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What is Flagstaff like?

Original Post
Matt Pierce · · Poncha Springs, CO · Joined May 2010 · Points: 312

I have to admit - I'm over Denver. This place is completely out of fucking control and I no longer want to live here. Which is sad. Looking for a new spot that is smallish, good climbing, somewhat near a larger city, 4 seasons etc. Flagstaff looks kind of ideal.

Looks like Flagstaff is:
Near Grand Canyon
2 hours to PHX
Similar climate (elevation etc)
Good climbing, hiking, camping etc
Housing won't bankrupt me
4-5 hours to the creek ;)

What am I missing? How's the crack climbing? Is it liberal/conservative?

Isaac Gillman · · Boston, MA · Joined Oct 2015 · Points: 96

Hey I currently live in Prescott which is about an hour and a half from Flagstaff, and I find myself often in the Flagstaff area. My experiences there have been great! Lot's of excellent climbing in the sport climbing and bouldering realm, although I have yet to climb cracks there (If you want really stellar trad, Prescott has a spot called Granite Mountain which is pretty world class single and multipitch). The San Francisco peaks have great hiking and back country skiing as well as some potentially for alpine routes, nothing compared to Colorado though. I've never been to Denver so I'm not quite sure how general cost of living compares but on the whole AZ is definitely cheaper than CO. Flagstaff is one of the most liberal cities in AZ, but if you're not into the hippie / bougie, avocado toast coffee shops its pretty easy to get out of town to more remote/conservative areas.
You're right that it's pretty close to PHX, but honestly I have no idea why you'd ever go there aside from the airport. It's a pretty shitty city and anything you want to do will be better in Flag.
If you have any other questions I can do my best to answer them.  

Phil Sakievich · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2014 · Points: 131

Cracks are good. Paradise forks and Sedona are both 30-45 min away. Also the water fall is 20-30 min away.  It’s a great place to climb. Liberal college town. Housing isn’t cheap there either though. Probably not as bad as Colorado but it is definitely a sellers market and there is limited ability for the town to expand. I want to end up there myself though. 

Matt Pierce · · Poncha Springs, CO · Joined May 2010 · Points: 312

Thanks Isaac.

My wife and I travel a bit (4-6 times a year) so that's why we want to be somewhat close to a large airport.

I've been in Denver close to 20 years and I've either done it all or don't want to do it anymore. I never go see shows at Red Rocks anymore, traffic is so bad it actually stopped me from skiing and I have to seriously will myself to go hiking or climbing. I don't smoke weed so that's irrelevant to me (and you can get that shit anywhere anyhow). I think the average Denver home now is over something like $550,000 and that doesn't get you much. I don't go to professional sporting events etc. And the climbing crags are full of asshole kids to be honest...

Anyhow - that's enough of that tangent...

We have friends in Gallup, NM and the Colorado San Juan Mountains, Moab, Vegas and lots of other places are like 1/2 day away...that sounds pretty damn awesome to me

Tan B · · Chattanooga, TN · Joined Jul 2017 · Points: 20

Take me with you

nbrown · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Nov 2007 · Points: 7,967
Matt Pierce wrote: Thanks Isaac.

My wife and I travel a bit (4-6 times a year) so that's why we want to be somewhat close to a large airport.

I've been in Denver close to 20 years and I've either done it all or don't want to do it anymore. I never go see shows at Red Rocks anymore, traffic is so bad it actually stopped me from skiing and I have to seriously will myself to go hiking or climbing. I don't smoke weed so that's irrelevant to me (and you can get that shit anywhere anyhow). I think the average Denver home now is over something like $550,000 and that doesn't get you much. I don't go to professional sporting events etc. And the climbing crags are full of asshole kids to be honest...

Anyhow - that's enough of that tangent...

We have friends in Gallup, NM and the Colorado San Juan Mountains, Moab, Vegas and lots of other places are like 1/2 day away...that sounds pretty damn awesome to me

I've been here for less than a year and feel the same way...

We moved here from Asheville, NC for the wife's job at CU last spring, and while I don't miss the rain back home (CO weather is great!), I do miss a lot if other things about the area. Anyway, can't speak much to Flagstaff but Asheville (big granite) or Chatty (steep sandstone) would be a couple other small and similarily-minded cities to consider. Both are pretty liberal within the city limits.

Marc Yamamoto · · Flagstaff, AZ · Joined Mar 2013 · Points: 20

Flagstaff is nice, I have lived here 10 years.  Lots of climbing up to 13+ for sport and trad.  Very good bouldering around also.  5 hours away from Joshua Tree, Moab, Enchanted Tower, Tucson, etc.  Climbing all year round within an hour.  Mountain biking all year round and Snowbowl is 15 miles away for skiing and snowboarding.  Two bouldering gyms and one small rope gym.  Liberal town with a decent amount of conservatives that spill over from being in Arizona.  Northern Arizona University has a larger and larger pull every year with a lot of transient students around.  Rentals and Houses are expensive for Arizona but cheaper than most large cities.  Jobs are hard to come by, where most jobs are retail and service oriented with the three larger employers in town as NAU, the Hospital, and W.L. Gore and Associates.  

shotgunnelson · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2009 · Points: 5

I lived there for two years. It was my favorite place I have ever lived. Good community. Year round climbing. All four seasons although it goes Summer, Fall, Winter, Wind. I live in Seattle now and would give just about anything to wade through waist deep snow to be climbing in shorts and a tshirt in the high elevation sun again. We left because making money there sucks. Even engineering gigs at Gore pay less than the national average. 

wcayler · · Salt Lake · Joined Dec 2015 · Points: 224

I visited flagstaff about a year ago. It’s a great vibrant town with a lots of young people and lots to do. The climbing is great and close to town. It’s worth a visit, I would move there if I could get a good job.

