# Best place to live and snowboard



## C01K (Dec 18, 2008)

What do you think is the best city to live in, that has an easy access to winter resorts? I'm looking to relocate and I was thinking somewhere west, may be Colorado Springs or Denver. Denver will be more fun and it will be easier to find a job, but it might take longer to get to the slopes. 
One thing I like about the current city I'm in is that it is fairly small and there is no heavy traffic. I can get to the local hill for about 30-40 min which makes it perfect for riding after work. 

So, if you can move anywhere you like where would that be and why?


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## thugit (Sep 29, 2009)

whistler because i hypothetically have the money to live anywhere.


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

In general cities are conducive to riding on a bus...not a snowboard.

The metropolis of Glacier because of the excellent employment opportunities for mulein, cookin or prunin.


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## Willy36 (Dec 29, 2008)

If you're saying it would be longer from Denver than Colorado Springs, try the other way around. About an hour to 90 minutes to most resorts from Denver, 2 to 2 1/2 hours from the Springs.


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## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

try Vail Valley area. I am an OR nurse and they are always hiring people in the hospitals in that area. Dont know about other professions but if hospitals have demand I would assume that other areas do too. You would be right in the heart of all the boarding you could want.


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## snowvols (Apr 16, 2008)

Salt Lake has to be on the list. Only 30 minutes from lift access. That is being conservative on time too. Beer here is a little water downed but meh still a good town.


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## Argo (Feb 25, 2010)

Another one on the list is portland. year round boarding up at hood. Beautiful area to live also if you enjoy mountain biking and hiking in very moderate temperatures.... Seattle is nice also, a little further from the slopes but nicer city all around... portland probably has the party life cornered up in that area though...


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## Method (Apr 3, 2009)

Argo said:


> Another one on the list is portland. year round boarding up at hood. Beautiful area to live also if you enjoy mountain biking and hiking in very moderate temperatures.... Seattle is nice also, a little further from the slopes but nicer city all around... portland probably has the party life cornered up in that area though...



Only do seattle if you hate the sun.


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

Argo said:


> Another one on the list is portland. year round boarding up at hood. Beautiful area to live also if you enjoy mountain biking and hiking in very moderate temperatures.... Seattle is nice also, a little further from the slopes but nicer city all around... portland probably has the party life cornered up in that area though...


Seattle has closer slopes but shorter season...and perhaps not as good...but closer.

only do seattle if you hate the heat but love the traffic


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## Werewolfen (Oct 9, 2010)

I left Georgia in the Summer of 2009 for Colorado. I mistakenly picked Colorado Springs at first and lived there from August 2009 to May 2010. I searched for a long time trying to find a reasonably affordable cabin in the mountains just west of Denver and lucked up finding one in the town of Evergreen in May 2010.

I'm close to Echo Mountain in Idaho Springs about 25 miles away from me. I wanted the best compromise of being close to the ski resorts but still being close to the west Denver area, it's a good trade off I think. I've actually been thinking of moving to another cabin in the mountains just west of Boulder about 20 miles so I can be close to Eldora Mountain when my lease runs out in May 2011. 

I know that in the heart of all the big time major ski areas like Breckenridge , Keystone,Beaver Creek, Vail.... it just costs a fortune to live there and too far away to do a daily commute to Denver. One thing good about Colorado I can say is job opportunities are a lot better than what I had going for me back in Georgia, but once you start getting further away from Denver or Boulder the cost of living is terrible especially the further westward you go as you get closer to the popular ski resort towns.

There's a big difference between the cost of living in Colorado Springs and Denver, I think that's largely to do with Colorado Springs being a military city and therefore more things are affordable.Example -I had a 10x10 storage unit that I was only paying $60 a month in CO Springs, but I came up to the Denver area and all the storage unit facilities wanted $135 at least for a 10x10, I keep most of my things in a spare bedroom that's packed from wall-to-wall because of that.

CO Springs is just too far for any type of slope action. Even if I were wealthy I'd still probably choose to live no further than 30 miles away from Denver , too many inconveniences when you live too far away from shopping centers. For a single individual making all the bills by them self in the Denver area you really need to make at least $30,000 a year and own a reliable vehicle that's paid for. $35,000 a year really if you want extra piece of mind, just depends on how one lives.

When I was living in Georgia I struggled to make $24,000 but the cost of living is some of the lowest in the nation there. I'm just glad I had a brand new engine put in my old 86 Toyota 4wd truck before I came to Colorado, I have no vehicle payment and insurance is only $25.60 a month.I have no plans on ever leaving Colorado, I was one miserably wretched soul when I lived in the deep boring south, Colorado is like a paradise. Besides snowboarding , there are so many things to do and places to see that really don't require that much money.


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## snowvols (Apr 16, 2008)

Just curious what part of GA are you from?


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## JRosco (Sep 27, 2010)

Anywhere in the Denver metro area, city life with the great outdoors just a hop skip and a jump away. 
The Springs sucks, everything around the Springs is cool!


