#1 Colorado. It's all about the mountains for me and the sunshine.

#2 Bay Area. Ok acces to the Sierra and good weather.

#3 Seattle. Cool city and cool mountains but lacking sun in the winter.

#4 Boston. Cool city and the White, Green and Longfellow mtns are very cool and somewhat close.

#5 Hawaii. Nice climate

#6 Vegas. Climate and Sierra accces

#7 Southwest. Climate

anywhere else....why?

Oh and F&@K NEW YORK! I said F%$K NEW YORK

Where I Have Lived
W WA
Bay Area
Front Range CO
Wasatch Front UT
LA
E Sierra

Where I Have Considered Living
Vegas (splitting time with Bishop)

Where I Would Live Again
E Sierra
Front Range CO
LA
Bay Area (only if I decided that my tech career is more important than climbing)

rasgoat wrote:#1 Colorado. It's all about the mountains for me and the sunshine.

#2 Bay Area. Ok acces to the Sierra and good weather.

#3 Seattle. Cool city and cool mountains but lacking sun in the winter.

#4 Boston. Cool city and the White, Green and Longfellow mtns are very cool and somewhat close.

#5 Hawaii. Nice climate

#6 Vegas. Climate and Sierra accces

#7 Southwest. Climate

anywhere else....why?

Oh and F&@K NEW YORK! I said F%$K NEW YORK

Given your choices, I'd go Colorado, Seattle or Boston. As Chief said, North Conway from Boston has a ton of rock and REALLY good ice climbing. Only problem is, is that it is 2hrs away. Vegas has a lot of things close by, but personally I couldn't live there (or atleast I say that now, unless a company makes me an offer I can't refuse).

Lived a long time in the Bay Area. The problem with the Bay Area is the Central Valley. The Central Valley means that the Sierras is atleast 3.5hrs away and because of traffic much longer on a Friday night when everyone else is trying to get out of town (which is why I used to leave at 4-4:30ish on a Sat morning).

Phoenix: summer- think HELL, like 110F and sometimes 120F in the summer. A lot of good climbing sort of nearby (like 1.5hrs to Sedona if you don't want to pull on shist; sorry PHXions). Sedona is really cool, see Burcham and Frost's article in Alpinist 33, and really underdeveloped.

I have to say that I prefer being close to stuff (like 5-20 minutes away). Its nice to wake up ski up 2500ft, and get some turns in and then go climbing or go into work. Heck, Friday I skied up before the sunrise. Skied down as the sun was coming up. Went into work. Skied back up for sunset and skied down in the twilight, or last Sunday where I skied up before sunrise and then went climbing, got home early and got some work done. Areas which unfortunately aren't on your list allows you to do it like Durango, Flagstaff, Mammoth Lakes, Bend.

CClaude wrote: have to say that I prefer being close to stuff (like 5-20 minutes away). Its nice to wake up ski up 2500ft, and get some turns in and then go climbing or go into work.

Have to admit, that is my problem as well. Been living that way for the past 20yrs....a 2 hr commute to reach the first real outdoor adventure would never cut it for me. Living in Incline, on the Bow River, at the entrance to Snow Canyon....if I drive 2 hrs, I typically spend the night and make it a two day trip minimum. 2hrs in a car is a big deal to me...spoiled...

I am always amazed at how upset folks get with these threads, how personal they attach themselves to where they live, could be Chicago, Dallas, does not matter. Many take it as a personal affront. I guess I am a bit of a gypsy, because I never see it that way. I split my time now between two different countries based on seasons (Janne-Corax way worse than I am).....and would be hard pressed to live 365 in one place . Folks always getting worked up. More of an American thing I think.

Guy like the OP lays out places he personally has an opportunity at....someone will come in and give him hell for not considering somewhere else.....or can't get a Vegas guy to admit that Vegas is no Boulder (a bunch of retirees playing golf really) and too damn hot in the summer to enjoy much in real outdoor activities.....it is not a personal affront....you should be able to discuss other places to live without having to go crazy about where you happen to personally live....broaden your horizons folks....

In the same spirit of Michelle's post (Fossana)....Bend is one town where I have visited quite often (Smith Rocks, etc) where I would consider living, but have not and prob won't at this point....but it is not on the OP's list.....and if it was not for the good paddling and bc skiing, the climbing at Bend would not cut it for me....different areas have different strengths for sure....of course it is not really fair to compare the whole state of CO vs say Seattle either.....but if it is going to be proposed that way, then being able to live anywhere in CO wins out over Seattle every time.....otherwise one could go on and on comparing the Cascades to the Rockies...each have their strengths.....

one thing my wife and I have got addicted to is sunny days...when we experienced 300+ in Tahoe our first year there, we got hooked.....when you compare your final choices, if sun means anything to you, you can compare sunny days at a variety of sites...make sure you use some objective site and not rely on their Chamber's sites! THEY LIE! Again, good luck with it.

I've lived in the Bay Area for a number of years and New York City for a short while, so here are my two cents:

Bay Area: Pretty well summed up already. You do get used to the drives and after a while 6-10 hrs isn't so long to drive. It does SUCK driving 10 hrs back home after a winter mountaineering outing, though, like I did last Sunday night-Monday. But the access to year-round rock climbing is great for honing those skills. Road cycling in the Bay Area is fantastic as well.

