I'll start a thread on it since so many have asked. Long story.. but basically, neither K or I have any real love for Illinois [Chicago] politics, taxes and many of the laws. We have both been active in changing what we could. We've changed bowfishing laws, getting more fish species opened. Opened lakes, extended seasons... that kind of stuff. When it comes to gun laws, all we can do is lobby and support the NRA, ISRA, Gunsavelife.com, Illinoiscarry.com, etc.. I write all that so it doesn't look like we just ran away without a fight. But seriously, we often question why we live here. My 'real' job is rather meager right now, but all I need is an internet connection, I could be floating on a boat in the Bahamas and do my job as long as I could connect to my VPN. Kendall is a Tool Maker with a ton of experience in all things tooly. So, there was no reason he has to stay in this area either. So, we started looking around, mostly on a whim. We read where a Rep. in Wyoming wrote a bluntly honest reply to a liberal transplant who threatened to move back out of the state if Wyoming didn't start acting more liberal. He wrote "By all means, leave." We saw that and thought... we should move to Wyoming. :D The only downside to Wyoming was it seemed even colder and windier than here. We then we looked at nearby Utah. My stepdad, who I regard as my 'Dad' moved to Utah and was always telling me how awesome it was. It just happened that a place out there in central Utah was looking for a guy like Kendall. K applied and they asked him to go out there for an interview. So we found a chicken/dog sitter and loaded up the Tactical Prius and were on our way. It was like a mini whirlwind vacation for us. Iowa had more hills than I remember. Nebraska had a gajillion sandhill cranes everywhere and oodles of police. Wyoming was windy with lots of antelope and tumbleweeds going 50 mph. Utah was beautiful. So he went to the interview but said they would let him know in a week. We were kind of disheartened because we really fell in love with the area. We drove around quite a bit, certainly pushing the limits of where Toyota ever intended a prius to roam. On the way back home, somewhere in the middle of Nebraska, K got the call that offered him the job. The pay is slightly better and the benefits are much better. .....and it's not in Illinois! There is a huge downside to this... and that is our friends. We have some awesome friends here in Illinois and it's going to be really tough to leave them. I have zero knowledge of how to hunt mule deer or elk... but I think I will find fun in learning. I'll probably still try to travel back east to hunt whitetails. I'll miss having the mini-farm. It looks like we will have to start out with a modest (*cough* cheap *cough*) home in town in Utah to start. Eventually, when our place here sells, we can look at upgrading and getting some land. There you have it. I'll post some pictures in a bit.
This utah ground squirrel ran right up to K. Second pic is the scenery at the rest area. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
Mule deer were all over. I guess during season they're much harder to find. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
This is just a few miles from where k will work. Blm land that is used as a shooting range. We sure knew we are two out of shape, flat landers climbing a little way up. It's about 5000 ft above here in central illinois. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
I have one suggestion...if you are going to post more awesome pics from tapatalk....click the "tapatalk hosted button" so lazy people like myself can see your pics from tapatalk easier. :D
Lol.... less than 6" of ground clearance. Got 39 mpg over the 3000 miles. Not bad considering all the hills, mountains and a 55+ mph headwind in Wyoming. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
Last picture. You westerners that wonder what kind of idiot pulls to the side of the highway to take pics of pronghorn.... yeah, that would be me! Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
Does this mean you're becoming a Mormon? If so, will K12 be taking any other wives besides you? Now that you're leaving Illinois will Jim talk to me again? Are there any fish to shoot out there? Does this mean you're not coming to the Get Together? Do you have any Lone Wolf stands you want to sell me on the cheap? You don't need them in the mountains. No matter where you are I will always cherish the time we spent in a tree together. It was wonderful.
Congrat's Utah is great I liked it a lot when we went out there. There is more hunting opportunity in Utah then in Illinois you should really enjoy it out there.
