Relocating from SC to CO (Denver, Colorado Springs: salons, apartments, crime)

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by breaksraver13

Also.......do the ski resorts have spa's that also do hair?

I'm sure there are. But since neither I nor my wife avail ourselves of those services, we couldn't tell you much about them. But I can tell you that there are a lot of high-end spas all over -- look at the towns of Breckenridge, Vail, Avon, etc.

Glenwood Springs is on the western slope -- I've mostly driven through it -- looks nice, but couldn't tell you much. I'm not sure how much of the land around GS is public land, i.e. open for hiking. Most of the terrain west of GS is high desert. You'll be about 45 minutes from Aspen, which is great for skiing. Potentially you could live in GS and have a salon in Aspen -- don't know what the traffic is like though, since I know a lot of people commute from GS to Aspen.

[breaksraver13]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

I'm sure there are. But since neither I nor my wife avail ourselves of those services, we couldn't tell you much about them. But I can tell you that there are a lot of high-end spas all over -- look at the towns of Breckenridge, Vail, Avon, etc.

Glenwood Springs is on the western slope -- I've mostly driven through it -- looks nice, but couldn't tell you much. I'm not sure how much of the land around GS is public land, i.e. open for hiking. Most of the terrain west of GS is high desert. You'll be about 45 minutes from Aspen, which is great for skiing. Potentially you could live in GS and have a salon in Aspen -- don't know what the traffic is like though, since I know a lot of people commute from GS to Aspen.

Thanx man!!!

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by breaksraver13

Because as I see it Denver is pretty much within an hours reach of most other towns...Right?

That's without traffic or inclement weather. For instance, the Lakewood-Copper drive has taken me anywhere from 55 minutes to 4 hours.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by breaksraver13

I am actually looking to come out there and stay for a month to get a feel for the area...........I don't have to live in the city......Because as I see it Denver is pretty much within an hours reach of most other towns...Right?

At lease an hour to most ski areas except perhaps Loveland and Winter Park. And that's from the west side of the metro area. Lots of people like to ski at Copper Mtn, and some other places farther out b/c they sell great discount passes.

[Fuzz]

Distance/time-wise, Loveland and Winter Park are the closest to Denver, about 45-55 minutes away. Then you have A-Basin, Keystone, Breck, and Copper, about 1 hour 15 minutes away. Farther away, you have Vail (1 hour 30-45 minutes) and Beaver Creek (1 hour 45 minutes - 2 hours).

All ski areas have relatively cheap season passes. Copper and Winter Park have a shared pass for about $350 (plus you can get some days at Steamboat for some extra $). A-Basin, Keystone, and Breck are on the same pass for $380 -- for that price, you also get 10 days at Vail/BC. The combined A-Basin + Breck + Keystone + Vail + BC unlimited season pass costs around $1,000 or more I think. Loveland stands on it's own, but the season pass is very cheap, around $250 or so I think.

The Aspen season passes are much more expensive because they don't have the same competition that Vail Resorts and Intrawest have on the Front Range.

Since you're into skiing, check out the Epicski forums -- lots of great info on skiing, plus you can hook up and ski with locals to get the inside scoop.

[breaksraver13]

I've been looking at the maps of colorado......looking at towns just west of Denver......and Georgetown came up........any comments???

[Fuzz]

Georgetown has a pretty dramatic setting, nestled between towering rock walls with a lake/reservoir. It's a small town -- they have a historic downtown, but a lot of run-down parts as well. Not sure if there'd be much demand for hair styling, but I don't really know the town too well other than having driven through it a few times on the way to Guanella Pass. Living in Georgetown, you'll be 10 miles from Loveland ski area, but you'll have to go through the Eisenhower tunnel (often a big traffic jam in the winter) to get to Summit County for all the ski resorts. Georgetown hill is often the place where they close I-70 in bad winter weather -- so you can't get to the ski areas from G-town either.

A lot of the high-end resort areas have nearby towns which are less expensive -- a lot of ski area employees and ski bums live in those cheaper towns and commute to the ski resorts for work. For instance, in Summit County there's Leadville, Alma, Fairplay, and Heeney. For Aspen, I think it's Carbondale, but I could be mistaken.

