Top Towns 2011
We scoured the United States to find places where great hunting and fishing starts right at the edge of town.
When we started our “Top 200 Towns for Sportsmen” program in 2008, our goal was to provide you with an exhaustive list of cities and towns that, in addition to having excellent and abundant hunting and fishing opportunities nearby, are also great places to raise a family and provide a high quality of life. That same mission continues today. How We Rank Towns
For our fourth-annual ranking, we highlighted towns that give you the best chance of finding a good-paying job and allow you to live comfortably within your means. With that in mind, we double-weighted three of our socio-economic categories this year to reward towns with low unemployment rates, high household income and a low cost of living.
Where We Get Our Stats
The website city-data.com has proven to be invaluable since we began this program. This is where we get the data for the bulk of our socio-economic categories: Population, Population Growth Since 2000, Median Household Income, Median Home Value, Cost of Living, Population Density, Unemployment Rate and Mean Commute Time. (Note: All data from city-data.com is from 2009, the most recent available. The national average Cost of Living Index rating is 100.) Our School Grade numbers are from great-schools.org. Our Amenities scores are based upon access to services such as hospitals, cultural outlets and institutes of higher education. Combined, these categories measure each town’s Quality of Life score, which makes up 40 percent of the overall ranking.
The Outdoor Life
The other 60 percent is based upon the Outdoors score, which reflects each town’s performance in the following categories: Gun Friendliness, Fishable Species, Huntable Species, Proximity to Public Land and Waters and Trophy Potential.
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Comments (17)
I stand corrected...Pocatello Idaho went from #2 to #33 in one year. What is the reason for this. I am near retirement and use all research articles (including this) for making decisions. I would like to see someone comment on how such a drop for the Idaho locations that were in the top 20..Did the wolves get the fish as well.....
What happen to those great Idaho towns that were in the top spots the last few years. I mean gez Pocatello goes from 5th to 35? and others drop real low. I want to move to Idaho so what gives..Are the wolves destroying fishing as well?
It would not have taken much more work to dig up current unemployment rates, which would show unemployment in Bend is 14.3% -- NOT 4.3%. Great place to live, but good luck finding a job.
Have read the article and the comments ....
I lived in NH for 12 years ..... only reason I left was the job market dropped thru the floor ..
the fishing and Hunting are great .... yes the winters are long and hard..... but they don't have a State Income tax or a State Sales tax......
and yet only a single city from NH made the list .... not sure who is selecting the cities and states, but they REALLY need to re-think this again before they publish another article ...
Yeah, the hunting and fishing is great, but if you can't afford to live there, what's the sense? Moved to Lander, WY from back east a few years back because we heard such great things. It hasn't lived up to the hype - not even close.
Lake Worth, Florida??? Really? Have you not been there? What, just because they have a fishing pier? Give me a break! Lake Worth is a dump!!!
The new format for the top 200 towns is severely lacking. Go back to the old format with some detail.
Folks are so gullible. To believe being ‘ON’ such a ‘list’ is a good thing. Be happy ‘other places’ get listed and you’re left alone. Sane folks are thankful for such lucky breaks!
I love to hunt and fish but 18 of your top 20 are way too cold in the winter. Unless I can make 50 grand and hybernate 5 mo. out of the year!
Camden, Me tourist heavy area in my opinion, I like it up in northern Maine better
Having lived in Bend for over 50 years now I'm wondering who penned this gem?
"In this unique landscape, where the Cascade Mountains meet the high desert, upland hunters chase quail, pheasants and chukar across a variety of terrain."
mesarich and Jeepdude1987: Thanks for weighing in. If you'd like, suggest some of your favorite towns and we'll throw them in the mix for next year's list.
Only three cities from NM, and probably not the best outdoors towns in the state.
The fact that the first town in Oklahoma is #91 and is Bartlesville tells me whoever made this list has not spent a whole lot of time in Oklahoma. Where I am from, around Tenkiller Lake, there is great hunting for deer, turkey, quail, rabbits, dove, and squirrel. There is also great fishing for trout, stiper, walleye, bass, crappie, and catfish. As well as some of the most beautiful country you will ever see.
