Posted on 05/08/2006 4:41:15 PM PDT by jwb0581
I live currently in the deep south. I have seen snow twice in my life. At first I would probably be a hazard to myself and others in a place like Colorado, but I'm shooting for the top. I think it would be a blast to see snow every day. And then when it gets old after a year or two, I'll either make do or move somewhere else.
Everything I've read online about Fort Collins has been positive. Are there any negatives? Is it ideal for raising a family?
I'm a graduate student so I don't see a ton of family stuff but there are a lot of very happy young families at my church, and some of my coworkers have kids. I think it is a good place. Everyone seems to have dogs and dogs are an indicator of whether it's a good place for kids... I have no idea what the schools are like. There are lots of outdoor things to do and it's a pretty laid back place. I have really loved living here, I am only moving because I am getting married (and when you meet your soulmate on FreeRepublic sometimes you have to get up and move)
Ok, since you have no snow driving experience at all I really seriously reccommend spending a year somewhere like Fort Collins. There were only a few times last year where driving was difficult, mostly the snow gets melted or blown off the road by the next day. Also you will find it easier to find a job somewhere like Fort Collins than up in the mountains. A lot of those towns are very lovely and all but I'm not sure what sorts of jobs they have.
Second, what kind of employment are you seeking?
And third, realize that properties around the tony ski areas have gone through the roof.
Ft Fun ping!
I lived in the mountains west of Denver for close to two years. Here is what I can tell you about moving from a flatland climate to Colorado.
1 - it's dry. Dry as a bone. Prepare to spend the winter continually fighting dehydration. I drank 6-8 quart bottles of water a day in the winter, and I don't have to drink nearly that much water in Pennsylvania.
2- It's hard to grow much of anything. In the flatlands, hail will usually hit strong enough once a year to wipe out what you've planted. In the mountains, the deer eat what the elk miss.
3 - From what I have seen, the tech job market is still fairly soft except down near Colorado Springs.
4 - Also realize you get some bitchin' wildfires and can get some mammoth snowstorms. Up close to Wyoming, nature can do unbelievable things with three inches of snow.
5 - And if you choose to live in the mountains, realize it will first snow around Labor Day and can snow until mid-June - and anytime in between. By late April, when you get a wet, slopply upslope snow that falls out of the trees and down the neck of your shirt, you can't take it any longer.
6 - If you live in Denver, the pollution is pretty bad nowadays.
Now, having said that, I would recommend that if you can find a job (and the job market in Ft. Collins is not that great - like any college town, there are lots of people seeking fewer jobs) - it is a worthwhile experience for a couple of years. It's cool being that close to the mountains. But even my wife, the former Ms. Mountain Woman, who lived in the mountains of Colorado and Arizona for 15 years, likes the humidity and rain and plants back in Pennsylvania. And realize that just about the entire state is there to go to the mountains - so you might drive an hour down a bone-rattling jeep trail and find ten people camping where you thought you'd be all by yourself.
Leadville? Gawd, you'd move him from the flatlands to living at over 10,000 feet? Yikes! He'll be walking about trying to stuff stray oxygen molecules into his mouth.
Because it is somewhat desirable to live people here are willing to work for food.
I live in Colorado Springs and I'd say the tech recovery here is 18 months behind the rest of the country.
Denver is at least 6 months behind.
And even thought the figures are improving, the unemployment numbers in the tech sector here are still above the unemployment figures for the entire country during the Great Depression!
They were as high as 30% a few years ago in the tech sector.
I own a consulting firm that hires tech engineers so for me this is a good thing.
But the wages and job market are below rural Arkanas.
Don't belive me. In the Forbes recent list Colorado Springs was behind only Redmond, Santa Clara and DC for MOST ENGINEERS per capital.
On the pay for engineers CS was at the bottom ahead of Fargo North Dakota.
The biggest plus to living here is that you can be in the mountains, in the wilderness, in under 30 minutes.
I lived in the Canadian North for over a decade; and I found winter storms in Colorado brutal when I lived there 7 years ago.
At least up north people stay off the roads in blizzards. In Summit County, SUVs were scattered beside the roads like kids' toys after every snowfall.
I think Greeley is where my dh's family goes to visit the Big City (LOL!!). They live in Brush (near Fort Morgan).
Brush is awful. Run the other direction. Even if my mother in law didn't live there, I would still hate it.
Heh, when I say "Greeley stinks" I mean that literally. When the wind is right... well, I've had many a conversation with friends where we comment that we can "smell Greeley".
As several posters have mention , you should look into Grand Junction. It's about 35,000 with about 100,000 in the Grand valley. Nice weather, college, lots of new construction going on. I think it made the top 10 for cities of it's size.
I have to vote for Colarado as being by far in the top 3 beatiful states in the nation. Far eastern CO is pretty boring, but the front range, the rockys spine, and the western slope are just magnificent. Colarado lies at the "heart" of our great nation. From waves of grain in the east, majestic mountains in the center, and great red deserts in the west, it is by far one of the "grandest" places to ever see.
I have always been mesmerized by the shading of the BookCliffs north of Grand Junction as the sun sets. The first time I visited GJ i flew in from SLC and came in from the north at sunset just as it began to snow. It was breathtaking, the sun was breaking through the snow clouds in places but the heavy snow clouds were also producing a good veil of snow. The red layers of the book cliffs juxtaposed with the white snow against the evening sun was simply amazing.
I may get lucky and get to visit GJ one day again.
I don't disagree with that.
But if you are used to making money by working, then Colorado is not ideal.
If you are hiring tech workers, it is hard to beat however.
But I'm a latter day Moses and denied this desire.
So be it.
How come nobody has mentioned Grover? Or Last Chance? Or Otis? Or Deer Trail?
What field are you in? That makes a big difference in what cities to recommend you to. Can you telecommute from home, for instance?
Woodland Park, CO. Look it up. In the mountains, cannot grow beyond current size, 15 mins to Colorado Springs (downhill), stunning scenery. Conservative as the day is long.
Have fun.
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