New York City: Not as smoggy as many other cities out West I found (this coming from an asthmatic who really cares about air quality!). Pros/cons really depend on whether you live in Manhattan, NYC, or NJ/Long Island and just work in NYC. I say this because the closer to Manhattan you are, the crazier it is to have a car and the easier it is to do without. But this does limit what you can do in the mountains. I worked in the financial district and lived in Brooklyn and never missed having a car. The city was WONDERFUL and you could do day trips to the Gunks via Subway-Train/Bus-Taxi/Carpool w/ others from NJ/LI. The running in NYC was surprisingly good. You can run across most of the bridges into Manhattan from the neighboring boroughs, and then along the East and Hudson River as long as you want, w/ excursions into Central Park. You can easily do a 20 mile run w/ scenic views of the city & water and barely cross any streets. Still, I'm enough of a mountain kid that I really missed my high alpine crags. Dunno if I'd go back to NYC unless it was for a 1-2 yr stint at a really good job for some good career experience.

Since your list does'nt include any Alaskan cities, you should certainly consider Nevada, the most mountainous state in the lower 48......if your looking for crowds or more of a "scene" than any of those other places will do......if you want unique, unspoiled then Las Vegas is an excellent location from which to explore......cheers!!

Interested to know what "lifestyle-type job" afforded you those options. Reply only if you are comfortable sharing what you'll be doing.
john

jvarholak wrote:Interested to know what "lifestyle-type job" afforded you those options. Reply only if you are comfortable sharing what you'll be doing.
john

No problem. While I have been applying to a bunch of 'fun' jobs I also applied for one program that would be very challenging. The program recruits high achieving college and graduate school graduates and successful mid-career professionals, puts them through a boot camp and then places them as teachers in underperforming schools. There are 39 possible areas I could be placed in if I am selected. I don't necessarily get to choose where I am placed, but I am allowed to list my top choices.

Chicago is on the list soley because my wife is a mid west girl and she loves Chicago and wants to live there. New York and Boston are on the lists because they are great, vibrant cities and have had a few good climbers come out of those areas (David Roberts, Don Jensen, Brad Washburn, Hans Fuhrer, Fritz Wiesner). DC is on the list because my wife and I both lived in the suburbs of DC and think it would be cool to live in Georgetown.

ExcitableBoy wrote:

jvarholak wrote:Interested to know what "lifestyle-type job" afforded you those options. Reply only if you are comfortable sharing what you'll be doing.
john

No problem. While I have been applying to a bunch of 'fun' jobs I also applied for one program that would be very challenging. The program recruits high achieving college and graduate school graduates and successful mid-career professionals, puts them through a boot camp and then places them as teachers in underperforming schools. There are 39 possible areas I could be placed in if I am selected. I don't necessarily get to choose where I am placed, but I am allowed to list my top choices.

Chicago is on the list soley because my wife is a mid west girl and she loves Chicago and wants to live there. New York and Boston are on the lists because they are great, vibrant cities and have had a few good climbers come out of those areas (David Roberts, Don Jensen, Brad Washburn, Hans Fuhrer, Fritz Wiesner). DC is on the list because my wife and I both lived in the suburbs of DC and think it would be cool to live in Georgetown.

Thanks EB.... I've been living in the suburbs of DC for about 30 years now. Every one of those years I thought would be my last. Probably should have been. Kids, job, obligations kept me here. Regrets? Some for sure.... It's a great area with tons to do but to be in a place like CO, or CA or any other locale that affords easy access to the wild places we all love ????..... as you probably recall DC's sure not that place...
Good luck and keep us posted of your decision.....
john

EB, it's been a long time since you lived in the D.C. area, and it's changed a whole lot since then. It's got a pretty solid economy, but the traffic is among the worst in the nation (recently rated the worst), everyone's in a hell of a rush all the time, and, in my opinion, superficial and materialistic people are rampant.

There are good outdoor opportunities but no wilderness unless you're going to drive a couple hours out to Shenandoah N.P. and western Maryland. Closer in, there's great single-pitch climbing at Great Falls; hiking there, along the C&O Canal, and in any number of regional parks; cycling; and paddling.

To be honest, though, if it weren't for the shaky economic picture, I'd have been out of here and in the Southwest last year. I wouldn't want to come back here.

As far as eastern NC goes, it's great if you like boating, biking, and fishing, but hiking isn't too good and there's no climbing. And since NC is such a wide state, you have to drive several hours to get to any climbing. If you love the ocean, it might be worth it, but otherwise, I'd stay away.

Good luck. I still recommend somewhere like NM for reasons in my earlier post.

Boston!

The Chief wrote:Boston!

Its not much of a college town. Yeah, but ours go up to eleven.

WHY would a person want to live within ANY major city, especially if they're in love with the outdoors ???

I'd like to live ANYWHERE where I don't have to look at "ass-a-nine" street scenes like this :

OP, if you are talking about Teach for America, they have been known to make exceptions....one of my daughters came back from West Africa, ready to settle down from having traveled and living abroad for several years.... and wanted to settle back down in the heart of San Fran, like Haight Ashbury. Teach for America appealed to her and when she completed their training in LA, basically told them SF or bust....at first that was a no..but she held firm and they came around....she if fluent in six languages....and might have been a commodity they did not want to lose...I don't know....but she is nearing the end of her two year term and her experience has been amazing....the friendships she has developed with the other young talent in the program, wow...I visited with quite a few of them last May including a visit to a classroom or two...good stuff indeed.