@papajocu - In most areas it is illegal to take out the head/antlers on any animal unitil all of the meat is taken out. So the guys you see with the antlers strapped to their back have already done the hard part of packing out all of the meat and are finishing up the job by hauling out the "trophy" of the hunt. Taking pictures of the meat being packed out just isn't as "sexy" as the pictures of the antlers strapped to the back.
Oops, I meant the second picture from Bend Oregon
I am curious about that first photo. I have often seen hunters pictured with a huge rack strapped to their back but always wondered what happened to the rest of the animal. I am hoping that the hunter is with a group of people who are carrying out the rest of the meat. Is that how it works?
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Folks are so gullible. To believe being ‘ON’ such a ‘list’ is a good thing. Be happy ‘other places’ get listed and you’re left alone. Sane folks are thankful for such lucky breaks!
I stand corrected...Pocatello Idaho went from #2 to #33 in one year. What is the reason for this. I am near retirement and use all research articles (including this) for making decisions. I would like to see someone comment on how such a drop for the Idaho locations that were in the top 20..Did the wolves get the fish as well.....
I am curious about that first photo. I have often seen hunters pictured with a huge rack strapped to their back but always wondered what happened to the rest of the animal. I am hoping that the hunter is with a group of people who are carrying out the rest of the meat. Is that how it works?
Oops, I meant the second picture from Bend Oregon
@papajocu - In most areas it is illegal to take out the head/antlers on any animal unitil all of the meat is taken out. So the guys you see with the antlers strapped to their back have already done the hard part of packing out all of the meat and are finishing up the job by hauling out the "trophy" of the hunt. Taking pictures of the meat being packed out just isn't as "sexy" as the pictures of the antlers strapped to the back.
The fact that the first town in Oklahoma is #91 and is Bartlesville tells me whoever made this list has not spent a whole lot of time in Oklahoma. Where I am from, around Tenkiller Lake, there is great hunting for deer, turkey, quail, rabbits, dove, and squirrel. There is also great fishing for trout, stiper, walleye, bass, crappie, and catfish. As well as some of the most beautiful country you will ever see.
Only three cities from NM, and probably not the best outdoors towns in the state.
mesarich and Jeepdude1987: Thanks for weighing in. If you'd like, suggest some of your favorite towns and we'll throw them in the mix for next year's list.
Having lived in Bend for over 50 years now I'm wondering who penned this gem?
"In this unique landscape, where the Cascade Mountains meet the high desert, upland hunters chase quail, pheasants and chukar across a variety of terrain."
Camden, Me tourist heavy area in my opinion, I like it up in northern Maine better
I love to hunt and fish but 18 of your top 20 are way too cold in the winter. Unless I can make 50 grand and hybernate 5 mo. out of the year!
Lake Worth, Florida??? Really? Have you not been there? What, just because they have a fishing pier? Give me a break! Lake Worth is a dump!!!
What happen to those great Idaho towns that were in the top spots the last few years. I mean gez Pocatello goes from 5th to 35? and others drop real low. I want to move to Idaho so what gives..Are the wolves destroying fishing as well?
The new format for the top 200 towns is severely lacking. Go back to the old format with some detail.
Yeah, the hunting and fishing is great, but if you can't afford to live there, what's the sense? Moved to Lander, WY from back east a few years back because we heard such great things. It hasn't lived up to the hype - not even close.
Have read the article and the comments ....
I lived in NH for 12 years ..... only reason I left was the job market dropped thru the floor ..
the fishing and Hunting are great .... yes the winters are long and hard..... but they don't have a State Income tax or a State Sales tax......
and yet only a single city from NH made the list .... not sure who is selecting the cities and states, but they REALLY need to re-think this again before they publish another article ...
It would not have taken much more work to dig up current unemployment rates, which would show unemployment in Bend is 14.3% -- NOT 4.3%. Great place to live, but good luck finding a job.
Post a Comment (200 characters or less)