Ideal Place to Live?

So I just returned from a weeklong trip in the San Juan Mountains in Colorado. Each morning we would meet up with our group at the local coffee shop, drive up to the trailhead, air down, spend 8-10 hours adventuring on the trails, air back up and go home exhausted only to do it again the next day. Good times. This got me to thinking I need to live closer to the trails. And since I’m a big time mountain biker (30 yrs.) wouldn’t it be great living where there’s also great singletrack. Singletrack like Whistler with OHV trails like the San Juans? Any thoughts where areas like this exist? As an architect I would need to be somewhat near a big city for work.

 

Where's Whistler?

 

Want to stay on the West or are you open to the East Coast?

 

Feeling real lucky here....
What is Golden Colorado for $1000 Alex

 

Whistler BC (British Columbia)

 

Preferably West but open if the spot is right.

 

I’ll research Golden. Thanks!

 

there are tons and tons of biking trails, marked for hiking and biking, as well as SO much to do.

https://www.trailforks.com/region/golden-5638/?activitytype=1&z=8.9&lat=39.69314&lon=-105.54627

 

Not sure what qualifies for “big city” per your work criteria, but a big city close to a lot of good off-roading trails is not an easy find. The Springs or Denver are probably your best bet, but even then you’ll still be looking at a bit of a drive, just not as far as with many other cities. If someplace like Bend is large enough, there are a ton of forest service roads to explore near there. But I also think you need to be realistic about the trail experience; the San Juan Mountains jeep trails are world class off-roading. Simply living in Reno and driving some FS roads in the Eastern Sierra is not going to give you the same experience. It’s a bit like getting to fly in a fighter jet and then deciding you loved it so you go out and buy a Cessna.

 

I’m

Yeah, just setting the bar and expectations high and seeing what comes up. I know it’s asking a lot.

 

If Whistler is near Vancouver (and I don't know that it is), why not there, or Bellingham in Washington? Or, some place in Montana? Or Calgary?

 

There is plenty of offroad for your vehicle west of Denver, drive 70 for an hour west of Denver towards Idaho Springs for some of the prettiest sights in the whole ConUS. The river cutting thru the canyons, the highway built up over the river running thru the canyons, in the summer it is absolutely spectacular to see and drive thru.

 

Yeah, Bellingham WA is high on my areas of interest. I do like that PNW greenery and all the waterways. Instead of the San Juan Mountains you have the San Juan Islands. Real pretty up there. And my trip next summer is up through there to the Sunshine Coast in BC. Use that ferry system with the 4Runner. Maybe see some Orcas. Northern Washington and the Denver CO areas right now have lots to offer. Just wondering if I’m missing other areas.

 

If you're from Oakland (California), you might research seasonal-affective-disorder before making a commitment. The PNW is nice, but it's a different thing.

 

Sometimes areas are so nice to live in, that everyone wants to be there, and you get this weird economic loop where the job market and salaries don’t quite stay in line with actual living expenses, which themselves rise quicker than other places, due to everyone wanting to be there.

I was out in colorado earlier this month where you went. I can see the attraction of getting a job that pays whatever just to have those mountains as my backyard. The place is beautiful, drop dead gorgeous. I went with a buddy that used to live in Ridgeway. He decided to leave about 15 years ago because of the job market and housing costs. Maybe there are some careers that do ok there, but I’ve heard it’s generally tough to “make rent” out there, unless you bring money. Kind of like some areas of California.

But I’ll be honest, I can understand the whole beach bum mentality when you get to visit places like this lol.

 

Thats a weird way of saying the PNW is full of extremely "different" people and you should stay as far away as possible.

 

Geo politics are a big factor, whether you end up moving don’t tell people you’re from Oakland or you’ll be heavily stigmatized

 

Moab would be an awesome place to live but you’ll need a new career as there are no cities anywhere nearby. I would be fine moving there and being a tour guide.

 

Las Vegas is about 2 hours' drive to Sand Hollow State Park, unlimited trails of varying difficulty, no road salt, no hurricanes, no earthquakes, no tornadoes, no floods...

Just don't try to go up this trail in your 4Runner lol

 

Ah hem, whatever you do don't come to Durango Colorado. Terrible weather and mountain biking, and we're stuck halfway between the San Juan Mountains and SE Utah I've only been here for forty-six years and it was expensive then and even more so now, but the front range in Colorado has just gotten way too populated for me My daughter in Denver and her husband unfortunately have quit downhill skiing because it's too crazy to drive up to the ski areas on the weekends nowadays

We're leaving them our house we've lived in for forty-one years right in town in Durango so they can retire here and ski at Purgatory But you have to decide what is most important to you and make it work This photo is from the Alpine Loop - its even gotten so busy up there compared to what it used to be it's disappointing but that's pretty much every desirable place to live any more

 

My son is in CO and (so far) loves it. My wife and I are contemplating where to live and finding high housing prices everywhere. As someone said to me "all the good places have been found".

 

Somewhere in the Eastern Sierras would be good too

 

Tehachapi, California

 

Winter is long in the San Juans.

 

You live close to some pretty great mountain biking in Santa Cruz.

 

Yeah, I’ve spoken to some transplants who have moved up there. They’re on vitamin D supplements. That is my biggest fear there. Went up for an interview in Seattle years back for a couple days in the winter and it was pretty bleak.

 

Haha. I hear you but I’m in my 50s now and I’ve given up on politics altogether. I don’t let that stuff inform me on people or places. More than happy to hang with folks from either or neither side. Just looking to enjoy the 2nd half of life here. Figure I only have 25 years until I can’t ride or wheel anymore so why place additional limits on those years.

 

My backup career was always National Park Ranger.

 

Triple digit temperatures on the regular? That’s a hard pass living there full time.

 

I’d been looking to do Imogene up until my visit last month. I actually enjoyed doing less busy Stony Pass up to Kite Lake more TBH. Imogene, though super pretty, was a parking lot.