Hey there, I'm from california, and thinking of moving to salt lake city to have better access to climbing. I climb sport, trad, and also boulder a good bit, as well as backpacking, but I'm also very interested in getting into ice and alpine climbing.. Any tips on cheap places to live, where to meet people, or anything else that would be beneficial to a climber?
I'm 18, just recently graduated high school.

Sugarhood is probably the best place to get reasonable rent, access to folks who are into the stuff you like and easy to get out of town quickly.

KSL classifieds always has lots of stuff. Sugarhouse, 9th & 9th, or anything by the U of U is usually decent.

www.ksl.com/?sid=17403777&nid=651&PropertyType=Apartment

Hey Christian, there are many areas that would be suitable for you - anywhere along the metropolitan Wasatch Front area you can find reasonable renting accomodations and the canyons/crags are very accessible anywhere along the Wasatch Front. I prefer to live on the East side of Salt Lake Valley; check rentals in the following areas:

Millcreek
Sugarhouse
Holladay
Cottonwood Heights
Sandy
Midvale
Draper

I prefer the Millcreak/Holladay/Cottonwood Heights areas. I can access Big Cottonwood, Little Cottonwood and Millcreek canyons in 5-10 minutes from Holladay. Currently I rent a 3-level duplex with 3 baths for $900/month. Deals can be found out here for sure! When looking at a map of Salt Lake Valley try to rent anywhere east of I-15. There will be cheaper deals west of the interstate, but east-west traffic corridors are a bitch and it will take you 30+ minutes to access the main canyons from the west side depending on your exact location.

The main climbing gyms in Salt Lake valley are:

The Front - primarily a bouldering gym with yoga classes, etc.

Rockreation - Lead, boulder and TR area (my personal gym of choice), lcoated in Millcreek area in the same complex as Black Diamond headquarters.

Momentum - Largest gym in Salt Lake Valley with lead, boulder and TR areas. The most restrictive of the three gyms.\

You can meet people at any of the gyms. Additionally there is a great climber's shop called IME in Millcreek where some hardcore climbers work and are very friendly/helpful resource.

Another place to meet people and get invovled in a variety of outdoor activities is the Wasatch Mountain Club: www.wasatchmountainclub.org/admin/menu.php

Provo valley is another option about 40 minutes south of Salt Lake City. It is a predominatly Mormon population down there with less diversity than Salt Lake Valley. If you don't mind that it would be a good option as well - there is a solid group of hardcore climbers down in Provo too, centered around a great gear shop called Mountainworks.

If you move out here get in touch with me and I may be able to help you find employment in the security field if you're interested. We are always looking for good applicants!

Anyone from out of state that i have ever talked to about rent in SLC is always astounded. SLC is extremely cheap when it comes to rent compared to other places around the nation. Good choice. I live in a spacious 4 bedroom house, 2 bathrooms, & a fenced yard in sugarhouse for 1100/month, & certainly there are better deal out there if you search. When you get here, a good liberal place to check ads is the weekly rag, The City Weekly, or, some of the best places i have found in the past, i have found by taking a day & just driving around looking for 'for rent' signs. I am 15 min from Rockreation, 20 from multiple canyons, 1hr 20m from maple, 25 min from American Fork...the benifits just keep adding up. SLC is a great place to plant your roots! Good luck. Contact me if you need someone to climb & show you around if/when you get in.

Kearns has the cheapest rent and you can use what you have left over to buy a bullet proof vest.