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Where in the USA? Best small to medium-size climbing town

Rick Blair · · Denver · Joined Oct 2007 · Points: 266
Chris Schmidt wrote: I guess I wouldn't be too surprised if this area is all hickville
Crested Butte used to be hickville until a bunch of spoiled, entitled trush fund hippies took it over, same can be said for a lot of mountain towns in Colorado. Too bad more people weren't turned away by Colorado's backwardness, it would be a nicer place to live.
nate post · · Silverthorne · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 2,446
Rick Blair wrote: Crested Butte used to be hickville until a bunch of spoiled, entitled trush fund hippies took it over, same can be said for a lot of mountain towns in Colorado. Too bad more people weren't turned away by Colorado's backwardness, it would be a nicer place to live.
I'm glad someone said something. I'm afraid a lot of the formerly great, little mountain, hick towns are loosing there hickness. Once a whole foods opens up you know your doomed. Frisco was once my favorite but now it's gone all gluten free. There are still a few gems left.
Jim T · · Colorado · Joined Jun 2012 · Points: 469

Gluten free...Yuck.

What I like about WF is that you can easily buy foods that aren't made of petrochemicals. Which is no small feat at most grocers. Of course it costs more, because making synthetic imitations is much cheaper than the old way. Did ya ever wonder what those hard-to-pronounce ingredients are made of?

Marc801 C · · Sandy, Utah · Joined Feb 2014 · Points: 65
Jim Turner wrote:Gluten free...Yuck. What I like about WF is that you can easily buy foods that aren't made of petrochemicals. Which is no small feat at most grocers. Of course it costs more, because making synthetic imitations is much cheaper than the old way. Did ya ever wonder what those hard-to-pronounce ingredients are made of?
The identical things we are made of and eat our entire lives - chemicals.



(Image credit: James Kennedy)
[More at: jameskennedymonash.wordpres… ]
Scott McMahon · · Boulder, CO · Joined Feb 2006 · Points: 1,425
Rick Blair wrote: Crested Butte used to be hickville until a bunch of spoiled, entitled trush fund hippies took it over, same can be said for a lot of mountain towns in Colorado. Too bad more people weren't turned away by Colorado's backwardness, it would be a nicer place to live.
haha millionaires in cowboy hats and carhartts driving a F350 that's never seen a piece of hay touch it.
John McNamee · · Littleton, CO · Joined Jul 2002 · Points: 1,690

My wife and I went through this process several years ago ...

What we were looking for:

1. Close to a hospital so she can work part time
2. Good skiing both lift and backcountry
3. Okay climbing close by so you can get out for an hour. Good climbing within a couple of hours.
4. Great road and mtb biking
5. A good community to live in with like minded people.

In the end we decided that it is pretty hard to beat living in summit county, Co.

Colonel Mustard · · Sacramento, CA · Joined Sep 2005 · Points: 1,241
John McNamee wrote:My wife and I went through this process several years ago ... What we were looking for: 1. Close to a hospital so she can work part time 2. Good skiing both lift and backcountry 3. Okay climbing close by so you can get out for an hour. Good climbing within a couple of hours. 4. Great road and mtb biking 5. A good community to live in with like minded people. In the end we decided that it is pretty hard to beat living in summit county, Co.
I chose to not live in Colorado on the nursing angle. I'm much happier in California than I was in a similar right to work state as a RN. Six figure salary, mandatory nurse patient ratios. Mandated breaks. Much, much happier. I'm a union man, baby!

But I'm not into skiing or snow sports, so that radically changes the outlook.
Jim T · · Colorado · Joined Jun 2012 · Points: 469

Won't be long before eggs have synthetic imitations, since they are nothing but chemicals. Once researchers figure out how to manipulate corn, soy, cotton and oil into an egg, people will be excited. It's probably too hard to make fake egg shell, so maybe they'll just scramble it and put in cartons

Marc801 C · · Sandy, Utah · Joined Feb 2014 · Points: 65
Jim Turner wrote:Won't be long before eggs have synthetic imitations, since they are nothing but chemicals. Once researchers figure out how to manipulate corn, soy, cotton and oil into an egg, people will be excited. It's probably too hard to make fake egg shell, so maybe they'll just scramble it and put in cartons
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2561374/The-artificial-egg-set-China-San-Francisco-firm-reveals-backing-Asias-richest-man-radical-plant-based-egg.html

motherboard.vice.com/blog/s…

And on a related note....
geneticliteracyproject.org/…
nate post · · Silverthorne · Joined Apr 2012 · Points: 2,446
Colonel Mustard wrote: I chose to not live in Colorado on the nursing angle. I'm much happier in California than I was in a similar right to work state as a RN. Six figure salary, mandatory nurse patient ratios. Mandated breaks. Much, much happier. I'm a union man, baby! But I'm not into skiing or snow sports, so that radically changes the outlook.
and that is why California is bankrupt. lol
but that aside California is a climbing paradise
mountainhick · · Black Hawk, CO · Joined Mar 2009 · Points: 120
MClay wrote:I'm leaning more towards some of the rural/hick towns.
Real hicks don't live in towns
Colonel Mustard · · Sacramento, CA · Joined Sep 2005 · Points: 1,241
nate post wrote: and that is why California is bankrupt. lol but that aside California is a climbing paradise
Yes, nurses bankrupted California. I look forward to your WSJ article ;).

I dig my locale, it is certainly not in the OP's wheelhouse though.
erik wellborn · · manitou springs · Joined Apr 2008 · Points: 355

Manitou Springs, Co.

Eric Carlos · · Soddy Daisy, TN · Joined Aug 2008 · Points: 121

Grand Junction is pretty sweet. Rifle is 75 minutes away, Moab and Ouray are less than two hours. There are several hundred trad routes within about 20 minutes of downtown, and more than 1000 boulder problems. If you are wiling to explore, there is a lifetime of rock around here. Oh, and Maple is 4 hours.