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## Werewolfen (Oct 9, 2010)

snowvols said:


> Just curious what part of GA are you from?


Macon, its about 90 miles south of Atlanta and one very boring, behind the times place where locals hate progress and about the only way to get a good job is if you know someone that can speak for you and get you hired. It's a very "good ol' boy" network there and the saying applies "it's not what you know it's who you know". I've got relatives in Tennessee that only come down there for a funeral because they hate the place so bad.

As for snow there, it might snow once every 5 years for one day, then its only about as deep as the dust on top of the tv melting within hours. I was amazed at the little bit of snow that Colorado Springs got, it averaged maybe 4 snow days a month when I lived there, and not heavy at all.

Here in Evergreen it snowed during the middle of May and I was shocked but pleased, snow was one of the main reasons I chose Colorado.


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## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

Werewolfen, hit me up man! I've been living here in Evergreen for 3 years now and am originally from western NC. I always get a season pass to Echo for a spot to ride in the evenings.

I hear ya on the cost of living! It's brutal here in Evergreen, but there's a reason for that. Easy access to Denver, easy access to the mountains, and it's just beautiful.

The owner of one of the storage units is a good friend of mine. I'll see if he has anything available and what he'd do it for.


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## Werewolfen (Oct 9, 2010)

linvillegorge said:


> Werewolfen, hit me up man! I've been living here in Evergreen for 3 years now and am originally from western NC. I always get a season pass to Echo for a spot to ride in the evenings.
> 
> I hear ya on the cost of living! It's brutal here in Evergreen, but there's a reason for that. Easy access to Denver, easy access to the mountains, and it's just beautiful.
> 
> The owner of one of the storage units is a good friend of mine. I'll see if he has anything available and what he'd do it for.


Odd thing, my 4WD Toyota truck that I have I bought in Asheville,NC . That's probably the most beautiful city I've ever been to in all of the south eastern U.S.

There's a nice Walmart in Asheville where clouds look like they hover about 100 feet above the parking lot there. 

One of the downsides of living in high altitudes is it's awful if you have a carbureted engine like me. I've got a brand new Weber Carburetor that I've had re-jetted already once since I've been in Colorado and I'm still running rich. It's a pain trying to find a mechanic that knows how to set one up for the elevation.


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## linvillegorge (Jul 6, 2009)

Try Olde's Garage. Pretty good guys there.

Yeah, if I had to move back east, it'd definitely be to Asheville. I'm from Morganton which is about 45 minutes east of Asheville on I-40.

Sucks yours isn't injected. I know we used to look high and low for '85 Toy 4x4s. '85 was the last year of the solid front axle and the first year for fuel injection. It's really tough on a carb'ed engine out here. You can go from 5200' to 11,000' in an hour. A carb'ed engine just does not take well to that.

Funny. My old '97 TJ that is just a toy now is from Marietta, GA.


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## snowvols (Apr 16, 2008)

Werewolfen said:


> Macon, its about 90 miles south of Atlanta and one very boring, behind the times place where locals hate progress and about the only way to get a good job is if you know someone that can speak for you and get you hired. It's a very "good ol' boy" network there and the saying applies "it's not what you know it's who you know". I've got relatives in Tennessee that only come down there for a funeral because they hate the place so bad.
> 
> As for snow there, it might snow once every 5 years for one day, then its only about as deep as the dust on top of the tv melting within hours. I was amazed at the little bit of snow that Colorado Springs got, it averaged maybe 4 snow days a month when I lived there, and not heavy at all.
> 
> Here in Evergreen it snowed during the middle of May and I was shocked but pleased, snow was one of the main reasons I chose Colorado.


I know Macon quite well. MY grandparents have a little home in Warner Robins. Nice area, but youre right real old school feel. We moved for the same reasons. Gotta chase the snow.


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## Qball (Jun 22, 2010)

Argo said:


> Another one on the list is portland. year round boarding up at hood. Beautiful area to live also if you enjoy mountain biking and hiking in very moderate temperatures.... Seattle is nice also, a little further from the slopes but nicer city all around... portland probably has the party life cornered up in that area though...


Cost of living is cheaper in Portland than Seattle. Portland is good place to be if you are a beer drinker, there are tons of microbreweries throughout the city and state. Plenty of strip clubs too if that floats your boat. There are also a lot of idiots on bicycles that don't think they need to follow traffic laws and don't understand that a car always wins.


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## JRosco (Sep 27, 2010)

Portland is a nice area, my brother used to live in Hillsboro not too far from Intel and I had fun everytime I went to visit. I did notice that since the sun doesn't shine like most places, people are really pasty! :laugh: :dunno:


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## oneshot (Oct 8, 2010)

if i didn't need or care about money..

revelstoke or whistler area.. best sled access riding in north america


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## Werewolfen (Oct 9, 2010)

snowvols said:


> I know Macon quite well. MY grandparents have a little home in Warner Robins. Nice area, but youre right real old school feel. We moved for the same reasons. Gotta chase the snow.


