Yea, another 365 unit subdivision was just proposed just west of the Bozeman airport. Funny thing is that no one can figure out where everyone is working. There simply aren't enough places to work her. Strange and sad. Another five years I'm outta here. I'm glad I lived here when I did. But the "Last Best Place" it is no longer.

Very unfortunate and sad. The exploding population in Rockies appears to be unstoppable and Colorado has been ground zero for awhile now. Solitude, or at least peace and quiet, has become harder to find. The only thing we can do as Westerners or those who vacation and play in the West is to support efforts and organizations to keep public lands in public hands. Too many sportsmen are unaware of the effort to take away federal protection for our national forests, etc. putting our fishing and hunting lifestyle in jeopardy. You can find good non-partisan info here https://www.backcountryhunters.org/

yep joined them as soon as I found out about them ;-)

Developments look fine out east, with trees breaking up the pattern, it's not a good look in wide open spaces, just looks like a cluster of homes huddling together in fear of the next tornado.

I think it's the people that make a huge difference, those that moved into colorado have changed the social cultural fabric. Are these the same types moving into montana, to escape the crap they built in California and elsewhere out there?
I spent a small part 9f my childhood in greeley, but back then there weren't many jobs so back east my parents went. We still have land out there. Just a small plot.
Don't Californicate Colora... errr... montana

I'll allow a few of ya to move to the Midwest. Lol. Still pretty peaceful here. And you don't have to break your back to live here either.

On another note, I'm planning on making the trip for the conclave. I plan on road tripping out there. So any suggestions on the best ways to dirt bag it... ie: cheapest accommodations possible. Let me know. No issues with sleeping out of my car. I'll bring some good ol Wisconsin cheese with me as well

All the good people are fleeing their states as America turns into a third world country. Hell I just ran from Colorado to Idaho only to see the same transformations happening here. This is not because of people having babies. With the Rockies being the last pristine wild area of the lower 48 left, it's pretty sad to watch. Terrified there will be nowhere to run in 15 years

Yup, we had the best part of this place. As I say to my wife "I'm glad I'm going to be dead when I'm going to be dead 'cause I don't want to be here in thirty years." There won't be much left to enjoy.

theres really not much left....when the rural spots of wyoming and montana are flooded with fisherman...and they are.....we should realize its the start of the end of that type of fishing. my grandfather told me stories about growing up in new jersey. Told me when he was a teenager he used to fish a stream on his families farm. He would catch large trout and lots of em he said. he showed me where it was when i visited him. There was not a single remnant of a stream there, only the moorestown mall, a highway, and apartment complexes. progress I guess. Didn't seem that bad back then because I knew the rural rockies still existed for sanctuary, now that I'm here, i realize....not for too long. 20 years and our rocky mountain rivers will look like opening day on a pennsylvania stocked trout stream. 5000 yahoos fishing for a few dozen mutant stocked trout with no tails, missing fins. am I over exaggerating.....yes. but it is getting to a sad state when the west is now covered in track homes. i wonder how bad it needs to get before men grow the huevos to take a stand. the beautiful east coast town i grew up in which was the quintessential american town now resembles a town in somalia with a healthy smattering of brazilians. not a single store left in town with english lettering on their signs. everyone i once known has fled, yet nobody has the courage to say WHY therefore, the rockies will continue to vanish.....

I like my dog better than most people (present company excepted, of course.)

Among other reasons I'm fleeing Florida after I retire is the number of people here. Jam-packed roads, way, Way, WAY too many people here, bad crime.

I'm just lookin' to move to a small town and camp and fish until I die. That's all. The political environment that has taken root in Denver has removed Colorado as an option for me.

If the arthritis the doc tells me I have in my knees prevents me from staying in Montana due to the winters, then I'll prolly drop down to Utah.

I'm still eye-ballin' Dillon pretty hard as a final destination, though.

True this statement and I apologize for my off topic contribution but it did strike a sensitive cord with me. And yes - it is a big state and hence my statement to keep on exploring. Nothing stays the same as places get discovered - we all know that and have to deal with it.
Montana is so beautiful and first timers are in for a real treat. The farther you come from the longer you should stay.

And - no fatalism going on here - quite an assumption?? I am going to Montana twice this year. Don't read too much into a little venting once in awhile.

I sat next to an engineer from Holland while on a flight from Portland, OR to Denver. Over southern Idaho, he expressed amazement at the uninhabited expanse below.

Still off topic, sorry -- I'm looking forward to attending this conclave, and fishing whatever water I can find. I do have it on good authority on this board, however, that there are no fish up there. :-)

You'll like it out here. Unless you go to Yellowstone Park or the Madison there's plenty of water to fish. Even then there's plenty of open water. Walk more than 1/4 mile from the road and you are alone. I can personally let you in on almost 15 miles of water on one creek alone that is basically fished by locals and that's it. A crowded day is when you see one or two cars so don't be too concerned about finding water - it's all around you. Plus I'll be floating the Yellowstone most days if anyone wants to come along. The trick is to let the guides go down first, wait a couple of hours and the river is all yours.

There's more water out here than you could fish in a lifetime.

Tom