SummitPost.org

Posted: **Thu Oct 01, 2009 6:46 pm**

Diggler wrote:
fatdad wrote:
Now, coming from an LA native, I'd have to qualify this statement. It's clearly not the best pure mountain town in the country, but I think it is the best big city in the country if you want quick access to a variety of outdoor activities.

I'd have to say that Denver, Seattle, or Salt Lake (borderline 'big city') would all have LA beat as far as outdoor access.

In terms of Cali big cities, I couldn't imagine living in LA over The Bay. Y'all have Josh & the transverse ranges (admittedly quite nice), but Yosemite is directly E of SF, Tahoe (& crags) is 3 hours or so away, Shasta is around 5, Big Sur less than 3, ... In the immediate vicinity, add the redwoods, the headlands, Maverick's, Pt. Reyes, etc. No comparison.

Let me clarify. What I really meant was a balance of cultural and outdoor activities. When you factor in cities like Denver and SLC, they quickly drop in rank. We could get into the whole SF vs. LA thing, but that's been done to death.

Posted: **Thu Oct 01, 2009 9:19 pm**

mconnell wrote:
Gary Schenk wrote:
mconnell wrote:
Gary Schenk wrote:Los Angeles is the best mountain town in the country.

Now THAT is funny!

No, it's true.

Even though I wouldn't consider where I live to be anywhere near one of the best, from here:

- 10 minutes to the base of a 14,000' mountain.
- 20 minutes to a better trailhead with access to couloir climbing, alpine ice, BC skiing
- 30 minutes to 3 different climbing areas with multi-pitch granite
- 30 minutes to multi-pitch sandstone climbs
- An hour to short (2-3 pitch) ice climbs
- 2 hours to a world class ice climbing area
- 2 hours gives you a choice of world class ski areas
- 4 hours to big wall climbing
- Less than a day from 1500' ice climbs, desert towers, etc.

In an hour from LA, you can be almost out of LA.

As I said before, there are great things about CA, but the LA area wouldn't even make it to my top 100 list of places to live if you are a climber. (I admit, I've never lived in LA but I did live in the area for 2 years)

Wow. And they say we Angelenos are always in a hurry!

A lot of people here are arguing access time over access. I tend to be a lot more forgiving of my gift horses. From the OC it takes me a little longer to get places but, on the other hand, I've got a helluva lotta places to go! Even after years of climbing in the Sierra, the San Gabriels and JTree, I'm just now discovering I love the mountains and rock around Vegas... and it's only 4 hours away. My only penance is I've gotta choose my traffic battles and go when they least expect it. Nothing's perfect, but that's truly a small price to pay for an awfully big payoff.

Posted: **Thu Oct 01, 2009 10:23 pm**

Pure mountain wise, there are definitely better areas than LA / OC. Now, for DIVERSITY, I can't think of any place that can beat Cali.

I'm not *just* into mountains. I also like the beach, the weather, great food (not to mention wine country) and cultural diversity, concerts all the time (not that I really go much), etc. There is truly something for everyone.

Posted: **Thu Oct 01, 2009 10:34 pm**

Dingus Milktoast wrote:I live in a hell hole and I STILL LOVE IT.

Know why?

You know where you stand in a
HELL HOLE!

No where to go but up from a
HELL HOLE

Lord take me back to my
HELL HOLE!

Sorry, someone turned me to eleven.

DMT

Sac area, right? C'mon- you could be stuck in Bakersfield!

Posted: **Fri Oct 02, 2009 4:24 pm**

Dingus, To most Angelinos (sp?) and residents of the Bay area, the hell hole of California extends from 20 miles south of B-field to about 100 miles north of Sac...... :lol:

I don't believe this is true.

B-field, Delano, Visalia, Tulare, Hanford, Fresno, Madera, Merced, Sacramento, Red Bluff all have the Sierra like right there.

A 1.5 hr drive on a friday night lands you in the heart of the mountains.

Some climbers live in the foothills and commute "down" to the towns and cities to work.

And from my experience Fresno has better music stations than anything in LA.

So even though you live in a hell hole.... there are more hell-holeish places in the USA.....

