So I pulled an 'American Beauty' and left my job. Since then I have been applying for various lifestyle type jobs (climbing ranger, NOLS instructor, climbing shop sales dude, etc). I have advanced to the final stage of the application process for a program I am very keen on. If I am selected I will have some input on where I will be located. Out of the following areas, which do you think would be the most appealing in terms of access to outdoor recreation, culture, uniqueness, etc. This would be for two years so if there isn't climbing but other really unique amenitiest that would be cool too.

TIA,

EB

Seattle
Bay Area
Hawaii
Las Vegas
Phoenix
New Mexico
Colordo
Chicago
Boston
New York
DC
Eastern North Carolina
Charlotte North Carolina

It depends on what's most important to you from both an outdoor and cultural standpoint. Also, consider climate. I prefer a drier climate and close proximity to a variety of trails/trad climbing areas so if I had the choice from your list I would move to CO.

Being from back east, I can't understand why you put some of the places down that you did, and skipped or omitted eastern California completely. Really, eastern North Carolina or New York City over Bishop, or the Tahoe area? Eastern NC is a redneck infested swamp. Why not just cut to the chase and lump all eastern urban areas and swamps into one pile and put down Miami/ south Florida. At least the winters are nice.

As expressed, I'd move to the eastern Sierra or far western Nevada area. Ironically, I would not choose Colorado as I think of that place as humid in summer and the mountains can be wet and rainy in summer. Not what I think of when I think of a dry climate, but being from the PNW, you might feel differently.

Mr Leghorn wrote: I can't understand why you put some of the places down that you did, and skipped or omitted eastern California completely. Really, eastern North Carolina or New York City over Bishop, or the Tahoe area? Eastern NC is a redneck infested swamp. Why not just cut to the chase and lump all eastern urban areas and swamps into one pile and put down Miami/ south Florida. At least the winters are nice.

The program I am applying to only has operations in certain cities. If Bishop or Tahoe were options, they would be high on my list. I'd heard nice things about certain parts of NC, good to know about eastern NC. The reason NYC and Boston are on the list because I thought it might be cool to live an urban lifestyle for a change, and I understand the Northeast has some really good rock and ice climbing.

A List
Colorado....but they will require you spell it write on your DL application
New Mexico...Liba H from SP just moved from Albuquerque, NM to Montrose, CO, huge improvement for her I believe..someone knowledgeable about comparing those two sections of each state...that is by far my favorite section of CO...Ouray-Ridgway-Telluride-Durango

B List
Bay Area
Seattle

C List
Phoenix
Las Vegas....well centered actually for a lot of activities, you will not believe how cheap living there is...housing, taxes, utilities, etc...don't expect much of an active outdoor community though....critical you live on the west side...summer heat is quite brutal
Charlotte, NC

Are you crazy List
Hawaii....would be giving up way too much in terms of climbing, skiing and mountaineering for some of us
Chicago....line up a psychiatrist if you are as addicted to outdoor adventure as I thought you were
Boston....incredible NFL team, just being that close to Brady and Belichick would make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, super running town, love running the marathon or along the river....but same as above....closest crag has tons of mosquitoes....more than I have seen in Alaska...good luck driving out of the city to get to the countryside/trails/mts
NY....expensive....working for the man the rest of your life...dude
DC...just nuts
Eastern NC....very, very flat....big difference versus living near Charlotte, good folks though...but either red necks or wealthy golfers, not a lot in between

Hope that helps man. Lived and traveled many places. You seem like an avid outdoors man based on my best recollection of your contributions, thus my examination of the list is no doubt slanted that way. Good Luck with it, always fun and exciting to study the next move.

Dow Williams wrote:Boston....closest crag has tons of mosquitoes....more than I have seen in Alaska...good luck driving out of the city to get to the countryside/trails/mts

Really.

North Conway 2 hour drive north on 93. Some of the best Rock and Ice on the Eastcoast. Lived just southeast of there in Maine and climbed my ass off in that entire area for over 3 years. Never encountered a skeeter, not one. Just Black Flies in late spring.

I say Boston from your list.

Boston is an awesome town (lived across the river in Cambridge for 18 years) with mountains less than two hours away, the ocean right there, authentic local history and culture, beautiful architecture, great music and literary scene, lots of cool restaurants and nightclubs, and probably more college age women than any city in the US. If you want a career in academics, research, technology, biotech or healthcare this is one of the best places to be. You have to not mind snow and high cost of living however.

My suggestion is to pick something you'd like to do for a while and get good at, then choose a place where you can do that thing very easily, and that is acceptable in other respects. I did what you are going to do when I was 34. I was feeling burned out in my life, and wanted a change. I'd learned to cave dive a the year before, so decided to find a job in Florida for a couple of years. Tampa, where I wound up getting a job, didn't seem to have much going for it in terms of long term career prospects for my field, intellectual scene, or vibrant local culture - my first impression was that it's mostly about going to the stripmall, the beach, or playing golf. But it allowed me to cave dive three days a week for two years, and I got pretty good at cave diving. In the process I grew to like Tampa despite the fact that I wouldn't have chosen to live there except for the access to underwater caves. The place has an interesting Cuban cultural scene and food, the FL birds and other wildlife is spectacular (it's cool when you go for a run in a local park at lunch and see flamingos and alligators!), and I grew to like the heat and slower pace of life. I eventually decided that I wanted to get a real job again and moved to the SF Bay area, but there's a lot that I miss about South Florida that I never thought I would have liked until I lived there for a while.

