Pros/Cons of where you have lived
- Thread starter ewescue
- Start date
JustSomeGuy35
WKR
Washington (East & West sides): Pro's - Lot's of public land, doesn't get too cold, great fishing and hunting opportunities, lots of stuff to do.
Cons - The politics suck, homeless camps, gotta get into the steep and deep country to escape the crowds during hunting season, combat fishing when the salmon are running, cost of living is absurd.
Southern WV: Pro's - Land and cost of living is cheap, lot's of deer and big coyotes, good fishing, doesn't get too cold, if you live up in the mountains then you have max freedom, many of the people are nice, bartering for goods and services is common.
Cons - A lot of inbreds and drug addicts that can be dangerous, some of the hillbillies hate yankees with a passion, cops/ambulances are 30-45 mins away at best, shopping is 45 mins away, need new brakes and tires every 1-2 years, the deer are small, storms can knock out power for weeks or blow down dozens of trees that prevent you from driving off the mountain for several days.
NE IA/NW IL: Pro's - Cost of living is pretty decent, fishing is great on the Mississippi, a lot of deer and turkey, schools are outstanding, lots of nice parks, good scenery because of the bluffs, politics are good on the IA side, the people are decent and crime is low.
Cons - Not much public land for hunting, IL politics suck big time (new Assault Weapons Ban inbound, no NFA items are allowed), a lot of Chicago people moved into the area during the pandemic and act like jerks, the summers are hot and humid but the winters are cold as a whore's heart.
I've lived in many other places (TX, AZ, GA, LA, TN, KY) but wasn't trying to write a novel. Out of everywhere I've lived, I'd say that TN, WV, and WA were the best all around states for me because of the quality fishing, hunting, and climates.
Cons - The politics suck, homeless camps, gotta get into the steep and deep country to escape the crowds during hunting season, combat fishing when the salmon are running, cost of living is absurd.
Southern WV: Pro's - Land and cost of living is cheap, lot's of deer and big coyotes, good fishing, doesn't get too cold, if you live up in the mountains then you have max freedom, many of the people are nice, bartering for goods and services is common.
Cons - A lot of inbreds and drug addicts that can be dangerous, some of the hillbillies hate yankees with a passion, cops/ambulances are 30-45 mins away at best, shopping is 45 mins away, need new brakes and tires every 1-2 years, the deer are small, storms can knock out power for weeks or blow down dozens of trees that prevent you from driving off the mountain for several days.
NE IA/NW IL: Pro's - Cost of living is pretty decent, fishing is great on the Mississippi, a lot of deer and turkey, schools are outstanding, lots of nice parks, good scenery because of the bluffs, politics are good on the IA side, the people are decent and crime is low.
Cons - Not much public land for hunting, IL politics suck big time (new Assault Weapons Ban inbound, no NFA items are allowed), a lot of Chicago people moved into the area during the pandemic and act like jerks, the summers are hot and humid but the winters are cold as a whore's heart.
I've lived in many other places (TX, AZ, GA, LA, TN, KY) but wasn't trying to write a novel. Out of everywhere I've lived, I'd say that TN, WV, and WA were the best all around states for me because of the quality fishing, hunting, and climates.
jcaud
FNG
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2022
- Messages
- 79
Central MO
Pros: good whitetail hunting if you can find ground to hunt on, good kid of flat river bottom and some wooded hills, university close by so good for sporting events and only 1.5-2 hours to KC or STL
Cons: chunks of public land can get hit hard, starting to get closer to northern MO crop country so land is expensive
Pros: good whitetail hunting if you can find ground to hunt on, good kid of flat river bottom and some wooded hills, university close by so good for sporting events and only 1.5-2 hours to KC or STL
Cons: chunks of public land can get hit hard, starting to get closer to northern MO crop country so land is expensive
Plainsman79
WKR
- Joined
- Aug 11, 2018
- Messages
- 311
Nebraska-
Pro’s-Red state, Christian values, most people are good. Good hunting on the right property, good walleye fishing.
Con’s-Hot in the summer and cold in the winter. Windy. Very little public land 3% of the state or something like that. One of the highest taxed states in the country. Game and parks is arguably the most mis-managed of its kind and about as corrupt as they come.
Wyoming-
Pro’s-Red state, Christian values, most people are good. Great access to public land. Great hunting/fishing. Summers are nice. More opportunity than Nebraska. No state tax.
Con’s-Cold in the winter, windy.
