Ouray, Good Move? (Boulder, Grand Junction, Durango: homes, school, college)

[concoulor3]

Hubby & I are considering moving to Ouray (three small kids). Out of the Front Range. Any input would be nice.

[Crackerjack]

Concoulor3, Ouray is very beautiful. It looks like Switzerland. It is probably one of the most beautiful towns I have ever seen. It is small and it does get a good amount of snow in the winter, not like Silverton, but still you do have to like snow to live there. I'd recommend having a 4x4 or SUV. You can go up to Montrose to shop or Grand Junction for more. In the summer, you can go into Durango. In the winter the passes up around Silverton are high up and snowy so you basically go to Montrose. Homes are somewhat pricey but if you like a small town that is beautiful and don't mind snow in the winter, it is a great small community that is as close to living in Europe as you can get. It has the hot springs that are fantastic too. Mountain climbers go there often and ice climbers come in the winter. It is totally sheltered by mountains. I want to sing..."the hills are alive with the sound of music" when I go there.

[concoulor3]

Thanks for the reply. I heard the winters are not that much worse than Boulder. It seems they get an earlier Spring??

[pianogal]

I am not a local but have visited Ouray and talked to the locals about moving there. Their advice...visit in the winter and spend at least 3 weeks to a month before deciding to relocate there. Alot of the people I talked with worked there in the summer but lived elsewhere in the winter. I LOVE the town, it's one of the most BEAUTIFUL places I've ever visited. I just think I would get bored after awhile - especially in the winter. Also, the housing seemed extremely expensive for what you get. I don't know what the taxes, etc. are like.

[Crackerjack]

Concoulor3, I am not sure I'd heed the advice about Boulder being like Ouray in the winter. Boulder has a milder winter. Ouray is pretty snowy. Ouray is sheltered from a lot of wind being surrounded by mountains but still it is snowy. The pass up to Silverton gets closed off due to so much snow in the winter. That is GREAT advice from pianogal about spending a winter there and seeing if it is for you. Like pianogal said, Ouray is extremely beautiful, but the winters are snowy and more then Boulder, that is for sure. Some people love snow and this would be the place to live if you do.

Concoulor3, I am not sure I'd heed the advice about Boulder being like Ouray in the winter. Boulder has less snow in the winter. Ouray is pretty snowy. Ouray is sheltered from a lot of wind being surrounded by mountains but still it is snowy. The pass up to Silverton gets closed off due to so much snow in the winter. That is GREAT advice from pianogal about spending a winter there and seeing if it is for you. Like pianogal said, Ouray is extremely beautiful, but the winters are snowy and more then Boulder, that is for sure. Some people love snow and this would be the place to live if you do.

Here is a link I found on Ouray and they get about 140 inches of snow a year. Yes Ouray is milder then the other high mountain towns like Vail, Aspen and so forth and has lots of sunshine. It is not cold like up northern Colorado, but still snowy. By comparison, Boulder gets about an average of 61 to 83 inches of snow a year, depends on which website you look at, but here is one on the Boulder annual snowfall.
acupuncturecollege.edu/campuses/boulder.html

Ouray snowfall:
coloradoinfo.com/travel.asp?pageid=19%7C24%7C158

[concoulor3]

Thanks for the info. The snow doesn't deter me too much. I'm a bit of a dig-in, build a fire, type of girl. I have heard really positive things about the school systems. Any thoughts?

COncoulor3

[Crackerjack]

Ouray is a wonderful town and since snow isn't an issue with you, I think you will love it. It truly is a beautiful area. Good Luck on your move!