When people vacation in the Northern Rockies, they soon dream
of owning their own piece of the Big Sky. While their dreams are
understandable, the harsh reality is, what you see now may not
be what you get over any meaningful length of time. As more and
more people realize their dreams of a home in the country, open
spaces fill with rural subdivision. Unless we are careful, the
meadows, timbered slopes, riparian bottoms, and ridgelines can
fill with houses and cabins in only a few years.
If it's your dream to vacation or live in the Northern Rockies
you can make choices that will protect the landscape and communities
you love. These choices include the following:
- If you will only spend a few weeks in the region each year,
stay at a guest ranch instead of building a vacation home
- Hire a conservation real estate advisor who can help you find
strategies that match your conservation values with your desire
to own property in the region.
- Buy a house in one of our charming small towns—instead
of buying a subdivided parcel in a river valley or on a ridge
top.
- Explore an ownership arrangement that allows a rancher to keep
his/her ranch intact while providing you with a home site and
recreational access to the entire ranch.
- If you choose to build in the country, use an existing building
site to minimize impacts to wildlife and to take advantage of
available infrastructure such as roads, utility lines, etc.
- If you build on raw land, site your house away from the flood
plain, out of riparian areas, off the ridgeline, and out of wildlife
migration corridors and important habitat areas.
- Consider leaving an enduring conservation legacy by protecting
your land in perpetuity with a conservation easement.
Want more alternatives to rural residential subdivision? Download
our Welcome to the West Guide. It's full of good ideas about how
to channel your affection for the Northern Rockies into choices
that will protect it.