Pro’s-Red state, Christian values, most people are good. Good hunting on the right property, good walleye fishing.
Con’s-Hot in the summer and cold in the winter. Windy. Very little public land 3% of the state or something like that. One of the highest taxed states in the country. Game and parks is arguably the most mis-managed of its kind and about as corrupt as they come.
Wyoming-
Pro’s-Red state, Christian values, most people are good. Great access to public land. Great hunting/fishing. Summers are nice. More opportunity than Nebraska. No state tax.
Con’s-Cold in the winter, windy.
vectordawg
Lil-Rokslider
Born and raised just south of Atlanta. Left in 2001, I was 27.
Pros: It was still a rural area back then but only 30 minutes or so from the airport. You can go direct to just about anywhere in the world from ATL! Great school systems! Not really crowded. Had a good childhood. Killed my first deer across the street from the house one morning before school. Lots of stuff to do in and around Atlanta. Not just city stuff. Stone Mountain was fun. If you got north of the city the Chattahoochee was clean and clear. Lots of lakes with great bass fishing and watersports. A fairly short drive to Panama City. Practically grew up there!
Cons: It is not really rural anymore and traffic is a nightmare! The crime too. You can still live within and hour or so of ATL and have everything you want and need and still have the convenience of a major airport nearby.
Northwest MS
Pros: Low cost of living. Pretty good schools in Desoto County, not so much outside of it. Holly Springs NF is close by with excellent public land turkey hunting. Getting a decent deer lease is affordable. I don't duck hunt but a ton of people do around here. Whether along the MS or over into Arkansas, you don't have to go far for ducks. Sardis Lake is close and from what I've been to told it's one of the premier crappie lakes in the world(idk if that's true). Everyone likes to hate on MS but I'll tell y'all this, during covid we were a free state. Schools, churches, stores, everything open. If you owned a business and you wanted if open, fine, open it. And the only places that forced masks were some doctor's offices. We are a solid red state.
Cons: Close to Memphis so all the riffraff comes south. No good ski lakes close. A long way to the Gulf Coast. I don't like heat and humidity anymore.
Pros: It was still a rural area back then but only 30 minutes or so from the airport. You can go direct to just about anywhere in the world from ATL! Great school systems! Not really crowded. Had a good childhood. Killed my first deer across the street from the house one morning before school. Lots of stuff to do in and around Atlanta. Not just city stuff. Stone Mountain was fun. If you got north of the city the Chattahoochee was clean and clear. Lots of lakes with great bass fishing and watersports. A fairly short drive to Panama City. Practically grew up there!
Cons: It is not really rural anymore and traffic is a nightmare! The crime too. You can still live within and hour or so of ATL and have everything you want and need and still have the convenience of a major airport nearby.
Northwest MS
Pros: Low cost of living. Pretty good schools in Desoto County, not so much outside of it. Holly Springs NF is close by with excellent public land turkey hunting. Getting a decent deer lease is affordable. I don't duck hunt but a ton of people do around here. Whether along the MS or over into Arkansas, you don't have to go far for ducks. Sardis Lake is close and from what I've been to told it's one of the premier crappie lakes in the world(idk if that's true). Everyone likes to hate on MS but I'll tell y'all this, during covid we were a free state. Schools, churches, stores, everything open. If you owned a business and you wanted if open, fine, open it. And the only places that forced masks were some doctor's offices. We are a solid red state.
Cons: Close to Memphis so all the riffraff comes south. No good ski lakes close. A long way to the Gulf Coast. I don't like heat and humidity anymore.
loganwayne
WKR
Western NC
Pros- small town, lots of national forest to explore and hunt low deer density but big ones hiding in there. Within 4hrs I can just about hunt or fish for anything I'd want. Minus western big game. 6 deer tags in NC, 10 in GA, SC 4 bucks and lots of does, Tennessee alot. All of them I can be in to good areas in about 2 hrs. And tags are cheap.
Cons- national forest aren't managed well for game. NC has a little bit of everything but not alot of anything. Asheville. It's becoming crowded, leasing land to hunt is expensive and buying land is becoming more and more expensive. You need to be close to asheville to have a good job.
Pros- small town, lots of national forest to explore and hunt low deer density but big ones hiding in there. Within 4hrs I can just about hunt or fish for anything I'd want. Minus western big game. 6 deer tags in NC, 10 in GA, SC 4 bucks and lots of does, Tennessee alot. All of them I can be in to good areas in about 2 hrs. And tags are cheap.