[breaksraver13]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Distance/time-wise, Loveland and Winter Park are the closest to Denver, about 45-55 minutes away. Then you have A-Basin, Keystone, Breck, and Copper, about 1 hour 15 minutes away. Farther away, you have Vail (1 hour 30-45 minutes) and Beaver Creek (1 hour 45 minutes - 2 hours).

All ski areas have relatively cheap season passes. Copper and Winter Park have a shared pass for about $350 (plus you can get some days at Steamboat for some extra $). A-Basin, Keystone, and Breck are on the same pass for $380 -- for that price, you also get 10 days at Vail/BC. The combined A-Basin + Breck + Keystone + Vail + BC unlimited season pass costs around $1,000 or more I think. Loveland stands on it's own, but the season pass is very cheap, around $250 or so I think.

The Aspen season passes are much more expensive because they don't have the same competition that Vail Resorts and Intrawest have on the Front Range.

Since you're into skiing, check out the Epicski forums -- lots of great info on skiing, plus you can hook up and ski with locals to get the inside scoop.

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Georgetown has a pretty dramatic setting, nestled between towering rock walls with a lake/reservoir. It's a small town -- they have a historic downtown, but a lot of run-down parts as well. Not sure if there'd be much demand for hair styling, but I don't really know the town too well other than having driven through it a few times on the way to Guanella Pass. Living in Georgetown, you'll be 10 miles from Loveland ski area, but you'll have to go through the Eisenhower tunnel (often a big traffic jam in the winter) to get to Summit County for all the ski resorts. Georgetown hill is often the place where they close I-70 in bad winter weather -- so you can't get to the ski areas from G-town either.

A lot of the high-end resort areas have nearby towns which are less expensive -- a lot of ski area employees and ski bums live in those cheaper towns and commute to the ski resorts for work. For instance, in Summit County there's Leadville, Alma, Fairplay, and Heeney. For Aspen, I think it's Carbondale, but I could be mistaken.

That is exactly the response that I am looking for......thanx

[breaksraver13]

I have been looking at housing in the Silverthorne area........do you know anything about that area........It is west of the Eisenhower Tunnel which is good.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by breaksraver13

I have been looking at housing in the Silverthorne area........do you know anything about that area........It is west of the Eisenhower Tunnel which is good.

I live in Silverthorne. While it is cheaper than the actual resort towns (e.g. Breck), it is still quite expensive.

Unlike the other towns in the area, Silverthorne actually has a high number of full-time residents (70%, compared to 15-30% for the other towns in Summit County). So it is more residential. However, it does not have a walkable Main Street like Frisco or Breck. Lot of strip malls -- the town is trying to change that and is trying to create a central village.

Silverthorne has roughly three areas. There's Wildernest, which is a lot of condos and townhomes (but also houses) -- a lot of them are second-homes for people though. Can be expensive to buy, but rentals may be reasonable (don't know for sure). There are many apartment complexes along the Highway 9 near the interstate exit -- should be pretty inexpensive (availability may be more of a problem). Several of my ski instructor friends live in an apartment complex on Rainbow Drive, near the rec center -- rents are pretty inexpensive. Once you go north about a mile and a half, the area becomes more residential (relatively). Mostly houses, running from $475K+ for 3 bedrooms (all the way up to $2MM!). There are lots of new very nice-looking townhomes near Blue River Ranch Lakes, but I have no idea how much they cost.

The downside of Silverthorne is that it's not as cute, charming, or walkable as the stereotypical mountain town (although, like I said, the town is trying to change that). The upside is that it's mostly full-time residents, and away from a lot of the tourist hustle and bustle. Plus Silverthorne sits between two Wilderness areas (the 130K-acre Eagles Nest and 13K Ptarmigan Peak), so it's very easy access to hiking -- we have a trailhead 1 mile from our house that accesses miles and miles of hiking trails in the spectacular Gore Range.

Here's a view overlooking Lake Dillon -- Silverthorne sits in the valley to the right, right between the Gore Range to the left and Williams Fork Mountains to the right.