Where would you move?

+1 what Nick & Locker said.

I know you ruled out Boulder but perhaps consider Boulder County. You mentioned Golden, west Denver, the Springs. With all other COL factors being equal, home prices are what I'd compare.
Check out the median home value estimate for Boulder vs. Longmont.
And you're close to S. St. Vrain Canyon, plenty of bolts and no crowds (don't tell anyone on here I told you that, okay?) Best of luck!

nicelegs wrote: I've really tried to give clear creek and table a chance. Fact is, there are a handful of good routes there. One single wall at the Red, Rifle, Maple, or Tensleep completely eclipses everything within 30 min of Denver.

Please take this in the spirit in which it is intended, but if this is your two cents, you're spoiled. People in LA, San Fran, Seattle, etc., would give their eye teeth to have an area that local. But I guess when Eldo is just up the road, you have the luxury of being picky.

Daddy,

They can live anywhere they want. The whole point is to be spoiled.

They didn't ask "We want to live in a city that sucks less than L.A., is Denver less shitty than that? BTW we have to live there for work"

Whatever you do, don't move to Golden. We like our little town too much. ;-)

(but if you did happen to move here, you'd be welcomed with open arms)

As someone who moved from "Misery" (Cape Girardeau) to Colorado Springs, well, Manitou Springs actually, heres my two cents..

Pros.
Great climate, cost of living is cheap for the front range, lots of running/ biking trails near by. Local climbing is so-so, Shelf and Turkey Rocks are a hour away. Climbing community is friendly, no crowds.

Cons.
Traffic. Limited culture/music/bar scene. Very conservative, although not on the west side and Manitou Springs.

Gotta agree with Nicelegs. For strictly sport climbing, Flag has way better variety of better climbing within short driving distance than Denver, IMHO. Oh, and get this, I believe it sits at a higher elevation than Denver, so it's not as hot in the summer!

I know. Economists call it "buyer rationalization", closely related to "buyer's remorse". People buy something and rationalize afterwards trying to justify their choice. Please note though, I don't live in either of the places I suggested - they are my desired places to live.


Would it be considered movers' remorse if I were to recommend a place I USED to live? LOL. How about a place I ALMOST lived?

Can we sticky a generic "I want to move somewhere that has good climbing and live in [insert flatland locale here]" thread?

I think you also have to consider the type of people you want to be around. I grew up in the Philadelphia area and moved to Boulder after college. It is amazing here. That being said, it is outrageously expensive to live in Boulder, the suburbs are cheaper(a lot cheaper) but they are very suburban sprawl, identical houses for miles, strip malls for days, etc. If you live in Boulder, you are against traffic driving towards Denver on 36. However, living in Denver and driving to Boulder is hell on earth. Boulder is beautiful and close to more climbing than I could ever imagine doing in a lifetime. We are...

5-10 min to Boulder/Dream Canyon
10-15 min to Eldo Canyon
20 min to Clear Creek Canyon
3.5 hours to Rifle
35 min to RMNP
6 hours to Joes Valley
10 hours to Hueco
plus all the misc local climbing: ie Flagstaff, the Flatirons, Mt Sanitas, etc that are all IN town. Weather is pretty solid too, winter's tend to be perfect for sunny climbing and summers are great for alpine.

Also we have currently at least 4 gyms in town and many more in the suburbs.

If you can afford to live here and make it work...and you don't mind the overabundance of wealthy kept women in Lululemon who don't know how to drive their Escalades, then give it a go.

Co Spring is beautiful but VERY conservative. Definitely decent climbing around there as well, never lived there, heard traffic was bad but that is unfortunately the case in any metro area :(

Good luck!

Also though, to be fair, if I didn't have to worry about money or a job or working...I'd live in Fayetteville, WV.

Salt Lake City!

Ogden, Utah. Low cost of living. Great Gym. Great sport climbing within 50 miles in many directions.

Anywhere is going to be an improvement on Misserry.

Bend seemed a bit overrun with retirees, trendy boutiques and bad skiing.

I could name dozens of great towns for climbers but they don't have a gym or tons of bolts. good luck.

Any thoughts of relocating out West should, IMHO, also consider air (forest fires) and water (fracking) quality. You may not have considered this coming from the midwest. Five years ago I wouldn't even have thought of these attributes as being important when looking for a place to live. Now they drive my list.

Bishop, and the East Side, is currently being debilitated by smoke from Sierra forest fires. And the heat this Summer has been oppressive. It's only going to get worse.

Bend sounds pretty optimal although would you eventually get tired of climbing primarily at Smith?

And nobody has mentioned Lander yet. A little warmer (and colder) than Bend. Close to TONS of sport climbing (wild iris, sinks, ten sleep). Good community to raise a family, although somewhat isolated. Great amenities. Reasonable cost of living.

And yes, Spearfish... A cool little town with limestone (the VC!) and Devil's Tower close by. Small college there. Also reasonable cost of living.

And Logan, another good choice although somewhat isolated and the always-present latter day influence might become a bit overbearing.

If money weren't a consideration, you'd find me in... Canmore!

mountainproject.com/v/bow-v…

... so to sum up so far, pretty much anywhere is better than the mid west.

I live in Lakewood which is on the west side of Denver close to Golden. I live up against Green Mountain. I find the location is great for climbing and riding and I don't run into much of problem getting to the crags.

If I was gong to move and work wasn't an issue I would move the east side, probably Bishop. Lots of great climbing close by and the bouldering isn't too bad either. I'm not really a sport climber of much so my priorities a little bit different, but I would like to live closer to Yosemite and Tuolumne.

Just a quick thank you to everybody who has shared some input. We're still following the thread and still appreciating all the suggestions/comments. It's been very helpful with regard to adding a couple places to our list and giving us some previously-unknown pros/cons about the places we had been considering.

Lots of good suggestions here. I faced this same question 3 years ago and moved to Rumney, NH. Haven't regretted it a bit. Not even once.

Not only is the climbing season good (hot in July, but otherwise really pleasant), but there's good ice climbing, skiing into June and July some years, excellent mountain biking, and the state motto is "Live Free Or Die."

I like the area best for the varied types of climbing you can get within a 45 minute drive: 5.15 sport climbs, bouldering, 10-pitch trad routes on Cannon, alpine routes in Crawford notch, and the list goes on.

Everyone has a place where they find the right mix. For me it's in NH.

But, if you're self-employed and location is not important to your jobs, why not spend 6 months in an RV and visit a few places before deciding?

Def avoid Bend. When this place isnt on fire, it's a snowy hell hole.

Also, no one ever sends anything here. Ever. You'll quickly do the friendly routes in a season. Then go into project mode. It will last many seasons culminating with a finger injury, because you only climb the same 3 routes & your proj. You'll try to recover from it only to find that with each season you've gotten fatter & weaker. Then you'll go to a place like Maple or Ten Sleep to raise your spirit only to find that the balancy Smith routes have stolen your fitness. On the drive home you'll realize that you really dont like climbing & wonder why you ever moved here.

The single track & back country skiing also gets old fast.

Ryan, why are you being so negative? Smith sounds like a really fun crag!

probably cuz he has sent everything there. and yeah, Bend was awesome in the 90s, but the vertical style gets repetitive and injurious fast.

your link almost made me lose my second breakfast!