Cons- national forest aren't managed well for game. NC has a little bit of everything but not alot of anything. Asheville. It's becoming crowded, leasing land to hunt is expensive and buying land is becoming more and more expensive. You need to be close to asheville to have a good job.
roadrunner
WKR
Same for New Mexico except add the stench of liberalism...
Pittsburgh (I’m 40 mins out ).
Pros- tons of public land around. A 2 hour drive and I’m in the middle of nowhere I can hunt all of archery and see a handful of other people.
The deer are getting bigger by the year
Long seasons depending on location. I can hunt deer from middle of sept to middle of January weee I live.
Cons- politics.
Shitty weather
Pros- tons of public land around. A 2 hour drive and I’m in the middle of nowhere I can hunt all of archery and see a handful of other people.
The deer are getting bigger by the year
Long seasons depending on location. I can hunt deer from middle of sept to middle of January weee I live.
Cons- politics.
Shitty weather
CorbLand
WKR
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2016
- Messages
- 8,516
At least you have decent hunting.
Muskykris
Lil-Rokslider
SE Ontario
Pros:
I live on the st Lawrence river and the fishing is great walleye musky, and smallmouth.
we have decent sized deer body weight and antler size
I’m guessing 80%+ of the province is public land.
Moose and black bear hunting in the province is good.
Merica is only a short drive away.
Cons:
Liberals running our country into the dirt and are currently focused on trying to take our guns
Majority of our population is all to the south along Lake Ontario and the st Lawrence
Pros:
I live on the st Lawrence river and the fishing is great walleye musky, and smallmouth.
we have decent sized deer body weight and antler size
I’m guessing 80%+ of the province is public land.
Moose and black bear hunting in the province is good.
Merica is only a short drive away.
Cons:
Liberals running our country into the dirt and are currently focused on trying to take our guns
Majority of our population is all to the south along Lake Ontario and the st Lawrence
roadrunner
WKR
But, at the price of a CA mentality...
OP
OP
ewescue
Lil-Rokslider
- Joined
- Jan 29, 2020
- Messages
- 125
Very diverse insight, keep'em coming
el_jefe_pescado
Lil-Rokslider
VA - Pros: Massive National Forest (by eastern standards) in the Western Portion of the State. Chesapeake Bay to the East creates an abundance of fishing and waterfowl opportunities. Rich history and excellent education system.
Cons: A huge influx of growth has made the state unrecognizable. Northern VA is one of the most expensive areas in the US.
MD - Pros: Excellent deer, turkey and waterfowl hunting. Sika Deer hunting on the Eastern Shore should be a bucket list item for everyone. Fishing the Chesapeake Bay. Blue Crabs.
Cons: Exorbitant cost of living. All the above mentioned activities in rapid decline. Soggy winter.
SC - Pros: Great people, great fishing. Hunting is good, but you need private ground. Public land exists throughout the state but competition is certainly present. Gamecock football.
Cons: Humidity, lack of great jobs, turkeys are too smart
CO - Pros: Hunting, fishing, skiing, biking, camping, boating. Western state with “the perks” of big city life (Professional sports teams, shopping, food, culture, International airport, “great” education system). Absolutely beautiful state. Almost perfect four season weather.
Cons: The cat has been out of the bag on Colorado for 20 years (terrible in the last five). Exponential human growth has had a resounding effect on the quality of recreation in the state. Racing other headlamps up a mountain gets pretty old after awhile. Political landscape is rapidly changing.
Southern MT - Pros: If you are willing to work there are plenty of great elk hunting opportunities on public land. Deer, waterfowl and upland birds to fill in the freezer gaps. Still the fly fishing mecca of the lower 48. Incredibly friendly people. Beyond the hunting there is huge amount of ecological diversity throughout the state.
Cons: Cold, windy and dark. Mule Deer hunting is underwhelming. Four legged critters that will actually eat you. Millions of tourists flooding the parks and surrounding national forests. Rivers are overcrowded with users. The cost of living is out of this world…Did I mention it was windy?
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Cons: A huge influx of growth has made the state unrecognizable. Northern VA is one of the most expensive areas in the US.
MD - Pros: Excellent deer, turkey and waterfowl hunting. Sika Deer hunting on the Eastern Shore should be a bucket list item for everyone. Fishing the Chesapeake Bay. Blue Crabs.
Cons: Exorbitant cost of living. All the above mentioned activities in rapid decline. Soggy winter.
SC - Pros: Great people, great fishing. Hunting is good, but you need private ground. Public land exists throughout the state but competition is certainly present. Gamecock football.
