Terrified of moving to Evergreen (Denver, Colorado Springs: hotel, transferring to, living in) - (CO) - City-Data Forum

justatexan · 08-26-2010, 07:50 AM

Hi! my husband and I are thinking about moving to Evergreen. We currently live in Texas but he is transferring to Denver.

We really want to live in a mountain town that is still a reasonable commute to Downtown Denver (30-40 minutes average is what I have heard).

But I am terrified. Neither of us has ever lived in an area with regular snow/ice. I have a phobia/irrational fear of sliding off the edge of a cliff while driving. I know it's nuts. I have constant recurring nightmares of being in a car and sliding off the edge of a mountain and plunging to my death. The most terrified I have ever been was driving out of Breckenridge back to our hotel in Colorado Springs. We were INCHES from the edge and his truck was sliding and slipping on the ice. I started crying hysterically and shaking and couldn't breathe. It is a TRUE phobia. (I'm shaking right now thinking about it!)

So here is my question. Are there any railings on the cliffs when driving out of Evergreen to go to Denver? How real is the risk of sliding off a cliff from the ice/snow? He has a Toyota Tacoma pickup but does not have 4 wheel drive. Is 4 wheel drive a necessity for living in that area? I know this sounds ridiculous but I would panic every day he drove to work and it just isn't worth it to me even though we really want to live there.

Any information you can give me would be GREATLY appreciated. I know I sound nuts but please be honest and tell me if it's dangerous for us to try to live in that area without 4 wheel drive and very very little experience driving in snow/ice.

Thank you so much,
Justa(crazy)texan

2bindenver · 08-26-2010, 09:07 AM

It's truly an irrational fear. That being said, don't move to a mountainside. Find a nice hill to start.

choosing78 · 08-26-2010, 09:19 AM

Hey, I've lived in a snowy, icy climate my entire life and you know what I agree with you! I hope it's an irrational fear but I too get extremely panicky on some of the mountain roads. I don't really get too nervous on the main highways but there's plenty of "County Roads" that are little more than paths. We were going to some trailhead in the San Juans where we turned down a county road and the road kept getting narrower and narrower, rougher and rougher and the drop off got higher. I truly believed the road was just going to end and we would have to back up the 3 miles downhill. I have no idea what would have happened if a car came in the opposite direction. Why not move to Morrison, Roxborough, or Golden spend a year or so and see if you get used to the climate and road conditions before moving further out.

EscapeCalifornia · 08-26-2010, 10:26 AM

A 2WD pickup is probably the worst kind of vehicle in the winter. All the power's on the two wheels with very little weight on them so there's little traction. No wonder he was slipping all over the place. A Corolla would have been more stable. Sell the Tacoma in Texas.

sesamekid · 08-26-2010, 11:55 AM

I've done that commute before (Evergreen to Denver) and it's not fun in the winter.

Yes, you do want to have a four-wheel drive/all-wheel drive vehicle and pack an emergency kit with extra blankets in case you get stuck on the side of the highway in winter. It happens all the time, not just because of accidents, but the higways are closed on occassion due to dangerous wintry weather conditions and sometimes you just have to wait it out on the side of the road, or in a line of traffic.

The good news is that there are not too many spots from Evergreen down I-70 into Denver that I would classify as a cliff or steep ravine. On hwy 74 from Evergreen to Morrison, different story. Very winding highway with steep drops down to the creek.

From south Evergreen through Conifer down hwy 285 to Denver, there are also some parts that I didn't like to drive when it was icy.

Wish I had better news for you

justatexan · 08-26-2010, 01:32 PM

Thanks guys for the replies.

I have an infinity g35 coupe but somehow I thought that would be even worse in icy weather! Since it is so low to the ground and all... I really don't know anything about cars and icy roads....

In any case, getting a new truck isn't an option right now and he is stubbornly attached to it anyway.

I guess we better look elsewhere....

Is Golden really that pretty? From the pictures I have seen online it doesn't seem very "mountainy". The only mountain I could even see in the distance was just an ugly grey rock/mountain thing.

Am I doomed to live in suburbia colorado?

sesamekid · 08-26-2010, 02:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justatexan

Thanks guys for the replies.