Ever been to Bolixi, Miss? Tyler, Texas? New Orleans, LA? Orlando, FL? Those places define "Hell-Hole"

Posted: **Fri Oct 02, 2009 4:59 pm**

MikeTX wrote:
Guyzo wrote:Ever been to Bolixi, Miss? Tyler, Texas? New Orleans, LA? Orlando, FL? Those places define "Hell-Hole"

hahaha! that's where i was born. i must be satan himself!

The spawn of Satin..... :wink:

I kind of mean "climbers hell-hole" ... TT, TX is worth stopping at to eat Barbeque food. Lots of it.

I know that if I had to live there, the eating would get out of hand, fast.

Can one "climb" if they weigh like 300 lbs?

Posted: **Fri Oct 02, 2009 5:06 pm**

As hard as it is for me to believe now that I live in CA, way back when I was living in Dallas Tyler was actually not a bad weekend camping destination. Tyler State Park had a nice little lake. Paddle around a bit, smoke some cigars, drink a little beer. There are worse things in life.

Posted: **Fri Oct 02, 2009 5:15 pm**

Guyzo wrote:Dingus, To most Angelinos (sp?) and residents of the Bay area, the hell hole of California extends from 20 miles south of B-field to about 100 miles north of Sac......

I don't believe this is true.

B-field, Delano, Visalia, Tulare, Hanford, Fresno, Madera, Merced, Sacramento, Red Bluff all have the Sierra like right there.

A 1.5 hr drive on a friday night lands you in the heart of the mountains.

Some climbers live in the foothills and commute "down" to the towns and cities to work.

And from my experience Fresno has better music stations than anything in LA.

So even though you live in a hell hole.... there are more hell-holeish places in the USA.....

Ever been to Bolixi, Miss? Tyler, Texas? New Orleans, LA? Orlando, FL? Those places define "Hell-Hole"

You forgot northern MN. I still get the chills thinking about it!

Posted: **Fri Oct 02, 2009 9:39 pm**

Guyzo wrote:Ever been to Bolixi, Miss? Tyler, Texas? New Orleans, LA? Orlando, FL? Those places define "Hell-Hole"

Atmittedly, there are too many to mention. But you forgot an obvious one!

They were all taken within a couple of hours of each other, all within the same city. If you give up trying to guess where this is, look at the area code in this one:

Posted: **Sat Oct 03, 2009 1:21 am**

Yes sir, you are absolutely correct! Detroit is a rough city!! We got lost there once in the not so good neighborhood. A friend of mine thought it would be a good idea to go to McDonalds because she was oh so hungry. Bulletproof glass inside and being the only 3 white folks in the whole damn area, I'm glad we made it out alive. The restroom also had a nice "dropping" right on the seat; I aimed in the toilet from about 5 feet away. It was disgusting!!
Also got yelled at at the gas station for being a white guy in the wrong area...

Needless to say, it was an experience to remember!

Posted: **Sat Oct 03, 2009 7:42 pm**

Luciano136 wrote:You forgot northern MN. I still get the chills thinking about it!

I personally really like northern MN. Not much in the way of climbing (although there is a bit of high bouldering over lakes that was fun during canoe trips. Really just an excuse to jump in a lake!)

Posted: **Sat Oct 03, 2009 9:25 pm**

lcarreau wrote:If you want a RED piece of rock, you gotta try out Arizona!

Shhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Nothing to see here. Keep talking about how great CA is.

Posted: **Sun Oct 04, 2009 5:05 am**

Day Hiker wrote:
Guyzo wrote:Ever been to Bolixi, Miss? Tyler, Texas? New Orleans, LA? Orlando, FL? Those places define "Hell-Hole"

Atmittedly, there are too many to mention. But you forgot an obvious one!

...

They were all taken within a couple of hours of each other, all within the same city.

Hey man, the Gulf Coast looks like that now, too! Less fire, more water/wind, though.

Posted: **Mon Oct 05, 2009 3:31 pm**

DayHiker..... we never have vacant homes in California, like they do in other parts of the country.

It's always very strange to see them when I travel.

Out here those would be flipped or torn down and replaced.

Posted: **Mon Oct 05, 2009 4:04 pm**

Scenic central Nevada (click for larger image):

In these old mining towns, people may build in the middle of older collapsed buildings, or on level-off tailings piles. Such homes made up the majority of habitations in these small towns, but are being replaced as people buy up the land and tear down the existing structures. Often there is an outhouse or storage shed directly in front of the door.

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California is the Best.

Tyler