Matt Pierce · · Poncha Springs, CO · Joined May 2010 · Points: 312

I know I sound like an old curmudgeon and I guess I am - I just remember the days when I could get online on a Monday and get a campsite for the next weekend. Tickets to a show at Red Rocks (or anywhere else) were reasonable and available. Nowadays you can't even go to events like the Telluride Bluegrass Festival or book a ski hut (10th mt division) without getting into a lottery. I booked a yurt this year for 4th of July but was online at midnight exactly 6 months ahead of time (when the booking window opened) to score it. Even then - that campground was 50% sold out already.

Climbing has always been my escape. But ever try to get into Eldo to go climbing on a summer Sat after about 9AM? They are already turning cars away because the park is FULL. Rocky Mountain National Park has had to implement a shuttle bus system to handle the millions of visitors. 14ers (14,000 ft peaks) used to be fun to hike - on a busy summer Sat you might see 30-50 other people, now on some more popular ones it's 300 - 500!

That pretty much epitomizes how things go here. We are loving this place to death.

I could go on for hours about this but won't and I don't mean to sound like such a complainer - but it's worse than most people think here. Yes we have epic breweries, climbing/skiing etc but who can enjoy going skiing when it ends up taking you 4 hours to get home...

Matt Pierce · · Poncha Springs, CO · Joined May 2010 · Points: 312
shotgunnelson wrote:  We left because making money there sucks. Even engineering gigs at Gore pay less than the national average. 

I work in I.T. and my wife is a nurse....not sure if those professions will be in demand at all?

Darren Mabe · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2002 · Points: 3,669

I am a CO native, and moved to Flagstaff bit over 8 years ago. I echo Marc's and shotgun's comments, especially regarding employment. I started a window cleaning company because the engineering salary wasnt competitive with what I was making in Littleton. You have many destination climbing areas in weekender's radius. Indian Creek is a bit closer by an hour. Not much for multipitch climbing unless you go to Sedona or Granite Mountain Prescott. But a few world-class cragging gems within 45minutes in each direction from Flagstaff... Ask any one of us and we will spray our face off about our favorites..

Extreme temps of CO are shaved off here. in other words, it doesnt get as cold, stay as cold, or get as hot as Menver. When it is cold, you dont have to drive very far to be in a tshirt.

Darren Mabe · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2002 · Points: 3,669
Matt Pierce wrote:

I work in I.T. and my wife is a nurse....not sure if those professions will be in demand at all?

Check out climber-owned, "Flagstaff IT", they seem to be hiring. It seems like everyone else I know are nurses here. FMC is competitive, though other places within commuting distances are in need.

Darren Mabe · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2002 · Points: 3,669
bruno-cx wrote: Just like boulder but smaller.  And the enchanted is not worth drive, nothing but moderates.

lol, I have been saying that it is less than 10 years away from being like Boulder

shotgunnelson · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2009 · Points: 5

Also Chilaquiles don't forget about those.......

shotgunnelson · · Unknown Hometown · Joined May 2009 · Points: 5
Matt Pierce wrote:

I work in I.T. and my wife is a nurse....not sure if those professions will be in demand at all?

Finding work is not really the issue. It is accepting that most pay less for the same job. 

PaulMudd · · Las Vegas, NV · Joined Dec 2014 · Points: 5

Only 4 hours from Vegas! ie. Red Rock! Lifetime worth of climbing and variety to boot.

Alec O · · Norwich, VT · Joined Apr 2013 · Points: 31

I'm only chiming in because you say you have friends in Gallup.  As a Gallupian, I travel to Flag constantly to climb.  The climbing in Flag is really high quality, and you'll rarely find a crowd anywhere.  And you'll probably see your Gallup friends a lot, especially if they climb--it's really easy to meet in Winslow.  (East Clear Creek is some of the highest quality climbing I've ever done, anywhere.)  I've even done day trips to the Peaks.

Paul Morrison · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Nov 2006 · Points: 55

You might want to investigate the housing options, or lack thereof. Aside from student apartments and shares, there isn't much.

Eric D · · Gnarnia · Joined Nov 2006 · Points: 235

I have lived here for 9 years now.  Flagstaff is absolutely amazing as long as you can a) find a decent-paying job and b) afford the housing (which will be cheap compared to Denver).

We have the best trad-crag in the universe 30 minutes away.  It's still possible to go there in primo-season and be the only party there.  We must be tops in the country for our quality-climbing to # of climbers ratio.  Sedona has great adventure climbing only 45 minutes away with some red-rocks quality classics.  You can literally climb year-round here by dropping down to Sedona in winter.  A "crowded" crag here might have a half dozen other parties.

nbrown · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Nov 2007 · Points: 7,967
Mike Mu. wrote:

I wish that you would.

Great places always come to ruin eventually.  Asheville was mentioned upthread.  That was a hip little town 20 years ago, now it seems everyone and their hippy brother wants to move there.  Never seen so many people with Master's degrees waiting tables as I did in Asheville.

I agree that Asheville has gotten way crowded too. And yes, unless you work in healthcare or from home, the job market is not good. At least you can still get away from the hordes of people at most crags though. Not what it was decades ago but far less crowded than most places in the Front Range (and the rock is better -- just sayin'). 

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Arizona & New Mexico
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