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I am a 24yr old union painter in spokane, wa. I also own a lawn care company and am trying to get a job with bnsf railroad. My fiance is going to be a elementary school teacher. We enjoy fishing, hunting, boating and snowboarding. I was just wondering if our job trades and recreation fun is popular or existant in Dickinson.
I posted the info below to another poster who recently asked about Dickinson...know a little about the place as I passed through and stayed overnight....but have never lived there
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I live in the opposite end of the state from Dickinson....but have been through there one on the way to Medora. Dickinson is unlike most areas of North Dakota, in which it is very close to the badlands of southwest North Dakota. Medora is in the badlands and is west of Dickinson and is famous for their play and pitch fork fondu as well as horseback riding and scenery unlike any other part of the state.
That being said, Dickinson is a small city, about 16,000, but it does have a local state college and right now the oil industry is booming out in that part of North Dakota. Jobs should be easy to come by...mostly service industry and construction...and the climate is different than the rest of the state in that it is quite a bit warmer there in the winter. It does have changeable weather and is often windy. Housing...I cannot help you with, but with any smaller town, housing of what you like could be kind of tough as with fewer people there are just fewer choices available.
All of North Dakota is friendly and safe. If you dont know anyone already in the area or if you dont have any job contacts, I suggest you visit first as it is quite a drive to any larger city like Bismarck or Billings. It is on the open prairie...some like it while others may not. But definitely visit first.
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Other info....do a web search for the city of dickinson and on it you can get some good info. It said that there are great employment opportunities in the area with over 800 jobs on the ND Job Service list in the local area, 400 for advanced or skilled jobs. There is a community rec center (a fairly new one at that) with lap pool, climbing wall, fitness center). Also Medora is close by in the Theodore Roosevelt Natl Park which is excellent for seeing wildlife and hiking.
I was thinking dickinson because the pop. isnt overcrowded but not a ghost town either. If i lived in N.D i would like to live on the north western side are there any other good areas you know about? Thank you
Williston up in the northwest corner of the state is another decent size town, though I think a bit smaller than Dickinson and a little bit more off the beaten path (along US Highway 2) versus along I-94 like Dickinson. I do know Williston is the center of North Dakota's oil and energy region and they have seem lots of job growth and housing is tight there. I have never been to Williston however in my 7 years in North Dakota.
Larger cities such as Minot and Bismarck are more in central ND and are growing, especially Bismarck, which has lots of business and housing growth in the past few years. Its pop is nearing 60,000.
It did not say in your post, but do you or your fiance have definite job's lined up in ND, or you are hoping to find a job when you get here. I would let that play the biggest role in your decision. There are teaching jobs out there but in western ND with fewer people, there are fewer school districts as well. Quite a bit of consolidation has been going on in the last 15 years. You mentioned BNSF railroad. I do know they have a large facility and train yard here in Grand Forks, but I havent a clue about anywhere else. I would check into that and see what town has best chances for employment if you want to be with them. No matter where you live you are close to all sorts of outdoor stuff, such as hunting and fishing, with hiking more out in western ND. Snowmobiling is popular, more so in the north and east parts of the state where it is cold enough all winter long to keep the snowpack. Not much skiing, besides cross country in the north and east, but there are a few ski areas along the Canadian Border from Bottineau ND eastward into northeast ND where winters are significantly colder than in Dickinson area.
How cold do you want? Dickinson and that southwest part of the state can get cold for sure, but it warms up quickly due to chinook air from the Rockies. You go east of Minot and Bismarck it is much colder for longer periods of time. There is often a huge difference in winter weather temps between Grand Forks in the northeast (where it stays cold all winter long) and Dickinson. The winds blow all over the state, but Dickinson area is in the wind belt so expect brief blizzards in the winter.
I'm not too sure Dickinson has a lot of serious fishing in the surrounding area, but hunting is great. You have to travel about 2 hours north to reach Lake Sakakawea, which many from Dickinson do. Most of us travel to MT or Black Hills of SD to ski for a weekend, so you would have to travel a few hours for that.
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thanks for response
