Living somewhere near the mountain ranges (Wyoming, Colorado, Idaho)

I lived there back in my highschool days. My father worked in O&G and they didn't have a highschool for us in the country so the company paid for boarding schools. We had a large choice of where to go, and I naturally chose Switzerland.....being from TX and living in Saudi....I had enough of the flat and heat.

This was almost 2 decades ago. (looking at my wording in my OP, it looks like it's in the present) Since then I've been back for vacation, but dying to return for an extended time again. I'd love to snag a job or get transferred out there.

 

I'm currently outside Durango CO. I've been working my way up through NM the past 2 weeks. I'm exploring NM and CO for a place to move myself. I love the PNW and Bend Oregon is one of my favorite places in the States and I'd move there in a moment but it is a bit far from my kids who are in college in TX (not to mention family and friends).

I fell in love with CloudCroft NM and looked at some acreage there last week but the market is super hot right now, prices are climbing and inventory is low. It may also be too small of a town for most. Taos is nice and l've looked around there a bit.

Every time I get to Colorado I want to move here immediately. So much natural beauty and outdoor activities beyond compare. If I had more money I'd move here in a moment. Not sure where but CO would be my first choice.

Good luck in your search.

 

Surprised that Reno hasn't been mentioned. Decent environment considering it's in Nevada. Fantastic beauty all around...and offers the things a big city has to offer. Great travel destinations are easily reached within a day's drive. If I had to move back to desert (spent 10 years in Vegas), I'd probably opt for Flagstaff or Reno.

But I'm done with the desert. Gotta get ready for the future "water wars"...so PDX is my choice for guaranteed water.

 

i love durango and southern colorado/northern new mexico! have you been to pagosa springs? ive been twice in the last 4 years and hoping to get back soon. the sulfur hot springs there are awesome as well as all the hiking/outdoor stuff in the san juan mountains and weminuche wilderness. its a small town with some good restaurants. i drive from austin to santa fe, hang out there for a couple days then its 3 hours to pagosa. santa fe is great too, but its not any cheaper than austin. mountain towns in colorado can be expensive, but pagosa is actually pretty affordable compared to your tellurides or breckenridges.

this thread is timely as me and friends have been talking about uprooting our circle to a new city. ive been in austin 25 years and not really liking it here as much as i used to. pacific northwest, new mexico/colorado or asheville, nc are the three areas we talk about.

 

as much as i love santa fe and northern new mexico, thats the main reason id pass on living there. water is going to be a major issue in the coming decades and they are already living in drought conditions.

 

yeah I spent yesterday eating a colorado chocolate bar and sitting in the hot springs in Pagosa Springs. Great little town. I need to get the brakes checked on my van before venturing farther north next weekend, and I get a better signal for work, thats what has me in Durango. I plan on going back this week to PS to spend more time there and maybe hook up with a realtor.

 

@Outlier

This website has a BBS that's been active for decades and might help you:
http://www.city-data.com/forum/

 

In all seriousness. Are you ****ing stupid?

Back on topic. Not listed, but I do not recommend the mountainous parts of North Carolina. Unless you're white.

 

the animas mountain trail in durango is great if youre looking for intown hiking. amazing views from the top, looking down into the animas river valley.


have you ever been to mesa verde? easily doable as a daytrip from durango and definitely worth a visit if you have time.

as for living, whats your thoughts on durango? i feel like if youre going to be in that part of colorado and want a balance b/t nature and "city" then durango would be a good choice. its not huge, but definitely has more resources/shopping/food options than many other towns in southern colorado. ive only spent a day there, but seemed like a great place.

 

Thanks that looks awesome!. I've never been to Mesa Verde so Ill check that out. This is the first time I've spent anytime in Durango. i'm in town now working outside a laundry mat and waiting until the shop can check out my brakes at 2:30. So far it seems like a pretty nice place and might be a nice spot where you have the modern conveniences of a small city but close to so much great outdoor areas to explore. I'll let you know my thoughts after hanging around for this week.

 

OTOH, all the beef and animal fat you can get your hands on. Can even be picky without the "mass produced" variety.

Both cities are beautiful but the cost of living is higher than those places you mentioned or even Houston. I think more people from California are moving to Colorado, so more tolerant (...as in they don't give a **** about yer looks) I suppose?

Boise has been growing with word that it's like it's a "small town before its ruined like Portland/Austin" vibe. Haven't been there, so I can't tell you about the racism.

 

You really shouldn't hook up with relatives.

 

Correct. Unless you're in Alabama. (If you're into that kind of thing). <goes back to fix spelling>

 

@Outlier: "Anyone have any opinions on living in _____?"

...literally 8 posts later...

Roscoe: "...yo, tell us about your criminal history pls?"

wtf is this thread progression? lmao

 

We just gonna skip over this?

 

Wyoming, Montana, the Dakotas, etc. are some of the most beautiful/pristine places in the US if you like open spaces and a bit of isolation, but if you don't like cold and snow, good Lord. Even if you do like cold and snow, the cold and snow up there is insane. I would love to live there, but there's a reason why a lot of the area is isolated. I'm sure you've considered things like medical facilities and whatnot, but make sure there's one nearby if necessary if you're not into Little House on the Prairie remedies involving leaves and cow piss.

I've been looking for places to move so I can get away from the city for years. I'm not really looking for acreS as much as I am maybe an acre of land because I don't want to have to maintain all that. I also am not looking to "live off the grid" where nobody would find me. lol. I prefer being in cities or towns with populations of around 10,000 or less or whatever size as long as they're within maybe 50 miles of a town of around 50,000-100,000. In my tours, my favorite places are areas of NW Arkansas near Fayetteville/Bentonville, around Nashville, TN., and possibly somewhere in Colorado (although that would probably be a distant 3rd since I've never been there). I want to be able to get out of my house and actually see nature, not concrete and asphalt, but I want the winters to be cold, but not insane.

As for your worries about cultural variety, you're going to find that in many places that are smaller. On my tour of small mom & pop restaurants and other spots around the Southern US, I've encountered some crazy open conversations in places like Italy, Tx, while I was in a restaurant (I seriously doubt I'm heading back there anytime soon. lol). That kind of stuff is everywhere, but isn't necessarily out in the open. At the same time, I think small-town places get a bad rap, too, because some of my best conversations and kindest people I've met have been in places that are considered "backwards" or "racist", like Arkansas and small towns in Texas. Anywhere you don't have diverse culture (and I'm not just talking race), you're probably going to have a group of people that believe in the same thing whatever that "thing" may be. It's just a fact of life. My problem with a lot of places I look at in NW Arkansas or Tennessee is houses there have shot up in price with Walmart blowing up even more and the mini-tech boom out in the Nashville area. You still get more land with your house in those parts, though, so there's more value in that. Now that WFH is more common and COVID, more people are exiting cities to live where they can actually get something cheaper and with a possible view and nature. I can't blame them.

I've read that site for years and one thing seems to be common : every small town/city you want to go to has a fair number of people talking about "how great it was before all the noobz started arriving". lol. Fort Collins, Co. is one such place.

 

I work in Marketing and our team is global so I can work from anywhere I can get a reliable signal. Both kids are grown and off at college and live near their mom in Clearlake. No way I'm moving from the Austin area back to the Houston area just to be near kids I rarely see since they're young adults, so the search is on for my next home base.