Random thoughts from a 2 month New Resident of Boise (averages, summers)

[stingraynm]

Originally Posted by AllTheWayToMemphis

Interesting. I've been reading that Salt Lake City is very liberal; in fact, some have said one of the most liberal cities in the West. I know the rest of Utah is deep, deep red, but everything I've seen said that there's a large, liberal 20s population who are very supportive of homosexuality, alternative lifestyles, etc., despite the slight LDS influence on the city.

Just curious -- what about Missoula wouldn't work? Seems like a great place, although a bit smaller than what I'd want.

SLC is also a cartel nexus. Smugglers of all kinds from Mexico and Latin America use it as a major distribution point for drugs and slaves. Wherever you find large amounts of money funneled upward without accountability, you find organized crime. All the possible connections are speculation, but the increased frequency of trafficking elements in that area is a well-known fact among law enforcement circles.

Overall, I'm really just trying to add to the point that SLC has a massive underground, for better and for worse, depending on your outlook. Mormons are there, but as is usual, tend to be their own clique.

From vicarious experience, I have a very conservative Protestant friend who regrets sending her kids to school in the Ogden area, as rebellion and self-indulgence seem to have ironically been the status quo, while responsible, community-participating, family-oriented students pretty much had to be Mormon or enjoy the loneliness of being on the de facto "fringe".

[jufrbo]

Originally Posted by AllTheWayToMemphis

Interesting. I've been reading that Salt Lake City is very liberal; in fact, some have said one of the most liberal cities in the West. I know the rest of Utah is deep, deep red, but everything I've seen said that there's a large, liberal 20s population who are very supportive of homosexuality, alternative lifestyles, etc., despite the slight LDS influence on the city.

Just curious -- what about Missoula wouldn't work? Seems like a great place, although a bit smaller than what I'd want.

Sure SLC is a liberal city, but the city itself is pretty small. according to this site less than 200,000 in a metro of just under or over 2 million people. That metro population is almost exclusively all LDS. So more people live outside of SLC than not. They still have archaic liquor laws (no real bars, and 3.5% beer in convenient stores and groceries). So the small sliver of SLC that is a "progressive" area is small and over powered by the hugely conservative burbs that actually influence the city more than those that live there. Think Provo, Logan, Orem all with literally near 90% LDS.

I spent a little time there and unless your a huge ski fan, I didn't really enjoy it. It seemed to have all the negatives of a huge city without the positives you find in places like Seattle and San Francisco.

[DESERTRYDER]

3.5 Beer ???

That's just wrong.

Might as well have Koolaid.

[stingraynm]

Originally Posted by DESERTRYDER

3.5 Beer ???

That's just wrong.

Might as well have Koolaid.

Yeah, it's dreadful. It's contagious, too. In Colorado, you have to go to liquor stores to get any beer above 3.5%. I learned that the hard way after rushing into a convenience store and grabbing some Coronas (after searching for micros), only to get to my sister's house and get a mouthful of wheat water. My sister LHAO while my bro-in-law and I made haste on a liquor store errand. An outside observer would've thought we were a couple of fiends trying to score some rock after being duped.

Thank goodness for micros and imports, or I'd be Canadian.

[pw72]

I don't have time to read every post here, but skimming, a couple of things stand out. Boise's temps are variable. You get hot summers, you get cool summers. Stick around long enough and it will even out.

As far as I know, beer can be bought at full strength in most grocery stores.

Boise is a great upcoming city. The current economy has brought things down, but I really think the city is well-positioned to grow when we rebound, which we will.

And someone said Salt Lake City was liberal? No. Not right. Very conservative city, including the metro.

[trebordallas]

Folks, Boise is in the DESERT!! hello! Of course, it is going to be hot in the summer. Don't people even LOOK at the topography, check it out before going to a city? I have lived in Texas all of my life, and even here in Dallas, people complain about the heat! LOL! Dallas is in Texas, and contrary to belief, Dallas is also on the edge of a desert area! Most of Texas is a dry, arid state. So sounds like Boise has the type of weather it is supposed to have. NO surprise to me. lol

[Sage of Sagle]

Your input is appreciated, but flawed. Boise is the western edge of the Snake River Plain:
Snake River Plain - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This plain (which stretches east to Yellowstone) acts as a moisture channel from the Pacific inland, thus bringing in more storms and humid air. Even in July the humidity rarely drops below 20% in the heat of the day, and averages 54% in the AM. And in December they average 81% humidity early AM and 71% in the afternoon. Not exactly the dry desert...

The Boise area is classed as semi-arid, with less rainfall, but at nearly 2800' at it's city center, it gets winter weather including snow. Average annual rainfall is 12.19", which is more than Wenatchee (Washington's apple-growing region), more than Paso Robles (California's southern wine region), much of Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana, etc.

Semi-Arid (or more correctly "Steppe" or "dry grassland" climate zone) is a point between DESERT and the various HUMID climate regions, averaging 10-20 inches of rainfall annually, and tends to cover a LOT of the plains areas in the American western states, NOT DESERTS.

[grace07]

Originally Posted by Jarndyce

--The days were very long in June, which was nice, but I wonder if the reverse will be true in December--maybe 6 hours of daylight?

Definitely more than 6 hrs but I do remember kids standing in pitch dark at school bus stops in the middle of winter.

Glad you are liking Boise, I am anticipating giving it another try later this summer. I liked its parks, too, and after being in AZ for 5 years, I think I'm going to love them now.

[stingraynm]

Originally Posted by Sage of Sagle

Your input is appreciated, but flawed. Boise is the western edge of the Snake River Plain:
Snake River Plain - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This plain (which stretches east to Yellowstone) acts as a moisture channel from the Pacific inland, thus bringing in more storms and humid air. Even in July the humidity rarely drops below 20% in the heat of the day, and averages 54% in the AM. And in December they average 81% humidity early AM and 71% in the afternoon. Not exactly the dry desert...

The Boise area is classed as semi-arid, with less rainfall, but at nearly 2800' at it's city center, it gets winter weather including snow. Average annual rainfall is 12.19", which is more than Wenatchee (Washington's apple-growing region), more than Paso Robles (California's southern wine region), much of Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana, etc.

Semi-Arid (or more correctly "Steppe" or "dry grassland" climate zone) is a point between DESERT and the various HUMID climate regions, averaging 10-20 inches of rainfall annually, and tends to cover a LOT of the plains areas in the American western states, NOT DESERTS.

Oh yeah, coming from Atlantic states, Boise feels dry, but the humidity is pretty darn apparent in the summer when you step off the plane coming from Albuquerque, Phoenix, or Las Vegas. Then the relative sensation of increased humidity could almost be likened to going from Boise to Dallas.

[rscs]

Thanks for all the specific info. I found it very helpful. We are considering a move from CA.