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Has anyone lived in both SW Idaho and North-Central/ NE West Virginia, and would you be able to speak to the biggest differences that stick out to you objectively, across all areas of day-to-day experience?
One concern I have is crime/ safety. One of my favorite parts about the Boise area is how difficult it is to find areas I would not be at ease walking at night. I cannot recall ever having been harassed by anyone on the street in downtown Boise or elsewhere. I have read about issues with homelessness and drug-usage in the Morgantown area. Is it common to be harassed by these types of individuals (by "harassed" I do not mean politely asked for money, etc) in town or elsewhere in the area?
Additionally, I would like to know what insects and bugs are problematic in the warm-season? Any major problems with mosquitos and other flying pests? I have some trouble with wasps, yellow-jackets and click-beetles here in the hottest part of Summer, but that's about all.
I'd cross WV off your list immediately if you're hoping for a similar QOL as you have in SW Idaho. WV has got some serious issues with opioids/meth, and while parts of it are scenic, they're not really comparable to what you can find in the Sawtooths, etc.
I'd cross WV off your list immediately if you're hoping for a similar QOL as you have in SW Idaho. WV has got some serious issues with opioids/meth, and while parts of it are scenic, they're not really comparable to what you can find in the Sawtooths, etc.
I never lived in WV, just VA/NC. Spent enough time in WV and in Idaho to know it's not really a comparable QOL situation if safety is at the top of the list.
I never lived in WV, just VA/NC. Spent enough time in WV and in Idaho to know it's not really a comparable QOL situation if safety is at the top of the list.
I suspected as much. Appalachia strikes again. The West is so much better, if you can afford it.
I was wating for somebody to respond to the OP, as I have no experience in WV, but I know ID is nice. So I'm glad my suspicions were confirmed, ID wins. There is a similar thread on the Maine forum, Moving from MT to ME and the West (Montana) wins there as well. Which says a lot b/c Montana is not THE greatest. But ID is better, and I would love to live in Oregon. The West, uhmmm.
Has anyone lived in both SW Idaho and North-Central/ NE West Virginia, and would you be able to speak to the biggest differences that stick out to you objectively, across all areas of day-to-day experience?
One concern I have is crime/ safety. One of my favorite parts about the Boise area is how difficult it is to find areas I would not be at ease walking at night. I cannot recall ever having been harassed by anyone on the street in downtown Boise or elsewhere. I have read about issues with homelessness and drug-usage in the Morgantown area. Is it common to be harassed by these types of individuals (by "harassed" I do not mean politely asked for money, etc) in town or elsewhere in the area?
Additionally, I would like to know what insects and bugs are problematic in the warm-season? Any major problems with mosquitos and other flying pests? I have some trouble with wasps, yellow-jackets and click-beetles here in the hottest part of Summer, but that's about all.
I've lived in WV. Over 15 years. Most of it in the EP, 2-3 years in North Central WV (Clarksburg/Bridgeport). I've lived in Helena MT for 13 years. Not Idaho, of course, but close.
My wife and I said it's a wash as far as crime goes. We've not felt uncomfortable in any town in MT, nor Martinsburg, Clarksburg, Bridgeport, Morgantown WV. There is crime in both places, but honestly not a lot of street level crime etc.
Bugs? Depends on your view of problematic! In the EP we had hot and humid stretches, and working outside was sweat and bugs sticking to your sweat. If I was doing chores or building something outside I'd start as early as possible then come in for lunch, shower and relax until evening. Montana? Not so much. No humidity, we have a few stretches of pesky gnats, some hornets but waaaay more tolerable than WV.
The one huge plus we noticed was winter. Winter in NCentral WV was humid, cloudy and cold to your bones. 35-40deg days were uncomfortable. Winters here, even while brutally colder, are much easier because of the dry climate. As long as the sun is out and the winds not blowing we rarely need more than a light jacket.
The big minus in MT is the difference in how people interact. I found WV to be full of more genuine and friendly people than in MT. When we lived in Inwood WV it was a mixed bag of neighbors. Professionals, blue collar, stay at home moms, professional moms and everything in between. If an ice storm knocked down trees, anybody that could run a chainsaw was clearing the back roads. Big snowfall? The neighboring farm would come over and plow everyone out with a big tractor. My wife and I stayed home during one blizzard and watched 10+ kids for our neighbors when schools were closed. Kids said Sir or Ma'am, older kids helped the younger ones...
