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Old 01-14-2014, 09:27 AM
 
315 posts, read 467,913 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wanneroo View Post

Where a part time job would come into play would be getting you out of the house, making local contacts and doing something different, possibly outside. The main season is summer in those communities.
I definitely see what you mean about getting out more, I guess that's one of those things that I would just have to feel out and see if it would be worth doing that way or just putting myself out there whenever I'm not at work.


Quote:
Originally Posted by StealthRabbit View Post
I concur. BV is better in my view and very accessible to get IN and OUT. Do some serious career research to see if there is any work in a Mtn Town that can keep you there on a decent salary. Can be tough.

You might need to find a seasonal / temp HIGH pay career that you can go away for a few months, then come back and enjoy a few months at home.

Your stature may exclude the typical high pay seasonal careers (Energy / fishing / wildland firefighting). so... I guess you will have to become a manager! or an IT guru.

or... some 'non-wage' income might be in order. That will serve you better into the future anyway. I bought my first Colorado House at age 19. It was scary on $1.65/hr. 30+ properties later (more than 30+ yrs)... it is still scary
I think it'll be quite some time before I can afford to /want to commit to buying a house. I don't know what I want to do with my career, but I know that I like the job I've got and I can move up in it if I choose to. I would rather not have a telecommuting job long term, but if it gets me out there and I can pad my resume enough to eventually find something a little more tangible with better pay, then I've got no complaints.

Quote:
Originally Posted by highplainsrus View Post
I will just add a couple of thoughts. It will be tempting when you first get here to spend money exploring, trying the new restaurants, and so forth. Restraint is in order, though. Try not to go into debt getting established. Second, when internet is so important, investigate getting multiple connections as back-up to bad weather and lesser levels of local support. It will be a long time before a good backbone is built through the mountains and beyond.
As excited as I'll be to get out there and start 'living', I do tend to lead a pretty cheap lifestyle and I'm well known among my friends for being frugal. My tastes aren't expensive, so as long as I can get by and hopefully stash a little money away while doing it, I'll be content.

Also, is it common for internet in these towns to go down for long periods of time during inclement weather? The occasional power outage is not a big deal, it happens with our team.
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Old 01-14-2014, 09:54 AM
 
315 posts, read 467,913 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MTBamap View Post
BV has a "tech" company, web/app design and database programming I believe...nice group. Telecommuting offers a huge advantage to blend the work & lifestyle selection, I have been living (surviving) in Colorado the past 4 years like this.

You can do it on your budget, an extra $5G's a year would be a bonus. Just remember, your typical "travel budget" goes away because you will not want to go anywhere. And, when your friends & family come to visit they darn well better buy you dinner! Sierra Trading Post has good sales to get yourself stocked up with quality layers for the outdoor environment (ice breaker & wool socks).

I have been through this process, albeit later in life, sampled different areas (Ridgway to Denver and in between). You obviously are a nature/outdoor seeker, so the mountain town environment is the place to be if you can make it happen. If you want the outdoors avoid the high plains/front range suburbia, it sucks. If you didn't see foothills & mountains to the West you could be in anywhere America. But, some people still need a "scene" and shopping options, so they work hard to get into the nature to find peace & quiet...it is really can be work to get there!

PM me if you have specific questions about Ridgway or the Arkansas Valley. Fairplay, and the like, are BIG & LONG winters, better place to visit for a coffee I'd say.
I'm glad to know it's possible for me to make it out there on my current salary. I'm due for a 3-4% raise in May, and while it isn't much every little bit helps. You're right, I am lucky for being able to have a job that allows me to move like this, which is why I hesitate to move on since I can move up within the company if I choose to and still remain mobile.

You're also right about travel, too. I doubt I'll be going anywhere other than the state in terms of travel for the foreseeable future. Maybe up to Montana sometime (always wanted to see Glacier National Park) or maybe Utah, but honestly I fell in love with Colorado the minute I got out of Denver (not that I didn't like Denver, but I wanted out of the city.) I can't wait to see as much of it as often as I can afford to.

