everyone's ideas of retirement differ, but as you get older, John's comment means more and more.where are our friends and family and how readily and how often can see them?--John Rhoads
we stayed in place and fish locally, and take occasional trips to those amazing places on your list. it works for us--your mileage may differ.
fly fishing and baseball share a totally deceptive simplicity; that's why they can both be lifelong pursuits.
I greatly appreciate eveyone's input. All of you make valid points that I either have already considered or will be considering in our final decision. As one would expect, there are lots of reasons for our decision to pull up "roots" from here in West Tennessee and "Go West". These include the need to be in a drier climate due to the wife's health issues, the transient nature of the jobs of our two daughters and sons-in-law (one of them is seeking a job in the West), and my desire to not stay around and watch unrestricted development destroy what I worked for over 35 years to try to protect and/or enhance, especially along and in Kentucky Reservoir. Additionally, there is an almost mystical draw pulling me to the West. So, I am going to try to pay heed to the words first written by John Soule in the "Terre Haute Express" in 1851; later made famous by Horace Greeley when the words essentially became the motto of the 19th century: "Go West, young man!" If the Good Lord is willing and the creeks don't rise, I hope to be out there before New Year's Day 2014!
Gary
If I was just wanting to move I think I would rent something for a year in the Minden, Gardner area. Just because we visited once and was impressed. Buying something makes it more important to "get it right", but if you just rent you can get in the area and do a little more snooping around.
Last edited by herefishy; 10-21-2012 at 08:22 AM.
ah, well, health...much better you move. there are airplanes that take on anywhere these days, i understand, and kids love to fly! good luck!!
fly fishing and baseball share a totally deceptive simplicity; that's why they can both be lifelong pursuits.
Agree completely. Renting or leasing first is a great idea. ( Wish I'd thought of that Gary ! )Originally Posted by herefishy
I'd also look for something within reasonable distances of interstate freeways and multi-carrier airports. It's a lot easier to visit someone when you only have a couple of days to do so, when the flight is accompanied by a short drive. Being several hours from an airport or an airport with limited service can make it hard on young families and friends to get in those quick / frequent visits.
It's also nice to be located near lodging facilities, sometimes friends come to visit your area and wish to see you, but have extended family or other friends traveling with them, that might be a little to much for you to put up.
Make it fun, easy and reasonably inexpensive for family and friends to visit, by locating near an area that holds interest ( cultural, entertainment, outdoor / recreational activities, parks, business trips, etc. ) for others can help with the ( friends and family ) draw factor.
That also reaps the benefit of making it easy and reasonably inexpensive for you to get out of Dodge when the mood strikes.
We hold annual Nevada and California fishing licenses, we look at fishing licenses ( wherever we go ) as a necessity of life rather than an extravagance.
Being a Nevada resident trout angler who holds a basic N/R California license will currently run $159.14. The opposite will run $123.85.
Dave
Trout n' trains II_resize.jpg
Peggy, packin' it in yesterday on a trout stream somewhere in Nevada.
Last edited by Dave E; 10-21-2012 at 01:40 PM.
When the late JC and I moved to Washington we rented a condo for two years. And it took that long to decide which side of the sunrise/sunset we wanted to see most. We moved to WA from Montana, and had it not been a business move I would never have left MT. Oh well, I'm back here now (at least for part of the year - the best part since I don't ski any more.)
I can only address your South-central Oregon option. It's 137 miles between Bend and Klamath Falls. For any hospital, medical specialists or significant shopping, you would need to go to one of those two cities. LaPine is spread out and growing. It's about 30-40 min. from Bend. The rest of the towns along hwy 97 are pretty small. There are decent fishing opportunities all along that route. You have the Cascade range to the west and high desert to the east. The climate is much drier than western Oregon with colder winters. Oregon has income tax and property tax, but no sales tax. Gas prices in the northwest are always higher than the national average.
DaveE;
Yep, we've discussed the rent/lease option a few times before, haven't we? That is one item up at the top of my "To-Do" list when I take my grand safari West this spring. The only issue will likely be finding a landlord that will approve the wife's herd of cats! They are all well-behaved, but I do understand a landlord's hesitancy to allow pets. Rest assured I'll be in contact with you in the not-too-distant future to fine-tune my upcoming trip West.
Jayatwork, Ladyfisher, and everyone else;
Thanks for chiming in! It is important to gather as much relevant information as possible when making such a life-changing decision such as this. I realy appreciate everyone's contribution.
This past Thursday, I signed my retirement papers while I was at the TVA headquarters in Knoxville. If something outrageous should happen between now and January 11, 2013, I can still rescind that decision. However, right now I'm pretty ecstatic about closing this chapter of my life and turning the page to the next adventure!! Thanks again, everyone!
Gary
This is a great site for getting data allowing you to evaluate and compare retirement places.
http://www.city-data.com/
To add to these points... Living on the WA side of the Columbia Gorge allows one to avoid income taxes as WA has none, and shop in OR, sales tax-free, for major purchases or regular longer term provisioning trips.
The weather varies quite a bit the length of the Gorge and selecting the right microclimate for your health needs is possible.
While I have lived in AK for just 48 years and been in on some of the most incredible fishing imagineable for many of those years I still fondly remember smallmouth, steelhead, and sturgeon fishing in the Gorge during the five years I went to college in Ellensburg, WA in the mid-'70s. I have made several trips to OR in the past few years to flyfish some very good water and enjoyed it...
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