Chris Dorsey
June 10th, 2020

For Los Angeles-based television executive Stephanie Steele and her husband Peter, and millions of Americans like them, orders to shelter in place became a cue to flee. In their case, to Bigfork Montana, population 4,270. As densely populated cities across the country felt the brunt of the COVID-19 crisis and became ghost towns, many people decided thatsocietalescapewas a better option than mere social distancing.

“We loaded up my parents (both cancer survivors), a college-aged nephew and the dog,” says Stephanie, “and drove two straight days to get to Bigfork. My husband and I planned on staying a few days before returning to Los Angeles. It’s now been 10 weeks. We asked ourselves, what are we rushing back for?”

What started as a temporary fix for many has grown into a movement that’s showing signs of becoming a tectonic shift in how and…