Thanks for your post! I'll keep you in mind if I have more specific questions.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Lugnuts View Post
Mountain Wizards. They are across the street from the Evergreen cafe. They will start techs at slightly over minimum wage because that's the going rate. Poverty is a lifestyle choice up here.
Yeah, I expected as much. At this point I can't afford to start at the bottom anymore. I'm finally in a 'good' space financially and in terms of my work, so if I were to move to another company it would have to be for a position with at least $40k pay.
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Old 01-14-2014, 10:09 AM
 
Location: On the road
2,798 posts, read 2,668,488 times
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If internet access is important to you, that would limit some of your options, but I suggest looking at Montrose and Gunnison.
Gunnison is home to a college, but during the winter, it often shows up in the State's Coldest locations list. It is convenient to several of the popular ski areas, and summer weather is great.

Montrose is in a beautiful area, and convenient to the Southwestern part of the state.

I often think about relocating to one of the these areas, but the wife prefers being a little closer to the big city.
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Old 01-14-2014, 10:25 AM
 
3,105 posts, read 3,821,899 times
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If you're in Salida or BV you may have better options, but there is always 12mb/s satellite available anywhere with a clear view of the southern sky. It's reliable, but expensive.

Right now, we're in the middle of a 48 hour blizzard with 100mph winds. Here at 10,000ft, both my connections (DSL & Sat) are up.

Don't forget to budget for heating and appropriate tires. Winters are long, and winter activities are expensive by the time you factor in all the clothing you need. Being able to recreate in winter helps those long winters pass a lot quicker. If you're going into the back country, make sure you have avalanche training and a beacon.

Sierra trading post (as another poster mentioned) is a good place to find deals, as is Steep and Cheap and Woot. Amazon usually has good prices as well.

There are also a few used gear shops in Summit Country (Wilderness exchange?)

If you want to do some camping the USGI sleep system is hard to beat. A bit heavy & bulky for back packing, but perfect for car camping or if you're just hiking in a few miles. For ~ $110 or so you get a gore tex bivy, two synthetic sleeping bags and a compression sac. Just add a good sleeping pad and you're good to go down to sub zero temps. With the gore tex bivy, you don't even need a tent.

Mounting living is the best. Good luck!
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Old 01-14-2014, 10:37 AM
 
Location: Betwixt and Between
463 posts, read 1,171,138 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by interloper1138 View Post

I think it'll be quite some time before I can afford to /want to commit to buying a house. I don't know what I want to do with my career, but I know that I like the job I've got and I can move up in it if I choose to. I would rather not have a telecommuting job long term, but if it gets me out there and I can pad my resume enough to eventually find something a little more tangible with better pay, then I've got no complaints.



As excited as I'll be to get out there and start 'living', I do tend to lead a pretty cheap lifestyle and I'm well known among my friends for being frugal. My tastes aren't expensive, so as long as I can get by and hopefully stash a little money away while doing it, I'll be content.

Also, is it common for internet in these towns to go down for long periods of time during inclement weather? The occasional power outage is not a big deal, it happens with our team.
You are smart to wait. Buying a house here is easy. Selling it is exceedingly difficult. It would be insane to buy a place here until you are absolutely sure that it's where you want to plant roots. Very, *VERY*, important: rent first.

I've had Qwest which is now CENTURYlink DSL and I've never lost service. I was on dial-up before and they ran new infrastructure for the DSL so maybe that's why my service has been so reliable? Just luck? Don't know...

Re travel. You'll be living in vacationland. Walk to the Ark for some fly fishing or kayaking, hop on your mtnbike and start pedalling. Lots of outdoor stuff here, much of it free. Check out Lake Powell if you like to fish. GL
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Old 01-14-2014, 02:37 PM
 
Location: Bend, OR
3,296 posts, read 9,671,023 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by interloper1138 View Post
Dating is a pretty low priority, so a younger crowd is not as important as other factors, but I figured that the smaller towns there would be harder to meet other single people in, but growing up in a small town myself this isn't much of a surprise.

I've looked into Glenwood Springs, but as you mentioned the high cost of living seems to place it out of reach for me for the time being. I haven't heard much about Crested Butte or Ridgway, but I'll check them out, too.

I got a coffee in Fairplay while I was out there in October. It seemed like a nice little town and the people were friendly. It's probably a bit smaller than what I'm looking for at the moment, but I certainly won't rule it out entirely.

Thanks!
I wasn't suggesting Fairplay to live, unless you have your heart set on it. As you said, it's small. I actually never made friends with any "locals" other than the ones working for the Forest Service. People weren't necessarily rude, but they certainly weren't friendly or inviting of others. I did enjoy the town of Alma, but again, don't think I would live there. BV would be my choice location!