We had a great neighborhood- in the woods everyone had 5-30 acres. Great neighbors. We do miss that a lot.
I've never lived in WV, but I feel I've traveled and stayed a fair amount through the state. (one area i haven't made it to yet that I want to is the Area around Lewisburg).
I've never once felt uncomfortable or nervous in WV. I tend to find the people I've interacted with seem genuinely friendly, polite, hold the door for you etc. It doesn't seem fake nice it seem genuine enough where as I'm traveling southward from ny and when I stop for gas or something I immediately notice it's different but a better different.
I got one sketchy vibe ever in WV I was getting gas off I-79 I think in Burnsville and just something was off. I couldn't put my finger on it but something was wrong so got back in the car ASAP and left. I've spent time in Morgantown, fairmont, Summerville and they're all totally fine no concerns.
Some parts of Charleston are very industrial and I'm not sure about them they call it chemical valley I think, but other parts are nice suburban areas.
I've heard the southern part of the state is much more economically depressed due to loss of coal and heavy industry so there is a opioid crisis and petty property crime in some areas but who knows how exaggerated it is. Just because it's "there" doesn't necessarily mean you would see it or be exposed.
In general WV has very unusual city and town designs because of all the hills valleys plateaus and water so the towns feel different. Not good or bad just different.
It's Appalachia, you might have a gorgeous 4 bedroom house on top of a hill overlooking a 10 acre lot and next door is a rundown singlewide with a junkyard for a from yard. It is what is is and if you aren't used to seeing it that can confuse you as to not knowing what type of an area you are in by seeing conflicting visual ques.
Just my .02 cents take it or leave it.
I'm in this forum because I absolutely would move to WV and want to keep tabs on what's going on. It's a stunningly beautiful state with good people and a relatively mild climate. It has its quirks but that's part of its charm.
I never lived in WV, just VA/NC. Spent enough time in WV and in Idaho to know it's not really a comparable QOL situation if safety is at the top of the list.
I’ve spent a lot of time on planes, but that doesn’t make me a pilot.
I was wating for somebody to respond to the OP, as I have no experience in WV, but I know ID is nice. So I'm glad my suspicions were confirmed, ID wins. There is a similar thread on the Maine forum, Moving from MT to ME and the West (Montana) wins there as well. Which says a lot b/c Montana is not THE greatest. But ID is better, and I would love to live in Oregon. The West, uhmmm.
Personally, I find the people in Montana to be standoffish and kind of weird, tbh. Idahoans are much friendlier-- especially if you don't volunteer the fact that you've ever lived in California . Idaho has a fairly large LDS presence, so at least on a superficial level, you get a generally friendly vibe. Idaho has absolutely gotten to be much less affordable over the last 4-5 years, but places like Bozeman, Whitefish, Missoula, etc have real affordability issues and I think a lot of hostility towards 'outsiders' comes from the fact that so many people have either been priced out, OR they are local to the area and finding it impossible to stay.
As someone born in the Carolinas, with plenty of family still living there and all over Cajun country Louisiana, I don't think the people in West Virginia are bad/rude/whatever Appalachian stereotype people throw out. But the state does have some serious issues (again, opioids and meth are major, major issues along with environmental pollution and decaying mining towns) and it tends to rank at the very bottom of QOL lists on an annual basis. If you drive around the state it's not difficult to figure out why.
Morgantown at this point is a far flung exurb of Pittsburgh and doesn't have the same issues as other parts of the state, but it's still a college town that I don't think holds a candle to what Boise has on offer. YMMV.
Last edited by 04kL4nD; 01-10-2024 at 11:04 PM..
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. Idaho has a fairly large LDS presence, so at least on a superficial level, you get a generally friendly vibe. Idaho has absolutely gotten to be much less affordable over the last 4-5 years, but places like Bozeman, Whitefish, Missoula, etc have real affordability issues and I think a lot of hostility towards 'outsiders' comes from the fact that so many people have either been priced out, OR they are local to the area and finding it impossible to stay. 
