because that's why she moved there. Instead she would leave for California once or twice a year to get her fill of everything avaliable there, that wasn't available in Montana. She also told me how eastern and western Montana/Wyoming are very different politcally and that's why she lives in the eastern part and why I like it too. At a liquor store the Manager said a lawyer from New York lived in town, but would travel back to New York. I didn't see any signs of people moving to Eastern Montana wanting to change it. I don't think Eastern Montana is very hip or cool and I love that....

I love that about Eastern MT also. I especially love the deer and the pheasants. I hunt both in northeast MT and killed my last turkey of the 2019 season between Broadus and Baker. Had dinner with a couple different rancher's that were fantastic people from the same family that migrated there 35 years ago from Minnesota. I'm from rural farm country, so it feels like home. But.....give me the mountains.

 

[Billinsd]

I love that about Eastern MT also. I especially love the deer and the pheasants. I hunt both in northeast MT and killed my last turkey of the 2019 season between Broadus and Baker. Had dinner with a couple different rancher's that were fantastic people from the same family that migrated there 35 years ago from Minnesota. I'm from rural farm country, so it feels like home. But.....give me the mountains.

My parents moved from Minnesota. Both sides of my family ancestry is farming. I too, prefer the mountains, but I do like the prairies a lot!! and the people. I was very, very sad to leave. That's what people say, I was sad to come home from Montana.

 

[Billinsd]

Glendive and Sidney are ok, but the Bakken oil fields had them turned into a $$$#& show for a while. I have no interest in being in the middle of that if it cranks back up

What do mean? The workers were wild, there were lots of them? I've heard stories of the oilfields in Eastern Montana/western North Dakota, but have no experience.

 

[hobbes]

What do mean? The workers were wild, there were lots of them? I've heard stories of the oilfields in Eastern Montana/western North Dakota, but have no experience.

This is my opinion of the Bakken aside from making us less dependant on foreign oil:

Sidney more so than Glendive and Williston, ND more than either. You couldn't find a hotel room, traffic increased dramatically (especially trucks), crime increased. From what I could see and hear about, local law enforcement wasn't prepared for it, and the local community could barely support the influx of people. Williston's population exploded with workers living in man camps wherever they could be put up and that all spilled over into MT. Rentals evaporated and what could be found went through the roof as far as cost goes. McDonald's in Sidney was offering at least 18 an hour and couldn't find workers because the oil fields were paying more. The paying more sounds good, but how does the local community support something like that. The heck of it is once the local community bulks up to support something like that, oil prices drop, jobs disappear, and they are left trying to adjust back down.

 

[Billinsd]

Yep, that's what I heard too. I contemplated moving over there for the BIG bucks and excitement. I got a degree in Civil Engineering and Geology and figured I could get an exciting job. I realized real quickly it would not be real good for the family, though and my day job is too good to quit. I did think REAL hard about it. I got a degree in Geology for the very reason of wanting to work for an oil company and get a job in Wyoming. My dad was a developer and looked around Eastern Wyoming in the early 80s when it was booming. He drove around and talked to several geologists at oil rigs. He said if I got a degree in Geology, I could get a high paying job with a truck, and a rifle rack and be able to go deer hunting after work. That got me off my butt and changed my major from business to geology. I figured I'd flunk out in a year, but I didn't. The rest is history...... : )

 

[Okhotnik]

Eastern Montana seemed to be different. I stayed at a hotel in Baker that was owned by a California family. Parents had careers at the Mariott, saved their pennies and bought a couple hotels. The woman said she loved the life and wanred to raise her kids their. She had no intention or desire to change the place, because that's why she moved there. Instead she would leave for California once or twice a year to get her fill of everything avaliable there, that wasn't available in Montana. She also told me how eastern and western Montana/Wyoming are very different politcally and that's why she lives in the eastern part and why I like it too. At a liquor store the Manager said a lawyer from New York lived in town, but would travel back to New York. In Glasgow at an autoparts store and employee, I think from San Diego, said housing was cheap and he could afford to have his own place, living on his salary. He was tired of having to live with roomates. I didn't see any signs of people moving to Eastern Montana wanting to change it. I don't think Eastern Montana is very hip or cool and I love that....

Me too

 

[hobbes]

Yep, that's what I heard too. I contemplated moving over there for the BIG bucks and excitement. I got a degree in Civil Engineering and Geology and figured I could get an exciting job. I realized real quickly it would not be real good for the family, though and my day job is too good to quit. I did think REAL hard about it. I got a degree in Geology for the very reason of wanting to work for an oil company and get a job in Wyoming. My dad was a developer and looked around Eastern Wyoming in the early 80s when it was booming. He drove around and talked to several geologists at oil rigs. He said if I got a degree in Geology, I could get a high paying job with a truck, and a rifle rack and be able to go deer hunting after work. That got me off my butt and changed my major from business to geology. I figured I'd flunk out in a year, but I didn't. The rest is history...... : )

I have a degree in Civil Engineer also. It's been good to me and got me into both CO and MT.

