Best towns to live in CO...?

I have to second Grand Junction, not only are you close to RMP but you also have the Black canyon, Indepedence pass, Colorado National Monument and Utah is just hours away.

Nick Grue wrote:I am looking at moving to Westminster in the summer to go to school. Any insight on the scene there?

Scene? As in "I love the nightlife"? Hahahahahah. Good luck with that up there.

Mike Lane says:

it'd be hard to beat Colorado Springs (Shelf Road, Penetente, Red Rock Canyon Open Space, Castlewood, Devils Head). But a dismal scene.

Dismal scene, are you serious? Have your ever spent time in the Springs? We have a strong climbing community here with deep roots, ever hear of Bryan Becker, Earl Wiggins, Steve Cheney, Jimmy Dunn, Harvey T., etc... We're just not as loud and annoying as Boulderites.

My vote goes to the springs quirky neighbor, Manitou Springs. Just check out this article.
msnbc.msn.com/id/26527434/

Yeah, I agree about no scene here in Westminster. You're close to Denver and Boulder though. I like it here because I can be in S Boulder in about 15 minutes. Also, it's a hell of a lot cheaper to buy a house compared to Louisville, Superior...

You really need to define scene to get good advice. Are you looking for nightlife, good place for families, young college atmosphere, climbing community scene, etc. You should also probably mention if you want to rent or buy, and what your budget is for both. Another consideration is proximity to airports if that makes a difference. These things make all the difference in the decision.

My ideal place to live in Colorado is Durango, but the distance from a major airport eliminates it for me since I fly frequently for work. I live in a funky old neighborhood just south of downtown Denver, and I really like it. I wouldn't mind living in Golden if I didn't have to commute. I don't really like Boulder much, but some people love it.

Yeah, I wasn't really worried about a nightlife in Westminster. I am more interested in its climbing community and renting prices.

Ditto for Colorado Springs and Manitou. We've got a lot of rock (not as much as Boulder), and a lot of climbers (again, not as many as Boulder), but it's just a better place to be. Everyone tends to be nicer than in Boulder, the climbing is much, much less crowded, its very easy to get into some seriously remote areas within a half-hour of town. It's cheaper, a lot more diverse (if you like being surrounded by trust-fund brats with dreads, go to Boulder). We've got a growing music and art scene, and a good sense of community. Sure, there are some crazies, but Like Brooks said, they stay way out east of town and are easy to avoid.

Just come check it out; too many people hate the Springs without ever spending time here.

I highly recommend the Springs area. Although I live in the Boulder area now, I started climbing when I lived in the Springs. I learned in the South Platte area and it's great -- fewer people, fabulous rock, great routes.

Yes, the Springs has a reputation for being very politically conservative, but I can hook you up with lovely Liberals down there. Plus, Manitou is wonderful. I lived there for seven years and would happily move back there if I could.

Good luck.

Bucksnort

Nick Grue wrote:I am more interested in its climbing community and renting prices.

I live in the northeastern part of Westminster. The people are nice and the common areas are clean. Overall, Westminster is an ok place to live. There are good and bad parts of town. I'd be wary of anything off Federal south of 104th, for example. There's a great climbing gym (R&J) minutes away off 92nd & I-25 (depending on what area of Westminster you move to). Do you know what area of town you are interested in? There's all sorts of options for renting... prices really are across the board. Let me know if you need any more info!

I moved from the Hartford, CT area almost 3 years ago to Boulder and I love it. I figured it was as close to the mountains as I could live and still have a job that would pay my bills and let me continue on my 30 years education path. One thing with the onset of winter is to remember wherever you live, you'll have to travel to work. Everyone wants to live in the canyons and mountains, but you better save up a few vacation days for when you are snowbound or they close the local roads.

It also depends on what your looking for. I'm still relatively young, so I like my cafes/bars etc. I'll climb in Boulder then sit out on a patio drinking beer looking at the flatirons. Same thing in Golden. I think if you are looking for more suburbia, then Broomfield, westminster would be ok. Traffic starts to get pretty heavy out that way as well. Fort Collins hits the top of great places to live, but you'll be out there a bit.

I think Boulder is a great introduction to Colorado and you can branch out from there. Coming from CT, you won't feel the same "Boulder Attitude" that people are constantly complaining about. Also the rent here is comparatible to CT as well. Good place to start!

ctmeg wrote:I live in CT and am currently in the process of getting an initial teaching certification for Colorado. Any suggestions on which towns are the best to live in in CO in terms of access to climbing and a good scene? I boulder and sport climb and ideally I would love to have easy access to both. I've been told to look at Golden... any thoughts? Suggestions? Pearls of wisdom? Anything is appreciated! Cheers...

Well, The first is the pragmatic. Many districts simply are not hiring. And then you have to choose if you want to teach for trailer park kids who parents don't feed them, much less encourage learning, or for rich kids whose parents will constantly tell you HOW to teach them, and insist that their kid is the smartest of all of the 25 over-achieving kids in the classroom, and how any grade other than an 'A' is your fault for not challenging them or motivating them or whatever... not thiers.

