Thinkin' 'bout Wyoming...

[Pony]

Anyone here 'steading in Wyoming? Whereabouts?

What do you like about it? What do you DISlike about it?

I've read that it's a conservative state, except where it borders CO.

Any thoughts, suggestions, warnings appreciated.

[Cabin Fever]

I've vacationed in Wyoming several times during July to attend the "Daddy of "Em All" (ie, Cheyenne Frontier Days. All I can say is, "hold on to your hat"...the strong wind seems to never cease.

[SFM in KY]

I grew up on a MT ranch just across the Wyoming line and lived/worked in the Sheridan, WY area for years.

Weather, of course, is extreme. Long winters, snow, cold and lots of wind. Much of Wyoming is "high desert" ... very dry. In many places you have about a 90-day growing season and I've seen snow on the ground every month except July and August and I've been snowed on in the mountains in July as well.

Snow pack provides the majority of the moisture, water is a major concern almost anywhere in WY. Check water rights and irrigation rights on anything you look at. Gardens have to be watered to produce.

People are more or less like people anywhere. Rural areas are pretty self-sufficient and independent but tend to be a little wary of people moving in from other places as they have had a lot of trouble with "newcomers" who retire and get involved with the various Animal Rights/ PETA/ Wolf re-introduction and so on. If you end up in one of the "pretty" places where there have been a lot of east and west coast retirees already moved in you may find attitudes that are a bit 'different'.

I think you either love it or hate it ... not much in between.

[bluefish]

Ditto what SFM said. Can't emphasize the water issue enough. In a lot of places, you have to haul your water. We did that for 7 years down there. Gardening, livestock, homesteading is possible there, but it's a whole different ball game with a steep learning curve.

In the small towns that haven't been taken over by easterners/Californians, there's a definite 'good ol' boy' network as well. If you can avoid or get in with it, you're good, of not, well.........

That said, we loved it there!

[Pony]

I'm already struggling with the wind issue here. My anxiety level goes up, up, up when the prairie wind keeps blowing and blowing and blowing....

I was thinking more of south central WY; not crazy about moving to a shorter gardening season.

[nadja]

I have spent time up there in the winter. Winter up there is just that ........ Winter, and if your not preparred for it, you will most likely just spend it holed up in your house, waiting for the snow to melt so you can get the h... out of there..

[Fourthistles]

Wyoming native here. The above posts are all on target. I garden in zone 3.5 to 4 and it's always a challenge. It heats up fast and it doesn't rain during the growing season, you have to irrigate. I do use a fair amount of gray water to help out. Agriculture is always right on the edge of disaster here due to the small amount of precipitation. Land prices are high, obscenely so in many places. State sales tax is 4%, many counties have additional. There is no state income tax. Politacally, Wyoming is a REPUBLICAN state with very conservative views. The old cattle baron era thinking is alive and well here.

[SFM in KY]

Originally Posted by Pony

I'm already struggling with the wind issue here. My anxiety level goes up, up, up when the prairie wind keeps blowing and blowing and blowing....

I was thinking more of south central WY; not crazy about moving to a shorter gardening season.

South central as in between Casper and Cheyenne? Wind, definitely ... and you will not have anything like the growing season there that you do where you are now.

[Our Little Farm]

Pony. You need to move here, near me. No iffs or buts! LOL
I'll find you a lovely place!

OLF

[plowjockey]

Originally Posted by Pony

I'm already struggling with the wind issue here. My anxiety level goes up, up, up when the prairie wind keeps blowing and blowing and blowing....

I was thinking more of south central WY; not crazy about moving to a shorter gardening season.

Been in and through WY, many times, year round. The wind blows strong, every day.

It would be a deal breaker for me to live there, because of the wind.

[Pony]

Originally Posted by Our Little Farm

Pony. You need to move here, near me. No iffs or buts! LOL
I'll find you a lovely place!

OLF

Sent you a pm!

[Ed Norman]

I've hunted all over WY many times and driven across it many more. It is the only state I know of where I can depend on bucking a headwind both directions across the state. The most fascinating part I found was the far NE corner close to the South Dakota line. It was hilly and wet and had trees and beaver swamps and looked like you might be able to grow something. The Red Desert in the big middle is great for antelope, coyotes and jackrabbits, plus a strange herd of elk. There were some little settlements of 1 acre with a mobile home, I heard these were the people who bought the WY retirement dream homes for cheap back in the 70s and 80s, that used to be advertised in the back of magazines. One acre of alkali and two sagebrushes if you are really lucky.

Jackson area looks like a lost cause to me, just like Sun Valley in Idaho. Rawlins seems to be a place for miserable weather. I've spent quite a bit of time there and it is always some kind of extreme going on. Heat, cold, snow, wind...

[JWK]

Originally Posted by Our Little Farm

Pony. You need to move here, near me. No iffs or buts! LOL
I'll find you a lovely place!

OLF

In what part of the country are you? My wife and I are searching for good places to live...soon. Just looking for info and opinions!

[Billie in MO]

I'm afraid I have to agree with everyone above. We used to live in Cheyenne and have been all over the state and the wind does NOT stop!! Forget Chicago being the windy city they have nothing on WY. Cheyenne had record breaking snowfall when we lived there.

Love to visit and to hope to again one day to attend "The Granddaddy of them all" Frontier Days. Bill used to ride with the 7th Calvary when we lived there and be in the parade. Lots of good memories...............

But, did I mention the wind does NOT stop blowing??

[Callieslamb]

DH was raised in Cody, WY - NW corner....we love that area.

[L.A.]

Originally Posted by Pony

Anyone here 'steading in Wyoming? NOPE!!

Whereabouts? Over Yonder

What do you like about it? What do you DISlike about it? Nutt'n

I've read that it's a conservative state, except where it borders CO. Ain't no borders in Wyom'n

Any thoughts, suggestions, warnings appreciated.

It's Wyoming, There is no way to describe it. You have to live it. Give it a try!!

[Heritagefarm]

Awww, man. I thought you were gonna move closer to us and Emily! Oh well. You have wind up there? Odd. Very mild weather down here.

[Pony]

Originally Posted by Heritagefarm

Awww, man. I thought you were gonna move closer to us and Emily! Oh well. You have wind up there? Odd. Very mild weather down here.

MO is not necessarily "out" - we were just talking about the Free State Project, and Wyoming, and we started to wonder what it's like there.

I don't think I have what it takes to live in Wyoming.

[DamnearaFarm]

Don't feel bad, Pony.
I dreamed of Wyoming and Montana too. Then I discovered I didn't have what it took for either state.

[EasyDay]

Originally Posted by RamblinRoseRanc

Don't feel bad, Pony.
I dreamed of Wyoming and Montana too. Then I discovered I didn't have what it took for either state.

My bro, too. He dreamed of big skies all of his life. He excitedly requested Wyoming, while in the AF. They sent him for 4 years, and he only stayed two because of the wind! Had a toddler at the time, and said the wind would blow him to the ground. He bought a brand new truck, and when he got home with it and opened the door, the wind grabbed the door and sprung it. He said, "forget that!". But, I bet it's beautiful!