Almost any urban place you live, your exact location will affect your outdoor lifestyle a lot. I've lived in Cambridge MA, without a car, and it was like being in prison. But I lived in Waltham on the west side of Boston, and X-C skiing (canoeing/kayaking for those with the gear) were a short drive away... but the area has gotten more congested since.

I lived 16 years in Albuquerque, and was mainly stunted by my nose-to-the-grindstone attitude. It was nice to be able to X-C ski in the morning till April or May (on Sandia Crest), then have a warm afternoon. Nights in the summer were rarely above 70F, days in summer rarely above 95F. But except for backcountry skiing, the outdoor ops seemed farther apart than in Vegas.

Now I live near Vegas -- but on the far west side, maybe 15 minute drive from Red Rock (I've run out to the visitor center and back), 45 minute drive from access THs to the near-12000' Charleston. The city is annoying -- I go to the Strip about once every 2 years, then usually to pick up a guest. But I've never lived anywhere where it was so easy to pick a large variety of outdoor activities, mainly because of the central location.

I have to chuckle at Dow's comment about the lack of an outdoor community. It all depends what you want. I don't do rock climbing unless it's required, but know lots of informal groups that go every weekend. There are some very active and large outdoor meetups in the city, and there are folks at REI and elsewhere who do hairy back-country skiing in the local mountains. Like any place, you have to get connected.

Heat in the summer? I used to run in summer at the heat of the day; but I live where it is ~4F cooler than downtown, and knew the location of every leaking sprinkler and hydrant and water fountain. In summer we head to the Spring Mountains, other high NV ranges, or even the Sierra-- which are as close to us as they are to LA, time-wise.

I definitely would pick Vegas over Phoenix. I like the Superstitions, but they are deathly hot much of the year, and there aren't many places close by to escape the heat-- which is even worse then Vegas, when the relatively humid air rolls through AZ in the summer. Phoenix is more civilized in some ways, but is about 4x the area, and has absolutely severe sprawl.

Forget all that and move to Bolivia, you'll never know what your missing.

"The bluest skies you've ever seen are in Seattle..
And the hills the greenest green, in Seattle.
Like a beautiful child, growing up, free an' wild..
Full of hopes an' full of fears, full of laughter, full of tears;
Full of dreams to last the years, in Seattle
. . . in Seattle!"

Seattle or suburb of Seattle. You get a nice big west coast city with all the amenities (museums, music, city stuff), a marine environment, and the cascades at your doorstep. Plus depending on where around Seattle you live you might be able to see Canada, which will make you an expert on international relations.

Boston would be last on my list. I have nothing against Boston, it's just that I have no interest in ever going there. It's kind of like the Portland of the East Coast, there's too many other REAL attractions to interest me (ie: everywhere else on the east coast).

What about Vancouver, BC?!
1 hour to remote alpine climbing/ mountaineering
20 minutes to three ski hills
20 minutes to various sport climbing crags and bouldering
1 hour to Squamish
1.5 hours to Whistler
2 hours to ice climbing
etc. etc.
big climbing community (not as much ice climbing community though)
culturally diverse

...and we could use good folks like you EB.

SEATTLE!!!






no packing and moving costs...heh

New Mexico-- there's something of everything there, but without the costs of Colorado and the heat of Vegas (unless you like that sort of thing, that is). And you're a day's drive from most of the good stuff in CO, UT, AZ, and TX.

And it's a nice climate.

MoapaPk wrote:I have to chuckle at Dow's comment about the lack of an outdoor community. It all depends what you want.

Michelle (Bishop, Boulder) and I (St. George, Canadian Rockies) actually get that feedback from your own climbing community. I have run into several that seem bitter with each other. Technical climbers I am talking about. Not the unity we have in Canmore or Springdale. But I admit your scramble trails, which we use for descent a lot, are meticulously maintained. So are your summit logs by hiking and scrambling groups where I notice entries including 10 folks sometimes. So I know you got something there in terms of an active hiking community for sure, but your climbing community really lacks continuity. The Red Rock Rendezvous is a perfect example of the bickering really.

I ran the loop today....damn windy. Of course folks climbing at the pull outs which is sad since you had a downpour this morning, but what can you do. We should have been on the trail ourselves where I could have at least made a few remarks (had to come into town to entertain a client at the minimum) but sometimes I love just doing the road with an mp3 player working on speed work. Someone actually rolled down their window and asked if I was a boxer....little late in the day for those guys, but at my age I took it as a compliment for sure. The interpretive center always impresses.....every time I tell folks from Vegas about it...they admit they have never been though...dude....if you have kids, live in Vegas and are not taking them to the new interpretive center at RR, what the hell are you doing with them? Bishop, Zion, the list goes on for day trips from Vegas....Vegas definitely a better choice than Phoenix I would think, but both way to hot for humans (or other conditioned mammals, dogs, horses, etc) to be out and about in the summer. Give me a Fairbanks winter before your Vegas summer! Off to the Naked Fish....our favorite Vegas destination. Cheers