RE: what state would you pick
depends, am I going to live on that land or just use it for hunting/fishing/etc.???
if its not where i'd live, out west somewhere, MT, WY, ID, dakota's... but most likely it would end up being in west central IL some where in the Peoria/Quincy/RockIsland triangle cuz it is close enough to home so I can hunt frequently and still be able to manage the land myself...