Cons: Humidity, lack of great jobs, turkeys are too smart
CO - Pros: Hunting, fishing, skiing, biking, camping, boating. Western state with “the perks” of big city life (Professional sports teams, shopping, food, culture, International airport, “great” education system). Absolutely beautiful state. Almost perfect four season weather.
Cons: The cat has been out of the bag on Colorado for 20 years (terrible in the last five). Exponential human growth has had a resounding effect on the quality of recreation in the state. Racing other headlamps up a mountain gets pretty old after awhile. Political landscape is rapidly changing.
Southern MT - Pros: If you are willing to work there are plenty of great elk hunting opportunities on public land. Deer, waterfowl and upland birds to fill in the freezer gaps. Still the fly fishing mecca of the lower 48. Incredibly friendly people. Beyond the hunting there is huge amount of ecological diversity throughout the state.
Cons: Cold, windy and dark. Mule Deer hunting is underwhelming. Four legged critters that will actually eat you. Millions of tourists flooding the parks and surrounding national forests. Rivers are overcrowded with users. The cost of living is out of this world…Did I mention it was windy?
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Raleigh, NC area
Pro- Good place to grow up in Suburbia USA. Good schools (K-University) and jobs. Limited outdoors within an hr. Close to beach and mountains. Diverse population.
Con- Very limited outdoors opportunities. Suburbia. Has grown to be unrecognizable. Summer is hot AF.
Charleston, SC
Pro- Highest concentration of beautiful women in the USA, seriously not LA, not NYC, not FL....Damn good food and bev, good fishing, waterfowl, beaches, music scene.
Con- Out of the way, expensive, poor schools, I can't be expected to adult there (everything involves drinking and did i mention beautiful women)
Columbia, SC
Pro- Nice lakes with too many people.
Cons- Everything else. Palpable racism, goes both ways. Hot AF.
Greenville, SC
Pros- All around good mid sized city. Access to mtns, lakes, good food, reasonable living expenses. Good job opportunities.
Cons- Lots of traffic, schools aren't great
Asheville, NC
Pros- Beautiful, easy access to public lands. Food and Bev is amazing. Great Music. Best weather in the country.
Cons- Traffic, high cost of living for the SE, a for profit hospital controls the entire region (my industry)
Durango, CO
Pros- Asheville turned up to 10. Everything outdoors right out the back door.
Cons- Cost of living. All our family lives back east. Food and bev is weak. Way out of the way/expensive flights.
West of Durango
Pros- nothing, don't look here it is terrible.
Cons- School system, good Ol boy politics, poor job opportunities.
Pro- Good place to grow up in Suburbia USA. Good schools (K-University) and jobs. Limited outdoors within an hr. Close to beach and mountains. Diverse population.
Con- Very limited outdoors opportunities. Suburbia. Has grown to be unrecognizable. Summer is hot AF.
Charleston, SC
Pro- Highest concentration of beautiful women in the USA, seriously not LA, not NYC, not FL....Damn good food and bev, good fishing, waterfowl, beaches, music scene.
Con- Out of the way, expensive, poor schools, I can't be expected to adult there (everything involves drinking and did i mention beautiful women)
Columbia, SC
Pro- Nice lakes with too many people.
Cons- Everything else. Palpable racism, goes both ways. Hot AF.
Greenville, SC
Pros- All around good mid sized city. Access to mtns, lakes, good food, reasonable living expenses. Good job opportunities.
Cons- Lots of traffic, schools aren't great
Asheville, NC
Pros- Beautiful, easy access to public lands. Food and Bev is amazing. Great Music. Best weather in the country.
Cons- Traffic, high cost of living for the SE, a for profit hospital controls the entire region (my industry)
Durango, CO
Pros- Asheville turned up to 10. Everything outdoors right out the back door.
Cons- Cost of living. All our family lives back east. Food and bev is weak. Way out of the way/expensive flights.
West of Durango
Pros- nothing, don't look here it is terrible.
Cons- School system, good Ol boy politics, poor job opportunities.
Fjellvei
Lil-Rokslider
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2022
- Messages
- 107
SE Louisiana
Pros: Duck hunting, red and speck fishing are all really good.
Cons: Lots of poverty and not much economic opportunity. The landscape is really flat and not all that diverse.
