Seeking a new family home in Idaho/Montana. Help us choose. (Pocatello: sales, buy)

[wilberry]

bring money , money , money , money

[banjomike]

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

Days/ weeks? Or maybe a couple of months of wildfire smoke in the summer.

Lately, over the pst 3 fire seasons, months of smoke has been the rule. The smoke was bad in 2019, but worse in 2020, and 2021 was similar to 2019.

The entire thing about our smoke is it wasn't ever Idaho's wildfires that caused most of it. Idaho's position, just west of the Rockies along one border and open in our South Idaho half, causes all the Pacific coast's jet stream winds to carry the smoke away from the coast and carry it here. When it pools and collects until there's a windstorm that's strong enough to blow it eastward onto the Great Plains.

We got California's smoke for the same length of time California's fires generated it, then we got the smoke from Oregon, then Washington, then California again. A lot of the storms that blew the smoke out of those states were never strong enough to push the smoke out of Idaho.

I'm afraid this is going to be the way it is until the huge drought the entire West is in lifts. There's still a lot of congested forests that haven't burned that have been protected by the worst of the drought north of California until this year.
Idaho got lucky catching some good rainfall and one good snowy winteri in those 3 years. But now, all that ground moisture is gone, used up by our hot summer this year, and so far, only the north has gotten part of the snow we need to restore the ground moisture.

Much more snow is needed all over the state to keep our own forests wet enough next summer to slow wildfire. The months of March and April have been unusually rainy over these years, and this year, October was the rainiest on record, so in the south, that was a very lucky break.

But we can't count on luck. If next spring breaks early and hot, we'll be in for some serious wildfire potential in our Idaho forests.

If the forests in central Idaho's wilderness catch fire, I worry the smoke could be as bad as it was here in the 1988 Yellowstone burn. Here in Idaho Falls that summer, the smoke was so thick all summer there were days I couldn't see my backyard fence from the house.

With Covid still stomping around, that much smoke will send a lot of folks to the graveyard.

2020 could be the year we see Idaho's rangeland catch fire. That's almost 2/3 of our land. That's my greatest fear.
In 2019, a range fire went from 2 to 50,000 acres in about 48 hours. With no soil moisture, the next one will be a lot faster.

[ejisme]

Another area you might look into is around Moscow, ID (Pop 25K) with Pullman, WA (Pop 33K) across the boarder. The mountains are to the east of Moscow. The general area around the two towns is grassy plains and farm land, but lots of mountains just to the east. You might be able to find your small acreage just to the east of Moscow. You are about 90 minutes south of Spokane for your big city, and about 40 minutes north of Lewiston, ID (pop 32K) and Clarkston, WA (pop 7.5K). You'd also have Idaho State University and Washington State University there for added events and amenities.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/L...67882144_zpid/

[cleosmom]

Originally Posted by banjomike

....

If the forests in central Idaho's wilderness catch fire, I worry the smoke could be as bad as it was here in the 1988 Yellowstone burn. Here in Idaho Falls that summer, the smoke was so thick all summer there were days I couldn't see my backyard fence from the house.

Holy Hannah!! This past Summer was enough that I finally bought an air purifier.

[banjomike]

Originally Posted by cleosmom

Holy Hannah!! This past Summer was enough that I finally bought an air purifier.

I'm going to get one soon myself.

[fy10fyr]

Originally Posted by rainymountaincountry

We are looking for a low crime, friendly community to raise our family. Husband is teleworking so employment isnt an issue. I stay home with our children.
We have been considering Northern Idaho and Northwest Montana.

Seeking:
*mountain views
*home not in a subdivision- unless it has an acre +
*a variety of places to shop (groceries, household needs)….a cute downtown/other area with coffee shops, bakeries and other shopping desired but not essential.
*variety of good restaurants
* plentiful parks (with play equipment for kids)
* good schools - Test scores are important but so is the quality of teachers, educational tools and involvement with families.
*within 30 mins of healthcare ( including hospitals, naturopaths, massage therapists and chiropractors)
*no more than an hour or so from cultural attractions and fun activities for kids.
*an airport nearby (within 2 hours) would be great.


Given all these details, where would you direct our search?

North Idaho certainly checks off most of what you're seeking, if you can find a place that's financially feasible. One thing that you may find it doesn't however, is the "good schools". I'll probably get blasted for saying so, but the fact is that Idaho ranks near the bottom in dollars spent on education, and the GOP-dominated Idaho legislature ranges from indifferent, to outright hostile towards public education. There are exceptions to the rule, obviously, but you'd be well served to do your homework (pun intended) on school districts, and the state of education as a whole in Idaho before making the move.

https://www.oregonlive.com/education...aders-say.html

https://idahoea.org/news/idaho-ranks...funding-again/

[AnythingOutdoors]

Originally Posted by fy10fyr

North Idaho certainly checks off most of what you're seeking, if you can find a place that's financially feasible. One thing that you may find it doesn't however, is the "good schools". I'll probably get blasted for saying so, but the fact is that Idaho ranks near the bottom in dollars spent on education, and the GOP-dominated Idaho legislature ranges from indifferent, to outright hostile towards public education. There are exceptions to the rule, obviously, but you'd be well served to do your homework (pun intended) on school districts, and the state of education as a whole in Idaho before making the move.

https://www.oregonlive.com/education...aders-say.html

https://idahoea.org/news/idaho-ranks...funding-again/

Indeed, Idaho ranks very low in per student funding. However, education outcomes are about average to above average.

https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/pr...MN&year=2019R3

https://blog.prepscholar.com/average...te-most-recent

In other words, Idaho gets good value for its education dollars. Compare this to what CA spends on education relative to outcomes... I'll let the reader reach their own conclusions.

It's always wise to do your due diligence before moving to a new school district. Some are great, some are terrible, most are just okay. This is true in both Red and Blue states. Our school district in Boise is better managed and funded than the affluent districts we were in in CA. So do your homework, whether that's in CA, ID, or anywhere really.

[DvrGrl]

Originally Posted by nm9stheham

Starling has less than han 200,000 users worldwide right now. So very few actual users. Fiber is spreading regularly, and is likely in areas of the OP's interest; that needs to be researched in every area of interest. Our tiny town in WY, Dubious, 75 miles from the next town, is getting fiber in some areas. So you just can't make general statements, as internet service is changing so quickly.

We have starlink in Sagle ID and it has made a huge difference—after reading about the beta from this forum I mentioned it to my husband and voila! 5 months later I can do video conferences and we can watch streaming movies….heaven.

We keep trying to get to Dubois to see the armored vehicle museum—my husband started out in armored cav—but so far events have conspired against us. It’s on our list for next trip next year….

[nm9stheham]

Originally Posted by DvrGrl

We keep trying to get to Dubois to see the armored vehicle museum—my husband started out in armored cav—but so far events have conspired against us. It’s on our list for next trip next year….

Hope you make it.... it's as high quality a museum of any type in the US.... no exaggeration. They are expanding the museum again (the original section is just a couple of years old), and have built a large restoration shop in town along with a large office. It sets in beautiful country by the Wind River.

[skyviewconcrete]

You couldn't go wrong with the Bozeman area. Bozeman is beautiful and it's almost surrounded by mountains. Great views and honestly the community seems pretty great as well. Good luck with your search!