What is the best affordable ski resort/mountaineering, climbing town?

Is this asking too much?

So, we used to live in Jackson Hole. Actually for the past ten years I have been skiing and climbing in the Tetons and at the resort. It has been a good run to say the least. With a new family of 2 girls the housing costs pushed out of the area...we are currently living in Billings MT. We are in search of a town that we can afford a nice semi-rural house/lifestyle and still enjoy the mtns and skiing with the family. Any suggestions? Some ideas that I have are schweitzer Mtn. (northern Idaho), west Denver area, Ridgeway CO, and Whitefish.

Does anyone have any feedback on these areas or ideas on another place?

Consider Leadville, CO.

Check out Gunnison. It is really close to Crested Butte ski resort and a central location for areas like the san juans. Also amazing climbing nearby. Living expenses are pretty cheap here and it is a very friendly town. On the down side it is kind of hard to find a job sometimes, especially when all of the college kids take of for the summer and the economy drops some.

+1 on Leadville. Although I heard that it has one of the highest rates of cancer per capita in the country. It was hearsay so I could be wrong. I would also check out Buena Vista which is right down the road from Leadville. It has a more robust, healthy, economy and it really has a lot to offer the outdoor enthusiast. Close access to 14ers, year round climbing 5 minutes from town, 45 min to skiing at Cooper or Monarch, 1 hr to Copper or Vail, rafting, hiking, hot springs, etc. What are you looking to do for work?

Kevin Landolt wrote:Consider Leadville, CO.

Yes, rent is super cheap and it has a pretty good group of parents and kids that are always out doing stuff. Closest climbing and kayaking is in Buena Vista (20 min) and the best small resort skiing is at Ski Cooper (20 min) outside of town. Surrounded by mountain biking and hiking in the highest peaks in the lower 48. Enjoy!

Leadville if alcoholism and mental illness aren't in your gene pool. It's bleak up there in the Winter. It's certainly affordable for that part of the state.

There are lots of towns in the north wasatch that aren't too expensive.

I would have hated my parents if they raised me in Leadville--it is way smaller than most liveable mountain towns, windy, kind of miserable, and cold as shit. I would look at Gunnison and Durango the hardest for Colorado. The skiing is not quite as close, but Fort Collins is just as good for any of those other qualities you're looking for. Plus, there's also New Belgium and Odell's in town.

That's true. I grew up in Fort Collins and moved to Leadville for a couple years after high-school. I certainly miss the easy (15 minutes) access for backcountry skiing... but that's about all I miss. Fort Collins is a down to earth town with several notable breweries (check out the newest Equinox Brewing CO ) a liberal university town feel, world class bouldering, sport, trad, etc up Poudre Canyon. And some of the best backcountry skiing terrain in the whole damn state, if not country, up at Cameron Pass - a mere 90 minutes from town. Don't get me started on the great trail-running and mountain biking. We're also the closer to RMNP than the Boulderites.

Backcountry terrain in the Never Summer Mountains 90 minutes from town.

Pagosa Springs CO. Get in now before the storm.

+1 for Buena Vista or Durango. I would also say that Pagosa Springs is good but would not like to live anywhere near that hot springs. Also I never really thought that Pagosa was close to too much except for Wolf Creek and Chimney Rock.

I looked all over the West for the place I live in now it's pretty incredible what you have around for the cost of living here.

Durango great but kind of stuck as a college town. Meaning unless you have a skill, trade or are a hot waitress/bartender it can be tough.
I lived in the Aspen Valley for years. Great place but getting more expensive. Less If you look down valley like Silt or New Castle. Park city or SLC are good also, if you can handle Utah outside of the Moab area.
I would not suggest Leadville or BV. Gunnison good town but balls cold in winter.
Good Luck

..yeah I just got priced out of Jackson Hole this fall, fun while it lasted though! Check out Logan Utah, I loved it. Went to school there. Lots to do and close to SLC if you need to get your urban thing goin' occasionally....Logan's not too far from Jackson, either!
-cheers

You ask the eternal question...

Since you mentioned west Denver: Having lived in the Denver/Boulder area, I would suggest looking elsewhere if you actually are looking for a ski town.

The skiing is basically up I-70 which is about the worst morning ski drive you can imagine. It seems like all of the 4 million people that live in the front range are trying to get to Copper/Breckenridge/Loveland/WinterPark/A-basin/Keystone/Vail at the same time! I have literally spent 5 hours trying to move 88 miles.

Although there is reasonable housing and access to jobs, there is no mountain-town vibe around Denver - it is a vast metropolis complete with horrible traffic and air pollution. Boulder has a good vibe, but is super expensive...

That said, rock-climbing in the Front Range is excellent...

Oh yeah, one step back from slagging on the front range from a skier's perspective: I think Nederland, Colorado is actually the one place in the Front Range that offers reasonable access both to the ski hill (Eldora), the backcountry, and also back down the hill to jobs in Boulder.

But Eldora isn't a huge ski area either...you could get bored with it if you want big. And Nederland might be just as pricy as Boulder... does anyone know?

As far as cost of living goes, the two towns with fast ski access and climbing that come to mind are Reno and Ogden. Both have their own issues of course.

Don't forget also about Leadville the whole town is a Superfund site from mining, tailing pile contaminates......

durango is going to be marginal in terms of affordability. my vote would probably go for salida, CO or perhaps gunnison, CO. if you are willing to consider a 90 minute drive to go skiing (luckily not with heinous traffic), then canon city, CO could be a good option. all of these towns are close to monarch, which is one my favorite ski areas in CO, and probably the best family ski area.

canon city is also about 15 minutes from great sport climbing, has fantastic weather, and has a fairly small community of great folks who like skiing, climbing, biking, and doing all of this with family. if i had kids, its probably where i would look to go.

richard magill wrote:Oh yeah, one step back from slagging on the front range from a skier's perspective: I think Nederland, Colorado is actually the one place in the Front Range that offers reasonable access both to the ski hill (Eldora), the backcountry, and also back down the hill to jobs in Boulder. But Eldora isn't a huge ski area either...you could get bored with it if you want big. And Nederland might be just as pricy as Boulder... does anyone know?

Nederland sucks, actually it blows, a lot. either way dont move there :)
Eldora is actually a great place for kids and beginner skiers with some good turns to be had by others. The backcountry isnt the Elks, but it aint that bad with some effort. Plenty of jobs in Boulder or elsewhere. Prices similar to Boulder unless you want a house(cabin, shack) built in 1900

Wow!!!! These suggestions are terrific! This is a very difficult question. I have been working 50-65hr work weeks so its hard to find time to search but I will look over all these suggestions. I really liked the NEVER SUMMER comment as we usually bring out the ice climbing gear in June northern couloirs on the grand; black ice, vision quest, NW.