SE Tennessee
Pros: A fair amount of job opportunity (although not a ton of high paying jobs). Diverse landscape with lots of mountains and lakes. Excellent bass fishing lakes and trout fishing is good too. Hunting is pretty good. Deer and turkey populations are decent. A good amount of public. Most people are similar in their politics. Good place to raise families as long as you are outside of the bigger cities.
Cons: The duck hunting is non existent unless you've got a private pond you can shoot wood ducks off of. Had a huge migration of people from blue states that are bringing their politics with them. The big cities are run by morons and crime is getting out of hand. Traffic is bad.
Pros: Duck hunting, red and speck fishing are all really good.
Cons: Lots of poverty and not much economic opportunity. The landscape is really flat and not all that diverse.
SE Tennessee
Pros: A fair amount of job opportunity (although not a ton of high paying jobs). Diverse landscape with lots of mountains and lakes. Excellent bass fishing lakes and trout fishing is good too. Hunting is pretty good. Deer and turkey populations are decent. A good amount of public. Most people are similar in their politics. Good place to raise families as long as you are outside of the bigger cities.
Cons: The duck hunting is non existent unless you've got a private pond you can shoot wood ducks off of. Had a huge migration of people from blue states that are bringing their politics with them. The big cities are run by morons and crime is getting out of hand. Traffic is bad.
sodaksooner
WKR
You could have hunted elk on Ft sill..... Active duty get tags for the base. I'm from Western SD originally and mirror your thoughts there.
Currently in OK. Decent amount of public land. Decent, not great, hunting. Great fishing. I like to bike, so good culture here in Tulsa and close to Northwest Arkansas. Close to Colorado, so just a day to get to elk country. Very red politically. Good cost of living. It does get shitty hot in the Summer though.
derrick454@
FNG
- Joined
- Dec 3, 2022
- Messages
- 92
Only lived in Washington state but work in mainly in Alaska
Pros in WA:
The chinook salmon especially the great eating spring chinook that are available thru out the Columbia River system.
Crab and clams are pretty easy to come by
Climate is very pretty easy to deal with
Definitely hunting opportunities but crowds are thick and predators are taking over and need to be controlled
Beautiful landscape, rivers & mountains
Cons in WA
Cost of living getting like California
Politics and anti gun people everywhere even rural (not really where I live as my neighbor wears a side arm to work around his house)
Trash is horrible. Even rural where I live I’m constantly trying to keep our drainage ditches clear of trash on the mountain road
Also our river sides are full of trash
It’s not just the homeless it’s just a lot of lazy good for nothing people.
I think a NW city was rated the most lazy in some magazines
Either Seattle or Portland
Homeless everywhere even rural
Crappy drivers and even more nowadays
Traffic if you live on the west side
I have property on the west side and east and will eventually relocate east. Less people and harder winters east so hopefully it keeps some people OUT
More like minded people east of mountains.
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Pros in WA:
The chinook salmon especially the great eating spring chinook that are available thru out the Columbia River system.
Crab and clams are pretty easy to come by
Climate is very pretty easy to deal with
Definitely hunting opportunities but crowds are thick and predators are taking over and need to be controlled
Beautiful landscape, rivers & mountains
Cons in WA
Cost of living getting like California
Politics and anti gun people everywhere even rural (not really where I live as my neighbor wears a side arm to work around his house)
Trash is horrible. Even rural where I live I’m constantly trying to keep our drainage ditches clear of trash on the mountain road
Also our river sides are full of trash
It’s not just the homeless it’s just a lot of lazy good for nothing people.
I think a NW city was rated the most lazy in some magazines
Either Seattle or Portland
Homeless everywhere even rural
Crappy drivers and even more nowadays
Traffic if you live on the west side
I have property on the west side and east and will eventually relocate east. Less people and harder winters east so hopefully it keeps some people OUT
More like minded people east of mountains.
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derrick454@
FNG
- Joined
- Dec 3, 2022
- Messages
- 92
Surprisingly for those who don’t frequently visit the NW a person would think we are the cleanest area around with all the environment type groups.
Wrongly it’s not. Probably the dirtiest area
It’s embarrassing
Some day I hope I can drive down the road with out seeing a bunch of trash
Off course WA shut down all trash cleanup because they are so afraid of covid. They just recently started cleaning again but it got so bad during Covid it will take years to recover
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Wrongly it’s not. Probably the dirtiest area
It’s embarrassing
Some day I hope I can drive down the road with out seeing a bunch of trash
Off course WA shut down all trash cleanup because they are so afraid of covid. They just recently started cleaning again but it got so bad during Covid it will take years to recover
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