I know Warner Robins well, the only thing holding Warner Robins and even Macon too from turning into ghost towns is the Air Force Base in Warner Robins. My granny's brother retired from a 30 year civil service sheet metal job on that base from 1959-1989. He lived in Macon, when that base starts cutting lots of jobs everyone starts talking about it.

The famous UFC fighter Ken Shamrock was born on the Warner Robins AFB as his dad was stationed there at the time.

When Brown and Williamson Tobacco plant in Macon shutdown a few years ago and relocated to North Carolina it hurt a lot of people. The Keebler cookie plant shutdown a few years ago too in Macon. From my earlier post when I was talking about the good ol boy network...the local politics in Macon are bad. They truly hate outside influence and growth. Some of the old timer city councilmen have been in the city council since the 1970s. There's been a few major factories that wanted to build in Macon only to be turned down.

The Miller beer brewery wanted to come to Macon but was turned away because the city said it would run the Ocmulgee river dry where the cities water come from, so they built the Miller beer plant south of Macon in the old peanut town of Albany.

Briggs & Stratton wanted to build a small engine plant there but they too were turned down. Every year in Macon there's an annual Chery Blossom Festival which brings people from all over because of all the Cherry trees , lots of Japanese tourists come over because Cherry Blossoms are popular in Japan. One time I remember in the local news there that Japanese investors wanted to build a Cherry Blossom amusement theme park, but again....the city stepped in and said NO.

Issues like that is what will keep small southern nothingville towns in the stone age.Anything that threatens the good ol boy monopoly politics by bringing outside influence and progressive growth will always be shutdown in places like Macon.The southern Boss Hog complexes are severe.

Macon is also like a mini-Detroit, southside Chicago, and south central LA, the violent crime rate is extraordinarily high from a city that only has around 100,000 population. Denver doesn't even come close in violent crime comparison. 

I've been all over Denver and I've seen no ghettos. Even when I lived in Colorado Springs I saw no ghettos, that was another reason to get out of Macon was to leave the high crime rate.

Before I moved to Colorado I was actually considering living somewhere in California close to a mountainous area like Lake Tahoe but..hahahah...the MONEY it would take. California's economy is in the toilet , the worst state economy in the nation. I tried searching for a cheap place to live in northern California and guess what...there are none. Man that place is high.

Colorado beats all as far as choice of slope action goes, it has more ski resorts than any other state.


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## C01K (Dec 18, 2008)

Guys, thanks for all the replies.


Initially I thought that there must be a resort near by Colorado Springs with it being so close to the mountains but will all said it is off the list.

Seattle is an option although I've also heard it is gray most of the year. It will be probably easier to find a job there as I'm software developer. Still it looks like the nearest resort is about 50 miles drive. 



> Salt Lake has to be on the list. Only 30 minutes from lift access. That is being conservative on time too. Beer here is a little water downed but meh still a good town.


Salt Lake is definitely on the list. How is the weather there on average? What is the cost of living there? Is it too expensive?



> Another one on the list is portland. year round boarding up at hood. Beautiful area to live also if you enjoy mountain biking and hiking in very moderate temperatures.... Seattle is nice also, a little further from the slopes but nicer city all around... portland probably has the party life cornered up in that area though...


Portland looks promising too. Is there anything that is closer than Mt. Hood?


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## C01K (Dec 18, 2008)

Werewolfen thanks for the detailed post man. That is exactly what I'm looking to do - move in a place that is near a local resort in the west while staying close to a metropolitan area, get a cheap season pass for the local resort and then roam to the rest of the resorts when I have the time and the money.

How is the weather in Denver on average? I've heard it is sunny most of the year there. Are the winter too bad, is AWD or 4WD a must there? How is the commute to Denver?

Looks like Echo Mountain and Eldora are the closest resorts. Which one would you recommend?



> I have no plans on ever leaving Colorado, I was one miserably wretched soul when I lived in the deep boring south, Colorado is like a paradise. Besides snowboarding , there are so many things to do and places to see that really don't require that much money.


I hear you on this one. That is the other reason I want to move to a bigger city. I've heard that Colorado has a fairly young crowd and it's a fun place.

Hope you don't mind the million questions


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## Werewolfen (Oct 9, 2010)

I like Echo because its closer to me, but right now on Craigslist there's a $400 a month one bedroom cabin that's in Eldora , that's a steal of a deal. If I wasn't stuck in a lease till May I would jump on that. The cabin is also close to Boulder. That's what I would recommend , pick a good compromise by not having to drive so far either way. If I had it to do over again I would've never wasted August 2009 to May 2010 living in Colorado Springs, I would've drove straight into west Denver and lived in a motel for a month there until I found a place instead of doing like I done by living in a Colorado Springs motel for month until I found a place.


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