 

[Midwest.Bushlore]

My parents moved from Minnesota. Both sides of my family ancestry is farming. I too, prefer the mountains, but I do like the prairies a lot!! and the people. I was very, very sad to leave. That's what people say, I was sad to come home from Montana.

Minnesota has a lot going for it, too! Tons of lakes and forests, great hunting, fishing, camping, etc. The taxes are a bit high and winters royally suck, though.

 

[2ski]

I stopped in Great Falls early last September after midnight looking for a hotel. I got gas and looked around and saw a lot of tweakers. It definitely didn't feel safe. I felt like I was in some bad area at the outskirts of LA or Riverside!!! I got back on the freeway as fast as I could and drove to Helena which looked a little nicer. Great Falls reminds me of Grand Junction, but not nearly as pleasant. I spent a couple days there last September after I ran into a nice buck northweast of town. I've NEVER EVER seen so many deer and speedgoats along the highway in my entire life!!! I felt this urge to pull over, because I was going to hit something. So, I come over a hill and 4 bucks are crossing the road as I slow down. One of them did a 180 after crossing the road and bam. Same thing happened to my dad in our old 59 Ford truck, only it was at Lake Havasu and it was a donkey!!! I spent a lot of time in Glasgow and I REALLY like it. I'd like to buy a house or something there. My wife said she will come and visit me, and I said, don't worry I won't live there in the winter. It's still too rural for her. I took Cape air out of there to Billings at least twice for less money that it would take for gas. I understand the flights are subsidized. This is a great place if you want to get a way from the zombie apocalypse!!! What's wrong with Shelby? I did not make it there? I take it, it's a real small town. By the way the calendars stopped back there, somewhere in the early 70s or so. I was quite taken back that hardware stores done lock the lawnmowers and machines they leave out during the day. The crime rate is probably super low.......

I got news for you. Every town in MT has tweakers. A lot of them. Where you stopped in GF, I don't know. I live in Bzm and we have a lot of tweakers. People just don't see it. Over by the fairgrounds, the Darlington, the baby factory, all the trailer parks, the backroads around 4 corners, Gallatin Gateway. All tweaker areas. But most people don't realize it. They have this idealistic idea of Bzm and it's not what it is.

 

[mtmuley]

Missoula, only 40 miles from Montana. mtmuley

 

[Billinsd]

I got news for you. Every town in MT has tweakers. A lot of them. Where you stopped in GF, I don't know. I live in Bzm and we have a lot of tweakers. People just don't see it. Over by the fairgrounds, the Darlington, the baby factory, all the trailer parks, the backroads around 4 corners, Gallatin Gateway. All tweaker areas. But most people don't realize it. They have this idealistic idea of Bzm and it's not what it is.

I saw tweekers at a small town 70 miles east of Boise in the 90s. So, yes, I'm not really shocked, just disappointed. Bill

 

[Okhotnik]

Minnesota has a lot going for it, too! Tons of lakes and forests, great hunting, fishing, camping, etc. The taxes are a bit high and winters royally suck, though.

I grew up in nw WI in a small less than a 1,000 farming town and all the small rural towns in Minnesota and Wisconsin and Iowa have tweekers and heroin addicts. All rural areas in the US have been affected unfortunately by the importation of cheap meth and heroin from Mexico the past decade.

 

[thinhorn_AK]

My good friend is the new principal in anaconda, PM me if you want.

 

[TreyPound]

1) I don't know about racism but that part of Montana I found to be unfriendly to outsiders.
2) Hard to say but cost of living is high and wages often don't do a good job keeping up with the cost of living.
3) Don't know
4) See number 2
5) There is shopping in both towns more in Missoula.
6) It's a college town and a bit more liberal but not like Berkely. Outside of Missoula is VERY conservative.
7) I was so broke I wasn't able to do much but there are lots of outdoor activities.
8) Low humidity, long winters, nice summers.
9) Give a bear or moose a wide berth. Bring pepper spray in the mountains, there is little to worry about in town. A fox weighs about ten pounds and unless it's rabid will run from you.
10) Do your research and homework before moving. Montana can be a nice place to live but it's not easy to make a living and the pretty mountains don't pay your bills and you can't eat them.

 

[Midwest.Bushlore]

I grew up in nw WI in a small less than a 1,000 farming town and all the small rural towns in Minnesota and Wisconsin and Iowa have tweekers and heroin addicts. All rural areas in the US have been affected unfortunately by the importation of cheap meth and heroin from Mexico the past decade.

Meth is everywhere it seems, nothing unique to MN- seems that there's a lot of meth in ID, MT, SD, ND, etc. But IMO it doesn't ruin the states by any means. So far I haven't run into tweakers way out in the woods much.

 

[rustneversleeps]

It's too bad that Montana is no longer accepting new residents. I got in just in time just before the 1 million cap. But.....you can still visit for a couple weeks a year.

Nobody is paying any attention, seriously can't believe the flood of out of staters these last few years.