Quote:
Originally Posted by MTBamap View Post
Fairplay, and the like, are BIG & LONG winters, better place to visit for a coffee I'd say.
Absolutely correct! While I enjoyed my time in Fairplay, it was time to move on. If I could have landed a job in Salida or BV I would have moved there in a heartbeat. The weather was much better and there were a few amenities to get by. The time I was in Fairplay, there wasn't even a light in town, and the only grocery store was a very small market that was overpriced and lacked quality. My parents still have a cabin (which we lived in for a year) 10 miles south of Trout Creek Pass on Hwy. 285. I love going there in the summer now and heading down to BV to play on the river and grab a bite to eat and a beer at Eddyline Brewery. BV is really a hidden gem, IMO.
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Old 01-16-2014, 05:20 PM
 
315 posts, read 467,913 times
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Thanks so much for the responses, everyone! All of your information has been very helpful and I greatly appreciate it. You've all got me very excited about this.

I may resurrect this thread in a few months after I get back out there with some more questions or a follow-up.

Thanks again!
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Old 01-16-2014, 10:06 PM
 
8,317 posts, read 29,425,234 times
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Being a single male in most of the towns mentioned won't be an easy deal. As others noted, men outnumber women by a significant margin in most mountain towns. The women can be choosy about who they date, and many of the women are not the type that one would like for a serious relationship (neither are a lot of the men, either, to be fair). Transient, phony, gold-digger, immature, drug-using are all terms of which many young mountain town residents have at least one that fits them. The casual tourists get all starry-eyed at the scenery, but most fail to see the true sociological makeup of a lot of mountain towns--and, frankly, that aspect of many of the mountain towns pretty much sucks. In that regard, the ski area resort towns are the worst and usually are the most expensive in which to live. The mountain towns that cater mostly to the summer tourist trade are not as bad, but also have very few year-round jobs. The better towns are the ones that have some sort of economy not solely based on tourism, but most of them are in the less attractive locales not right in the mountains. The more money or assets one has to live on, the easier it is to exist in any of them. Lacking that, most people don't make it more than a few years living in one of the mountain towns before they have to "go back to the world" to make a living--often a lot poorer or even flat broke before they leave. A lot of people have dreams like the OP, but few of them make it work for more than a few years in Colorado before reality catches up with the dream. The guys (and gals) who have the best luck are the 40 to 60-somethings with a gold-plated retirement or 7-figure net worth--they're the ones who can afford to hang around for the long-term. Most of the youngsters? Well, here today, gone tomorrow . . .
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Old 01-17-2014, 08:00 AM
 
Location: Betwixt and Between
463 posts, read 1,171,138 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jazzlover View Post
Being a single male in most of the towns mentioned won't be an easy deal. As others noted, men outnumber women by a significant margin in most mountain towns. The women can be choosy about who they date, and many of the women are not the type that one would like for a serious relationship (neither are a lot of the men, either, to be fair). Transient, phony, gold-digger, immature, drug-using are all terms of which many young mountain town residents have at least one that fits them. The casual tourists get all starry-eyed at the scenery, but most fail to see the true sociological makeup of a lot of mountain towns--and, frankly, that aspect of many of the mountain towns pretty much sucks. In that regard, the ski area resort towns are the worst and usually are the most expensive in which to live. The mountain towns that cater mostly to the summer tourist trade are not as bad, but also have very few year-round jobs. The better towns are the ones that have some sort of economy not solely based on tourism, but most of them are in the less attractive locales not right in the mountains. The more money or assets one has to live on, the easier it is to exist in any of them. Lacking that, most people don't make it more than a few years living in one of the mountain towns before they have to "go back to the world" to make a living--often a lot poorer or even flat broke before they leave. A lot of people have dreams like the OP, but few of them make it work for more than a few years in Colorado before reality catches up with the dream. The guys (and gals) who have the best luck are the 40 to 60-somethings with a gold-plated retirement or 7-figure net worth--they're the ones who can afford to hang around for the long-term. Most of the youngsters? Well, here today, gone tomorrow . . .
This is true and that's why I usually steer people away from here. But the OP is young and single, has a remote source of income, dating isn't a priority and he just wants to try it out. As long as he doesn't damage his career, I see nothing wrong with just trying it out. If he doesn't like it, he can always leave. Most do.
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Old 01-23-2014, 12:08 AM
 
157 posts, read 301,234 times
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You might also look at Granby as a small town. If you find you want a taste of the city, Denver is only an hour and a half away.
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