Considering land in Montana/Idaho.Need feedback and advice.

12/4/11 | gimme1ibertee

[gimme1ibertee]

With all the craziness going on,i'm looking to find a relatively safe "go-to" place.I'd like to find something with plumbing,electricity not really necessary,because i'll be looking for alternate sources,maybe a generator,solar,etc....maybe within 30 or so miles of civilization for things like fuel or food.I have not traveled extensively so i'm not familiar with Montana/Idaho/or North/South Dakota laws.Any help from anyone living in these states would be appreciated.Thanks!

[gimme1ibertee]

Oh,ok...kinda like the way easterners tend to keep a wary eye on you folks from west of the Mississippi!! LOL
Thanks to the advice/feedback i've been getting from everyone,I think I may just stay east,and maybe end up with something along the eastern mountain range.No more acreage than what i'm looking for,it looks as if that's gonna be a better fit for me.
Besides,i'm not too crazy about the brutal winters. I know they can be pretty bad.I've done a little research on the lay of the land out there but didn't have enough information to make a definite decision.I wanted to hear from people who live in those states,and,now that I have,guess i'm sticking close to home.

[BooBoo1000]

Click on Google, and go to “Tobacco Valley News:. It is in the best little town in the West, Eureka Montana, 8 miles from Canadian Border. Small town 2,000 Population, Good Water supply Tobacco River runs right through town, and it is full of trout.The Name Tobacco Valley came from the old Mountain Men who used to winter there, in fact these old guys really did grow Tobacco. The weather is mild, same weather as Seattle just a day later.Good Schools. It is a town where you can do what ever you are big enough to do, but be sure you are big enough, Really Great Place. They celebrated for two days when they got their first electric Bacon Slicer. No stop lights, and the celebration lasted three days when they got a zip code. Great Place, and no Californians allowed.

[BooBoo1000]

Click on Google, and go to “Tobacco Valley News:. It is in the best little town in the West, Eureka Montana, 8 miles from Canadian Border. Small town 2,000 Population, Good Water supply Tobacco River runs right through town, and it is full of trout.The Name Tobacco Valley came from the old Mountain Men who used to winter there, in fact these old guys really did grow Tobacco. The weather is mild, same weather as Seattle just a day later.Good Schools. It is a town where you can do what ever you are big enough to do, but be sure you are big enough, Really Great Place. They celebrated for two days when they got their first electric Bacon Slicer. No stop lights, and the celebration lasted three days when they got a zip code. Great Place, and no Californians allowed.

[BooBoo1000]

Click on Google, and go to “Tobacco Valley News:. It is in the best little town in the West, Eureka Montana, 8 miles from Canadian Border. Small town 2,000 Population, Good Water supply Tobacco River runs right through town, and it is full of trout.The Name Tobacco Valley came from the old Mountain Men who used to winter there, in fact these old guys really did grow Tobacco. The weather is mild, same weather as Seattle just a day later.Good Schools. It is a town where you can do what ever you are big enough to do, but be sure you are big enough, Really Great Place. They celebrated for two days when they got their first electric Bacon Slicer. No stop lights, and the celebration lasted three days when they got a zip code. Great Place, and no Californians allowed.

[meadsjn]

I have 20 acres for sale, about 15 miles northeast of Sandpoint, Idaho; 8 miles to Wal-Mart in Ponderay. Gravel road 0.9 mile, to paved county road.

Timbered with Western Red Cedar, Fir, Hemlock, Alder, etc.; seasonal stream down the west property boundary; electric is on to a meter base; phone is at the corner of property; local wells produce good, and hit at less than 200 feet.

Timber on west 10 acres was select harvested in 1999; timber on the east 10 acres was ready to select harvest in 2010. Firewood will last in perpetuity.

Wildlife is abundant: deer, elk, moose, bear, mountain lion, etc. Must drive 15 miles to Sandpoint to hunt commies.

Slope is northwest-facing; snow 9 to 10 feet in winter; starts in November, melts in April.

933 Bobcat Lane, Sandpoint ID 83864

Price: $125,000

[gimme1ibertee]

Thanks,but i’ve decided to stay east.Good luck getting a buyer!

[WVNan]

What’s wrong with coming back to WV.? Southern WV is about as wild as it gets.

[meadsjn]

Good luck getting a buyer!

No kidding. I'm just waiting for timber prices to go back up.

[roamer_1]

Oh,ok...kinda like the way easterners tend to keep a wary eye on you folks from west of the Mississippi!! LOL

I am from Chicago - though many decades ago... I don't mean to discourage you, as I am proof it can be done. It is the idea that y'all will traipse on out here, buy a place up in the mountains and go all Jeremiah Johnson that I want to discourage - It is nothing near reality... I have seen many a greenhorn with the same dream come up here, blow a wad of money, and run tuck-tailed back to wherever they come from... Too many to count.

The winters can be brutal indeed, but not so bad on the valley floors (like where I live). We generally get between 1-3 feet of snow, though I have seen a couple winters where I could walk right onto the roof of my garage... There is usually a period of several weeks of very below-zero weather in January... But generally the streets are plowed out in a day or two, it stays just below freezing, and most folks have a 4x4 to get around in... Up in the hills just a little ways it is an entirely different story. Steep mountain roads are not plowed out unless you and your neighbors do it... Services are non-existent. Most folks heat with wood or propane up there, run generators or just stay kerosene for lights, though many (with generators) have sat for TV and internet. Some places I know park their trucks at the general store and get back and forth from there to the homestead on snowcats all winter long.

If you are looking for conservatives and independent minded people though, it is one of the best places on the planet - I wouldn't live anywhere else, except maybe ID, WY or AK... and it truly is God's country. Plan a vacation trip out next summer and you will better understand the grandeur... both the glory of it and it's inherent danger.

But if you come for real, figure to buy a modest place close to town and get your feet under you for a few years... develop some skills... THEN you can better make it happen when you want to get out into the country.

Best of luck to you, wherever you may land - And you show wisdom in getting away from the city. I don't think there are many years until those places will be a desperate place to be.

[cracker45]

Horsepucky! There are Kalifornicans all over Lincoln County from Troy all the way to Eureka. I like Libby & Troy but the retirees from the left coast have driven prices through the roof! Yes, winters throughout the area can be a bitch!

Finally started looking in N. Arkansas, but prices are climbing there too.

JC

[cracker45]

Excellent advice, except I would say rent a place first instead of buying, then when ready buy or look elsewhere while you still have options!

JC

[gimme1ibertee]

It is the idea that y'all will traipse on out here, buy a place up in the mountains and go all Jeremiah Johnson

I can tell you from the bottom of my heart that I am NOT one of those people.That is the most foolish thing a person can do.I realize that.It's so silly to me that people put more effort into researching the latest computer or flat-screen TV than where they will live or how many kids they'll have.
That's exactly why I did some research and then turned to those of you who live in that part of the country for opinion and advice.
After getting the feedback I was looking for,i've decided to stay east.Thanks! :)

[gimme1ibertee]

Southern WV is about as wild as it gets.

Whoa,don't I know it! LOL Lived there and married into the wildness....:P

[WVNan]

So? Why not come back home? The mountains are great. You might check out some of the less “wild” parts of WV. Cost of Living is not bad here. I see lots of for sale signs in our area. Buyer’s market.