The city is decent at best, but you don't have crowds. Mountain biking here is fabulous and the local ski mountain isn't crowded like Summit County.

Matt Clay · · PNW · Joined Mar 2015 · Points: 1,032

Again, thanks for all the advice, offers, and general musings. It has led to a lot of discussions with my wife and tons of time on Google maps, wikipedia etc. Doesn't look like we will be relocating immediately - maybe in next year or two.

One of the key components of the parameters that no one really commented on was the range of styles - as climbers starting a bit later in life how much would it factor in to a long-term decision to relocate to a climbing town?

Would you rather have a great diversity of climbing styles? Or one predominate style of your home crag that you master over the years?

S. Neoh · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Oct 2009 · Points: 35

I think the priority should be relocating to a town in which you feel comfortable, safe, and is good for raising kids. Proximity to good climbing, has to, in my mind, be a notch below that. As for climbing styles, it is likely you will work something out, just be willing to drive more than you like. Here in the NE, good sport climbing is 1.5 to 2 hours away. Good trad, 2.5 to 3.5 hours away, etc. I like visiting new areas so we take road trips, out West, down South, whatever strikes our fancy and within our budget. In the winter, it does not hurt to have eight(!) gyms in Eastern MA alone. :)
GOOD LUCK.

Chris Schmidt · · Fruita, CO · Joined Nov 2012 · Points: 0

You will definitely find one style and type of rock you prefer over others. Maybe you already have a pretty good idea of what that is. Or maybe you don't because you have not experienced it yet. Only way you are gonna realize figure this out is with mileage and trying out new areas.

Sounds to me like you need an epic road trip (or 5!). Im biased and partial towards the SW but I truly don't think you will find a better location that provides what you're looking for somewhere other than NM, AZ, CO, UT or CA. I would steer you towards under 8000 ft to avoid the epic winters. Don't count out Nevada either!

It took me 4 years after initially moving to Slummit county (Breckenridge) to find my home in Fruita CO. I think you probably should pick a region / state and just go for it and once you start adventuring around wherever you end up you will pretty quickly find out if you picked the right spot or if you need to make another move. Go with your gut and you will probably at least wind up in the right state. I moved to Breck for skiing and found myself out in the high desert for rafting, canyoneering, mountain biking and climbing. Keep your mind open to other outdoor hobbies there are lots of them in the SW! There are lots of places that will work, but only one place that will truly feel like home.

T340 · · Idaho · Joined Oct 2011 · Points: 5

Boulder...

Ken Noyce · · Layton, UT · Joined Aug 2010 · Points: 2,648
MClay wrote:Again, thanks for all the advice, offers, and general musings. It has led to a lot of discussions with my wife and tons of time on Google maps, wikipedia etc. Doesn't look like we will be relocating immediately - maybe in next year or two. One of the key components of the parameters that no one really commented on was the range of styles - as climbers starting a bit later in life how much would it factor in to a long-term decision to relocate to a climbing town? Would you rather have a great diversity of climbing styles? Or one predominate style of your home crag that you master over the years?
Either method can be fine, one issue with always climbing the same style is that it can end up getting kind of boring after a while.

I know that it doesn't fit the small town portion of what you are looking for, but you might check out Salt lake City for at least a little while to figure out what you like. Within Salt Lake County you have granite, quartzite, limestone, conglomerate, and schist in all climbing styles. Moving out from the valley itself you have several destination areas a short drive away. Maple = 1.5 hours, City of Rocks/Castle Rock = 2.5 hours, Moab, = 4 hours, St. George/Zion = 4 hours, Indian Creek = 5 hours, Red Rock = 6 hours. In my opinion it would be a great place to gain more experience on a variety of different types of rock and styles of climbing. The culture in SLC would still take some getting used to, but would be much easier to adjust to than somewhere like St. George. As far as winters, yes you do get some snow from November to April, but it rarely stays on the ground for more than a week at a time except for maybe in January and February, and if you chase the sun you can climb outside every month of the year.

Figure out what you like first, then you will be able to make a choice on what small town you want based on what is available in that area. Most smaller climbing towns tend to be less varied in my experience.
M Mobley · · Bar Harbor, ME · Joined Mar 2006 · Points: 911
kennoyce wrote: Either method can be fine, one issue with always climbing the same style is that it can end up getting kind of boring after a while. I know that it doesn't fit the small town portion of what you are looking for, but you might check out Salt lake City for at least a little while to figure out what you like. Within Salt Lake County you have granite, quartzite, limestone, conglomerate, and schist in all climbing styles. Moving out from the valley itself you have several destination areas a short drive away. Maple = 1.5 hours, City of Rocks/Castle Rock = 2.5 hours, Moab, = 4 hours, St. George/Zion = 4 hours, Indian Creek = 5 hours, Red Rock = 6 hours. In my opinion it would be a great place to gain more experience on a variety of different types of rock and styles of climbing. The culture in SLC would still take some getting used to, but would be much easier to adjust to than somewhere like St. George. As far as winters, yes you do get some snow from November to April, but it rarely stays on the ground for more than a week at a time except for maybe in January and February, and if you chase the sun you can climb outside every month of the year. Figure out what you like first, then you will be able to make a choice on what small town you want based on what is available in that area. Most smaller climbing towns tend to be less varied in my experience.
After spending close to 20 years in the SLC area I'll say all of that is true and the mid winter climbing can be awesome somewhere in the state BUT the air quality for about 100 days a year can be so bad that everyone you know is getting sick. When you live right next to huge mountains and you cant see them through the smog it gets a little depressing.
Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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