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Well I finally made it. I am retired! My wife is planning on retiring in September and we are both considering moving. We would like to go West. I really love archery elk hunting and my wife would like to get away from the long Wisconsin winters. So if you were able to pick a state to live in that would offer residents great elk hunting, which state would you choose and why? Thanks, Alan
What else do you like to do besides elk hunting?
Your retired so traveling to elk hunting and living in a city that offers you more non-hunting adventures is a lot more doable.
Grand Junction has pretty mild winters and good elk hunting nearby. Plus your an 8 hour drive from multiple states for other hunting.
I personally would go to New Mexico. About an hour's drive west of Socorro. Beautiful country within a reasonable distance of hunting opportunities in NM, CO, AZ, etc.
I also think those high plains are beautiful though :)
B
NM would be my choice if I was looking for elk and moderate weather.
Agree with NM! Aside from elk, we have many other hunting opportunities:)
southern Idaho would be a good one.
Montana Hands Down No sales taxes And as a resident you could draw a breaks elk tag every year. We also have Antelope archery tags that have 100% odds for residents. WT & Mule Deer otc. Moose, Sheep, Goat & Bison tags you have a chance at drawing. Also Upland birds. And ducks and geese. If you buy a house in easten Montana away from the big City your taxes are low My tax on my place in eastern Montana are $500 a year and in Kalispll I Pay $2500 a year. If you like to fish you can catch all kinds of different fish. You can also buy a house in many of the small towns in central and eastern Montana for lees then $75k staying away from the oil fields on ND.
If oil prices stay where they are you will be able to buy houses even cheaper near the oil patches.
Congrats on your retirement, enjoy it!
Congrats on the retirement! I took the plunge last April and love it.
What else do you want besides just elk hunting? Do you like fishing? Does your wife like city stuff? Good food? Relatively nice weather in the winters?
Give us some more info and we'll be better armed to fight with each other over where you should move!
:-)
Montana - good.....Montana winter - BAD!!!
If you have family ties/grandchildren in Wisconsin just rent a place in the warm climate each year and stay there the rest of the year! I like being close to an airport and hunting all over North America mostly with my Tacoma! My wife enjoys the safety of close friends and family while I'm gone and we head to warm climates for two months each Feb/March! Good luck and enjoy retirement! The key is staying busy doing what you love and enjoying the fact that "every day is Saturday"!
My pick would be Colorado hands down. Some small foothills town within 45 min drive to Denver area. You have everything you could ever want. Big city close, airport, plains, mountains, public land, skiing, fishing. Denver airport is also a major hub for southwest and Milwaukee airport is. If you have family in Wisconsin you can fly pretty cheap. Co springs is a good choice or somewhere a little farther into the hills.
I agree with BigDan.Those smalltowns in eastern Mt have some real friendly folks.The hunting/fishing there is outstanding also.Buy yourself a bird dog to train to occupy some of your free time.The bird hunting in east Mt is excellent.Winter will still be cold,but you can't have everything.I'll retire there one day.I really like the town of Forsyth.Its location is a sportsmans dream
I've been shooting my bow outside in a t-shirt this week in N. CO. :-)
My wife refused to move to MT or WY because of the winters and the wind. I could handle it but she couldn't. Closest I can get her is to our mountain place about 10 miles from the WY border. But we have the banana belt of Fort Collins to escape to in the winter if it gets bad up there.
What state offers the best elk hunting benefits for residents. Benefits in terms of draw odds.
Jaquomo what about the smoke?. It was 45 here today and 56 one day last week. Houses near the oil patch are sky high. I have my 2015 elk and deer tags in my pocket. It was colder in FL than it was here this morning. If your from wis. you will be right at home here. Rockey Mtn. High has a new meaning in Co. Are bow season is 6 weeks long and you can hunt another 6 weeks in the gun season. Bird season starts sept and goes into jan.
Being 49 I've been thinking of this a fair amount. I'm on the 10 year plan and look to retire at 59 1/2 (semi retire, might still consult) but when I do I'm not going to buy another house. I don't see a good reason to tie up money that way unless it a good investment and small town America house's are not a good investment. I'll rent. Eastern Mt is attractive for all the reason listed. I bird hunt a lot so bouncing between NM December to May and Montana in the other months is looking most likely. I also like Georgia, good fishing, deer and hogs, bear in the mountains.
Thanks for all of the suggestions. I have a couple of hobbies that. Keep me busy. I have 3 Shiloh Sharps rifles that I love to shoot and I load all of my black powder loads. I like varment hunting using a electronic caller. I am interested in all bow hunting. Elk is my favorite but that is only a week or two in the fall if I am lucky enough to draw a tag. I have some great white tail hunting right out my back door. I also do some leather work during the winter months. Alan
I would choose a conservative state to retire in. Sadly, too many western states are not. And political party has nothing to do with that!
St. George in southern UT may not be a bad look either.
Hey Guys, Right now my wife and I are sitting in a hotel in Vegas. On the trip out here from Wisconsin I sat next to a pilot who was flying out to Vegas to take a plane to JFK. I asked him where he was from and he said the four corners. I didn't know what he was talking about so I asked him where that was and he said where Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico come together. I told him that one of the reasons for our trip was to check out places to retire. He told me I should check the area out and that he really liked living there. So on Tuesday morning we plan on taking a ride out that way. Is anyone familiar with that neck of the Woods? Alan
I plan on retiring to the Taos area of New Mexico eventually.
I love WY, but I'd rather have a place with milder winters when I retire and being from southern California, I really don't like the large day length fluxes and Mexican restaurants with white cooks that I find farther north.
You should talk to residents of each state and get a feel about how easy and what quality tags you can get.
If you can afford trespass fees, it changes where you may want to go.
Also, check out the tax structure.
MT has a relatively high marginal income tax that kicks in very low and no sales tax. Others vary, but if you make $100,000 a year, a no tax state saves enough for a quality elk hunt or two.