Idaho/Montana Hunting?
- Thread starter JeffRaines
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Orcon
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The bear bell is a fantastically practical exercise in Pavlovian response training.
N Idaho and NW Mt was a paradise - back in the sixties. My kids were raised on elk and bear. Not the same today. Bear were varmints - no tag needed and all you wanted. Elk season from 1st of Sept thru Feb. I would buy my 2 elk tags at Buttery's on the way out of town. Could hunt anywhere - no 'units'. Cougar brought a $25 bounty - friend would take 6 or 7 on weekend - lotsa money. You missed it by 50 years - sorry. Recently drove thru Cd'A on the way to Alaska - didn't even recognize it. Horrid crowds. Traffic worse than Denver. So much development we couldn't even find our prior house. Sad. If you want real wilderness then anywhere in B.C. & some of Alaska.
Richard
Richard
Same as a big city, getting anywhere is a long ordeal.
JeffRaines
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Due to us needing to work we couldn't live at a place so far out.
When we were going to fish the N. Fork Blackfoot last summer we were discussing it on the way out. As you know, you gotta go way out there to get to the public land up there. I'm sure theres even more rural areas in other part of the state. If all goes well I'm gonna be chasing antelope in unit 700 next year so I'll get to see that part of the state.
Fella's;
Hah! The traffic comments amuse me. This is coming from rural, indeed, "Outer" Montana, although I've gotten around a bit in my youth. Got to drive in Paris France for almost a year, & have also driven the N.J. Freeway, Denver, and a few other congested areas. In Montana we have, at the most, a rush 15 minutes. I'll also say that the consistently worst drivers I've ever encountered are in Great Falls Montana. But, enough of that subject.
The sad fact is, Montana is well on the way to "Gimmie a K" alifornia subversion. For instance, Missoula recently passed a city ordinance requiring background checks for all firearms transactions, even private sales. It was passed with the Missoula city council knowing full well that it was against Montana state law. But, the citizens voted the drooling idjits in, so whattaya gonna do?
OTOH, the hunting is very good, provided you do your research. For instance, last weekend the nearest unincorporated collection of souls informed me they were being bothered by black bears in town. Saturday evening I dispatched an approximate 300 lb. boar in the graveyard. They also informed me that I got one of maybe four. Too bad, I used up my tag. Not to worry though, I've told other people who want to bag a bear where to find 'em.
There's a decent antelope population in the state, though it's not like Wyoming. If you can't fill your deer tag, you need help - badly. Elk are another story. Don't get me wrong, they are not impossible to get, merely difficult. Part of that being that they like to inhabit areas where you can hunt both sides of the same acre of ground.
Wyoming is where I grew up & it's cheaper to live there even though they have a sales tax. Montana doesn't (yet), but has a state income tax (Wyoming does not) with some of the highest rates found in the U.S.A. Property taxes are higher in Montana also. Though to be fair, they're minuscule compared to this country's urban coastal areas. I've never lived in Idaho, but I've traveled in that state & it's a very scenic place. As a side note, since Wyoming doesn't want to go the way Montana seems to be, you may not get a warm welcome until they get to know you. And if you move there from Colorado, lie about where you came from.
900F
Hah! The traffic comments amuse me. This is coming from rural, indeed, "Outer" Montana, although I've gotten around a bit in my youth. Got to drive in Paris France for almost a year, & have also driven the N.J. Freeway, Denver, and a few other congested areas. In Montana we have, at the most, a rush 15 minutes. I'll also say that the consistently worst drivers I've ever encountered are in Great Falls Montana. But, enough of that subject.
The sad fact is, Montana is well on the way to "Gimmie a K" alifornia subversion. For instance, Missoula recently passed a city ordinance requiring background checks for all firearms transactions, even private sales. It was passed with the Missoula city council knowing full well that it was against Montana state law. But, the citizens voted the drooling idjits in, so whattaya gonna do?
OTOH, the hunting is very good, provided you do your research. For instance, last weekend the nearest unincorporated collection of souls informed me they were being bothered by black bears in town. Saturday evening I dispatched an approximate 300 lb. boar in the graveyard. They also informed me that I got one of maybe four. Too bad, I used up my tag. Not to worry though, I've told other people who want to bag a bear where to find 'em.
There's a decent antelope population in the state, though it's not like Wyoming. If you can't fill your deer tag, you need help - badly. Elk are another story. Don't get me wrong, they are not impossible to get, merely difficult. Part of that being that they like to inhabit areas where you can hunt both sides of the same acre of ground.
Wyoming is where I grew up & it's cheaper to live there even though they have a sales tax. Montana doesn't (yet), but has a state income tax (Wyoming does not) with some of the highest rates found in the U.S.A. Property taxes are higher in Montana also. Though to be fair, they're minuscule compared to this country's urban coastal areas. I've never lived in Idaho, but I've traveled in that state & it's a very scenic place. As a side note, since Wyoming doesn't want to go the way Montana seems to be, you may not get a warm welcome until they get to know you. And if you move there from Colorado, lie about where you came from.
900F
Dog Soldier
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Many folks from the Urban areas dream of retiring in the Intermountain West. They come and go like the Winter snows. Living in small Western towns is not always that friendly to "Flatlanders". Driving 100 miles one way for luxuries like groceries and beer can be discouraging. The long winters and shot summers take a lifetime to accept. I suggest if you want to live a provincial life go while you are young. Then retire to some sunny place with a Walmart. 
Orcon
Member
Awww yeah. Back when we used lead paint, washed our hands with benzene and 9 out of 10 doctors recommended Camel cigarettes. Those were the days.
JeffRaines
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Awww yeah. Back when we used lead paint, washed our hands with benzene and 9 out of 10 doctors recommended Camel cigarettes. Those were the days.
I'm sure it was - a lot of places(including Washington state) were a paradise back in the 60s. I don't think we'll ever get back there... in fact, I'm sure its only going to get worse. Especially around here.
Jobs are tough. Be prepared to make one or get one before you come. Housing is expensive driven mostly by the well to do imports willing to pay anything to leave where they are from. Kalispel, Missoula, Bozeman are kind of liberal and expensive. Eastern and Central Montana is full of ranches owned by out of state jerks that don't share well. Yellowstone is a disease and should be avoided at all costs.It only serves a need to keep idiots out of the good parts of the state. The game on the west side is largely gone from the wolves and USFS is planting Grizzlies everywhere. Be prepared!!! Pick your target carefully it isn't all good and living is expensive. I have lived here most of my life and hunting has always been a necessity for my winters meat. I shoot geese for recreation
jim in Anchorage
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Again, go to Alaska. Everything else is half way.
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