In all seriousness, I'd give some thought into what sort of career you are headed into and go from there, then see who wants you, and until then, rent short-term. The hard-to-serve schools in denver are pretty much always looking for people. Do you by chance speak spanish?

PS- good luck getting into Boulder Schools. The last position by my house had 100's of applicants for a single position, which got filled internally. And St Vrain (N Boulder County + Weld) laid off 70+ teachers last year.

phil wortmann wrote:Mike Lane says: it'd be hard to beat Colorado Springs (Shelf Road, Penetente, Red Rock Canyon Open Space, Castlewood, Devils Head). But a dismal scene.annoying as Boulderites. My vote goes to the springs quirky neighbor, Manitou Springs. Just check out this article. msnbc.msn Dismal scene, are you serious? Have your ever spent time in the Springs? We have a strong climbing community here with deep roots, ever hear of Bryan Becker, Earl Wiggins, Steve Cheney, Jimmy Dunn, Harvey T., etc...

phil - I was referring to a nightlife scene, not the climbing scene.

kersey, co.

Boulder is "the center of the universe," all the climbing you could want, and close enough to other areas to get out of the local scene really easily. But as has already been posted, teaching jobs here are far and few between. I was talking to someone yesterday and she said 43 people had applied to the teaching job she was going for, not good odds. Golden really is in the middle of everything, plenty of climbing on table mountain and up clear creek, bouldering in morrison, 30 min to eldo and boulder, jump on 285 to the SPlatt, up I70 to mt evans, very central. Possibly ft collins? Pouder canyon has vast potential, though not a lot of sport, and vedauwoo is an hour away. If a job just lands in your lap, look at carbondale, possibly the best single place to live in the state, but the proximity to aspen and glenwood springs does not bode well for cost of living, or employment opportunity (everyone wants to live there). There are plenty of other rad mountain towns, salida, gunnison, pagosa springs (why don't we hear more about rock on wolf creek pass, there is an unbelievable amount of it, and it's all super solid and beautiful?), buena vista, pretty much anywhere near the mountains is gonna have plenty of climbing, but the front range and roaring fork valley certainly have the biggest scenes and the most bolts. My advice, see where you can get a job, then move.

Salt Lake City

check out grand co. - winter park, fraser. 1.5 hours to eldo (winter) 2 to lumpy (summer) and great skiing. plus school is 4 days a week. check it out!

Wow, a lot of insight- I'm glad I posted here. Obviously a lot of where I end up depends upon where I get a job- I am certified to teach secondary Biology and Environmental Science so it makes the job hunt significantly less painful... although in the current economy, still painful...

As for scene, I am looking for a good climbing community, where it won't be terrible to find partners. I'd like to have decent access to a gym for those wetter months when the suun is down before you get out of work. I am not looking to settle down yet so a post-college community would be cool- although nightlife is lower on my list.

As for Spanish, I am working on becoming fluent. I lived in rural Costa Rica for a few months and did my student teaching at an inner city high school... but fluency is still a ways off. I would like to stay inner city but can't stand to live in the city so I am being more flexible with where I end up, at least for my first job. Its all a challenge for me.

Pay is not as important, at least yet, I've lived in CT and am used to living more sparingly with a high cost of living...

Is that more specific? Keep the suggestions coming!

YOu're probably best off in the Denver area. THere are Denver neighborhoods that are in the city that don't feal like it. Sloans Lake and Highlands, for example.
The Eastern Colorado schools also seem to be in relatively constant need of teachers, as they move West into Boulder as the jobs open up there, creating space in Eastern for more teachers...

My wife taught in Denver off of Sheriton at Newlan. She had a total of no more than 2 white kids in any given year. Spanish was farily essential in any hard-to-serve Denver school.

Yeah, what Tony said. One nice thing about Denver is that the downtown core is very concentrated, and once you are a few blocks away you are in quiet neighborhoods with lots of trees, easy parking, cool old houses, etc. It is nothing like big east coast cities like NYC, Boston, Philly, etc.

My neighborhood(Baker) is about two miles south of downtown, but it is very quiet and still has walking distance access to very nice restaurants, bars, coffee shops, etc. There is also a big mix in housing options - everything from lovely but expensive Victorian mansions from the late 1800s to small rowhouses with reasonable rent. Sloans Lake, Berkley, Sunnyside, and City Park are similar. Highlands has gotten fairly expensive and feels much more crowded/urban than the other neighborhoods I mentioned, but is lovely. Platt Park near Denver University might also be a very good option.

Denver doesn't have the obvious climber scene like you see at the Southern Sun in Boulder, but there are loads of friendly climbers, several very nice gyms, etc. Traffic can be an issue for after work climbing, but if you are downtown and can leave work by 4 you can get to Golden, Boulder, or Castlewood Canyon within 30 minutes or so.

I personally believe it is best to live as close to work as possible so you aren't commuting every day. Commuting to climbing at off hours in a car pool is better than commuting long distances to work every day.