WOW.. I really appreciate all the information that people have given me here. I received a lot more responses than I anticipated. Well, I think most people here have educated me a lot more about the situation down there, although I know I have a lot to learn.
Interesting that a few people from GA and FL included posts here. Well, I never thought much about GA, although FL was definately a place I considered. Yeah, maybe I will investigate some of those areas in GA.. I was told GA has some pretty crazy heat in the summer and I guess I keep thinking of Atlanta, when I think Georgia. One other reason I thought against Georgia was I thought the crime was higher and gun laws stricter, but I know there is lot of beautiful places in Georgia.
Well, from all the posts I received, I can sure see that the Carolinas are very shooter friendly and have lot of friendly helpful people. I guess I will have to look at costs of living, laws of the areas, shooting facilities and weigh which area looks most ideal. I will have to review these posts over again and I appreciate those who don't mind me asking them questions about the areas they live.
Where I live now is decent place for shooting, but I just want a change of culture, weather and scenery. I am not a fan of the cold weather and the 9 month non-stop perpetual rain (western Oregon) and I did spend some time on the equator, so I think I won't have a problem getting use to the humid heat. I guess Charleston sounded nice because I thought it had a more temperate climate year round, a beautiful beach and a lot of history. But never living there, I don't know what is in store for me. Sounds, like almost every place I may be interested in living has plenty of shooting facilities around. Where I live now is very desolate and a bit anti-social and its hard to get involved with shooting activities and meet other people . More times than not, I am the only one at my shooting range and I have to drive almost an hour to get there. I thought I be able to go there in winter, but I didn't realize how bad the weather in central Oregon can get, so I more or less cannot do much shooting until spring. It would be nice to be in place where you can shoot outdoors, year round. Indoor ranges where I live suck, so I would be happy to find a place that had variety of indoor and outdoor ranges.
Places like Asheville, NC do look very beautiful and scenic, but I guess I have heard rumors that its the San Francisco of the south. Perhaps a nice place to visit, but not live? I do live in the mountains now and I am not particularly big fan of snow. I am not a skiier and wouldn't mind warmer weather and some hot sunny summers. I would like to avoid living in swamps I guess, since those areas would attract the most bugs, this was one thing that turned me off to FL, in addition to a few other factors. For the most part I guess, gun laws in North Carolina seem on par with South Carolina? Or is South Carolina bit better? I do love the beach, but I am not really sure how your beaches are compared to FL or CA. It seems beach areas are more expensive. Having some land, a bigger house and saving money are factors I would consider. I would have to think about that.
I have a home business developing computer software and plan to start some side IT projects and consultancy. As of now, I am very flexible where I live, but obviously I would like to live in a nice place with lower taxes and where the cost of living isn't too high.
I will review the different areas. I am thinking I will do a trip to the south in March, April or so and just explore the different areas. It may be nice to meet a few folks who I can go shooting with to see what the ranges are like. I actually never have been to the south, so for me it will be a bit of an adventure. When I get more serious about going and time draws nearer I will try to communicate with people, as I probably will have more questions. It would be interesting to see what life is like down there and the scenery I am sure will be wonderful too.
One last thing, I am a bit surprised that NC & SC have stricter gun laws than Oregon. In ORegon I can carry my gun everywhere but the federal gov't and law enforcement buildings. No such restrictions on restaurants, bars, etc. Also, you don't have to get a permit for each gun you carry? IN Oregon my permit works for all my guns. Sometimes I carry two at a time. Oh well, I guess restrictions are something I have to get use to. Also, in Oregon I never had to take any 8 hour course. Do you think if I took an 8 hour course with Oregon Firearms Academy that it would qualify for a conceal weapon permit in NC & SC? I have a certifcate from that course and documentation proving I completed it with the gold level. Perhaps using that cerftificate is just wishful thinking?