This year I'm moving to western NY from Arkansas to start a new chapter of my life.

I'm prepping myself for a bit of culture shock and the longer winters but I'm also excited for a new set of opportunities as an outdoorsman.

For those of y'all that are familiar with the region, how's the hunting/fishing/trapping?

Any other advice is welcome.

Pick a different state.Politics and taxes are awful.

Think you need to listen to some Hank Williams Jr songs first, then decide.

Some people seem to like upstate NY. If you move to New York, you will be closer to Boco and the other Canadians. That is a plus. There's always a silver lining somewhere.

I would skip ahead a couple chapters

It depends on which County in WNY , you are moving to . Some are better than others.

I would recommend you chose Northern NY vs western. I am from Binghamton NY and Western NY is beautiful with pretty much nonstop rolling hills. However if you get near Rochester, or Rome, you can truly experience the greatness that NY is known for. The St Lawrence River has salmon fishing that matches any Salmon fishing experience I ever had in Washington State. The hunting and trapping are also excellent. Things are different, but anywhere north of that godforsaken southern leg of NY, people are just like they are where your at in Arkansas.

Things to be aware of. Whatever you do, do not bring a pistol with you. I am warning you again. Do not bring a pistol with you. The NY cops whether it's County or state patrol will pull you over just to check you out because of out of state plates. Get your concealed carry permit after a year of living there, most of NY is good about it in those parts.

Vehicle inspection is a thing, they take it seriously. School tax and property tax are going to make you very very very upset. Other than that, the gun laws are what they are, but you will.be going into one of the most beautiful places a person can ever see. Also make sure you got that vaccine if you going to work a public sector job or health care job. GL.

Edit: fluid film. Do not waste money on undercoating of rubber or anything like that. Fluid film every year will help the vehicles not rust.

Tofan covered it quite well...Some things you are going to like a lot, taxes, you won't!! As CB says where in NY means a lot...We have lots to offer in NY... If truly in western NY Lake Erie will introduce herself to you each winter, but will provide some of the best walleye fishing anywhere on the planet...

Do you say "crick" or "creek" ?

You are a UNICORN !!!! Not in the way some may think . But RARE to find someone MOVING INTO the state of NY . Millions are moving out !!!

After tofan response sounds like an awesome place to visit but not live........

My condolences..

I would also pick another state.To many laws there

HA!! But we can hunt on Sundays!!! Sorry Bruce, I couldn't help myself!!

Makes me laugh when people that know little about what NY State has to offer bad mouth it. I have yet to find a state that doesn’t have a downside. Many here like to bad mouth NY, but most all here sure like the money they’ve been making with their investments on Wall Street, in NYC financial capital of the world. As long as you don’t move into any of the major cities in NY, you will probably like it here.

I have lived in NY my entire life and have to question why you would pick NY to start the next chapter of your life given the many what I would think better alternatives. So why NY?

Gun Laws: 10 round max. no standard ARs allowed unless you register them as an assault rife. Pistol permit will take close to a year to get and same 10 round limit. Every pistol has to be registered and on your pistol license which is a card you keep on you, takes about a month or two every time you add a pistol.

Politics: Corrupt just like most other places. If your upstate and not around a city, most people are conservative, cities tend to be more liberal, probably the same for most states.

Taxes: Higher than most states, rent higher too. Looking into taxes for the location you want to move, I'm middle ground at just over $12,000 a year in taxes.

Schools: Most provide a good education for your kids if you have them, but they are also the driving force for your high taxes.

Hunting, fishing and trapping: Great, just have to watch out for non hunters and the general public is not a fan of trappers. Oh and always have all your paper work, as you will get stopped by the conservation officer or police officer checking for your license, even if its the free one required to fish for stripers in the Hudson.

The Adirondacks are beautiful and so are the Catskills, just hard to find a good paying job to make ends meet in those areas.

Good luck and I'm really curious why you want to move to NY over just about anywhere else, besides California of course.

I once met a young man from WV that had joined the army. He told me that when he was sent to Fort Drum, home of the 10th Mtn. Division, the most deployed division in the USA. He was very depressed, because of all of the bad things he had heard about NY State. After he moved here, and got settled, he said it was great. Probably some of the best fishing in the world, St. Law. River,eastern basin of Lake Ontario.

Kbuck, what part of Western NY? I live about 15 minutes west of Rochester and 2 miles south of Lake Ontario. I grew up on a small farm In Orchard Park just outside Buffalo. It's not so much farm country anymore though. If you end up around Buffalo you will have access to great smallmouth, perch, and walleye fishing. When I was a kid access to hunting and trapping spots was easy and always close by. At that time deer hunting was iffy. I was 16 before I saw my first deer out behind the barn, didn't deer hunt until I was 22. Then it was an explosion, they were everywhere. Good quality bucks too, though you'll never shoot a big one if you fill your tag with the first scrub buck you see. Spend some time knocking on doors and getting to know the people around you will get you access. The last few years nuisance beaver and coon have gotten me hunting access. We have lots of both.

The Rochester area and south (Finger Lakes Region) as far as I'm concerned is a gold mine. Lots of state/public land with lots of fish and game. There is public access on all the Finger Lakes for some great fishing.

Lots of tourist spots and family things to do. Again, if you end up east of Buffalo/Lake Erie you WILL see snow. Get a snow machine. Don't bring your handguns. Store them with someone you trust, be a resident for a year then get your permit papers. Answer the questions TRUTHFULLY, get finger printed and your picture taken, submit the forms and wait 6 to 9 months. Then have the guns shipped FFL to FFL. My son and I waited 9 months, my two daughters 6.

Don't hesitate to PM me with questions.

I grew up in NY state and left after High School. My parents, a sister and a lot of family still live there. They’re all currently looking to leave the state. Taxes have gotten really bad and the state govt is extremely progressive. The problem is the NYC area controls the laws and taxes for the whole state. NY also has some of the worst gun laws in the USA. I would recommend the Rocky Mountain west instead, it has better hunting, bigger mountains, more public land, better trapping opportunities (land trapping), less taxes and way better laws. Best of luck.

Yea financial capital of the world ! Second behind Cali fir weirdos weather sucks politics suck taxes suck gun laws suck That’s lot of sucking !
Heck Ky might have its faults but I can go into 99.9 % places with a side arm Property is cheaper Crime rate is waaaayyy lower
No wait never mind about KY being a great state If you even think twice about going to NY we don’t want anyone with that thinking in this state

Definitely don't come to Virginia . Crime is unreal. Taxes are out of this world. Soil is terrible. The deer are tiny with extra small racks.