I have an infinity g35 coupe but somehow I thought that would be even worse in icy weather! Since it is so low to the ground and all... I really don't know anything about cars and icy roads....

In any case, getting a new truck isn't an option right now and he is stubbornly attached to it anyway.

I guess we better look elsewhere....

Is Golden really that pretty? From the pictures I have seen online it doesn't seem very "mountainy". The only mountain I could even see in the distance was just an ugly grey rock/mountain thing.

Am I doomed to live in suburbia colorado?

I have also lived in Golden - right down town on Ford Street - and the brown rock mesa is Table Mountain. I loved Golden with the exception of it being too busy for my taste. just too much traffic, too many people. Also, it was often slip & slide on the way to work in my car. They do get some winter there. If you look in the opposite direction of Table Mountain, you will see Lookout Mountain, which really feels like a real mountain with pines, Buffalo Bills gravesite, etc.

Are you tied to the Denver area? Is that where the job is?

There are many other areas of Colorado where you could get that mountain town feel if you don't need to be close to Denver.

And what about commuting from Colorado Springs? It is an hour's drive but many people do it, and there is FREX - Front Range Express bus.
You could live on the westside of Colorado Springs and it has a real mountainy feel - especially Manitou Springs, or Black Forest area. In between Colo Springs & Castle Rock is a small town called Larkspur - very cute and lots of pines.

wanneroo · 08-26-2010, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by justatexan

Thanks guys for the replies.

I have an infinity g35 coupe but somehow I thought that would be even worse in icy weather! Since it is so low to the ground and all... I really don't know anything about cars and icy roads....

In any case, getting a new truck isn't an option right now and he is stubbornly attached to it anyway.

I guess we better look elsewhere....

Is Golden really that pretty? From the pictures I have seen online it doesn't seem very "mountainy". The only mountain I could even see in the distance was just an ugly grey rock/mountain thing.

Am I doomed to live in suburbia colorado?

Really the first essential with winter driving and cars, is the tire makes all the difference in the world. It is what meets the road. You can have an AWD car with all the electronic gizmos and if you have crap tires ill suited to winter weather, there is only so much those systems can compensate for.

The thing with the Infiniti is that it will be fine if you have good tires on it driving on most roads. The problem is the side streets, driveways or perhaps if the snow plows can't keep up with the snow(which is going to happen) you then have a ground clearance issue.

If you do live in Evergreen you will have to accept that every winter you are going to get hammered with some storms and there will be some days it wont be easy to get around.

Golden is squashed up against the foothills between a mesa. The elevation isn't really much higher than suburban Denver and it's just the regular high desert/prairie grassland that Denver would look like if the city was not there. Suburban or metro Denver is basically flat with some slight elevation changes, but living in Denver is not living in the mountains. It's living on the prairie with a view of the mountains.

The thing with Evergreen and the foothills to keep in mind is that it is the crossroads in elevation between the steep decline from the continental divide to prairie land. It gets caught between the thermal changes and hence a hell of a lot of wind and rapidly changing weather. I've been in some absolutely wicked snowstorms in the Evergreen area and I also have relatives that lived next door at Genesee Park and they can vouch for that. So to live a bit higher up in elevation you have to accept what goes with it and if you can't, don't bother, move to Denver.

breaksraver13 · 08-27-2010, 12:57 AM

wanneroo said it best.........it's all about the tires!!!! If your real-uneasy about the snowy conditions have a winter set of studded tires

donisanasfan · 08-28-2010, 09:14 AM

In addition to the tires, which is great advice, learn to not react with the brake pedal. When you get in a situation where you feel like you are sliding the last thing you want to do is slam on the brakes. Put the car in "n" and tap the brakes. One of my many jobs in life was driving a bread truck when I lived in Colorado and the route was Evergreen in to Denver. The weather changes can be dramatic but just learning a few basic tricks will help you out. Get out on an empty parking lot and with snow and ice and just get comfortable with it. Also , if you really want to feel safe in the winter, get your self a second vehicle. An old Grand Wagoneer is the best handling vehicle I have ever driven in the snow. Get one from down in Texas where they don't rust out.