Where To Live?

[Big E]

Hello All,

Nice forum you have here. I'm retiring soon from the USAF and have been looking more and more to the Ozarks. I've seen quite a few jobs available in both MO and AR but don't know that much about the area.

I'm big into trout fishing and fly fishing. Doesn't matter if its from a float tube on a lake or in waders in the river.

What would be your top five places to live in the Ozarks if you had opportunity to live anywhere?

[zander]

If it were up to me, and not up to me and my wife like it is (hence I live in Springfield) I would live in Hollister. The reason I would live there is because of its proximity to the dam as well as Table Rock, closer to N. Arkansas and all of the great stuff they have there. And probably the prices aren't as high as they might be in Branson, but this is just my guess.

[RSBreth]

Mountain Home, Arkansas, right next to Dave Whitlock.

I like where I'm at here in Ozark, but I fish warmwater (smallmouth fanatic) more that strickly trout.

But in the end, you got to go where the money is, and deal from there.

[soggyfeet]

I live in KC but I have been trying to get my wife to move to Mountian Home AR. From what I have seen it is a desent size town with plenty of job oppertunities (esp. for someone retireing and looking to get a lot of fishing time) and it rith in the middle of a bunch of good places to fish.

[zsmith62]

Don't know if anyone picked up on this, but Outdoor Life magazine just named Mountain Home AR. the number 1 place to live for sportsmen.

[Terry Beeson]

Well, that question is a tough one in a few ways... I hear you talking about "jobs" so Mountain Home would not be my FIRST choice unless I had a job there. If you want to talk just where I would live if I could live anywhere, it would be in the Mountain Home area, I suppose. If it comes down to employment, I really like the Springfield/Branson area. I live in Nixa, which has good schools, a few good restaurants, and close enough to Springfield and Branson to make it a good place to make a living... As well as Ozark. (This from a guy who is currently unemployed by the way...)

My wife has a place a few miles east of Mt Home that I would move to in a second if I could make a living there...

Uh... RSBreth... If you want to be neighbors with Dave and Emily, you better be looking in eastern Oklahoma... They moved a couple of years ago.

Oh... and Soggy... a common mistake, but I assume you are talking Mountain Home, AR.... Unless you are talking Mountain Home, Alaska (AK)... (Can't help it... my dad was with the Postal Service and those abbreviations were a stickler at my house... Of course MO should be Montana...)

[Phil Lilley]

Rural Springfield... close to 2 trout parks, take 60 towards the NFOW and other fantastic trout streams; close to Crane Creek; central to Table Rock, Taneycomo and Bull Shoals to the south and Stockton, Pomme and Truman to the north. Jobs- better than outlying areas including Branson proper. Cost of living lower. Gas is definitely cheaper.

Plus you may have Beeson as a neighbor who will show you all the good fishing spots.

[Trav]

I would have to agree with the Hollister plan.

I live 8 miles from both branson and hollister and 11 miles from forsyth. Live across the lake(Taneycomo) from Rockaway Beach. Am less than an hour from over a dozen bodys of water. I love it!....plus,,, as a student of Branson High(class of 87) and children that did the same, I can say that this area is the best in the ozarks.

Of course I am a little biased if you dont want to live in Iowa.

[Trav]

GO HAWKEYES

[rps]

I live at Holiday Island on Tablerock, outside of Eureka Springs. By choice. However, like Terry's post on Mountain Home, employment is more difficult here than some places.

Try this thought. Fayetteville, AR has often been named to best places to live lists - AARP, Money, etc. It's a college town (U of A), growing, has excellent schools, and is less than one hour from Beaver Lake, Table Rock, the Buffalo River, the Kings River, and numerous year round rivers, creeks and streams. (Lee's Creek, War Eagle, Osage, Upper White)

Frankly, anywhere within the triangle of Fayetteville, Springfield and Mountain Home will be better than good.