What is life like in Buena Vista? Your insight is appreciated. (Fort Collins: ski resorts, real estate)

[K-Jay]

What is life like in Buena Vista? We have retired family members who is considering a move there. They want to be off the Front Range in a year-round town that does not have a ski area. They are rather conservative and are thinking BV might be a better fit for them than Salida. Thoughts on that?

Would appreciate input about weather (do they get a lot of big winds?), what summer is like when the rafters, hikers and bikers come into town -- busy but calm, or does it get crowded and rowdy? Any information you can share about housing -- where to look for or avoid?

Finally, are there other towns you might suggest they consider? They want a place that has a year-round community that is not overrun with tourists. Ski towns, except for Crested Butte, are not their thing and are all too expensive.

They have visited BV twice, but we are hoping to hear what it is like to live there. We really appreciate your input!

[davebarnes]

I would choose Salida.
Larger - more to do year 'round.
Hospital.

[SkyDog77]

If the goal is to avoid liberals and tourists, I don't think either are very good options. BV gets a good crowd of dirt bag boaters (my people) during the summer. The South Main Street development has been great for the town and brought an influx of money and people who definitely are not old and conservative.

Success and Lessons: South Main, Buena Vista | APA Colorado

[edmiii]

As a regular visitor to the area over the last 30 or so years, I would agree with Dave. BV is highly oriented to tourism, Salida much, much less. More variety in shopping and range of food choices. Salida was primarily founded as a railroad town, including shops/repair and never was primarily dependent on tourism.

[K-Jay]

Interesting to read folks' perspective so far. We would have thought Salida was the more tourist-dependent of the two, so this is really good to know. Some of our family have lived in Estes Park and Manitou Springs, and got rather tired of being in such tourist-driven towns. (I don't mind Estes myself, as long as you get your groceries early and get back out of town.)

Does the BV/Salida area get the big winds we get here on the northern part of the Front Range?

[SkyDog77]

Originally Posted by K-Jay

Interesting to read folks' perspective so far. We would have thought Salida was the more tourist-dependent of the two, so this is really good to know. Some of our family have lived in Estes Park and Manitou Springs, and got rather tired of being in such tourist-driven towns. (I don't mind Estes myself, as long as you get your groceries early and get back out of town.)

Does the BV/Salida area get the big winds we get here on the northern part of the Front Range?

I think they both are quite tourist dependent. Busy in the summer and quiet in the winter.

As for the winds, I have definitely spent some windy days in the Arkansas valley, but I don't live there so maybe a full-time resident can chime in.

Most mountain towns with any charm end up being tourist destinations in the summer. I was thinking Pagosa Springs as a recommendation, but it also gets quite touristy in the summer.

If the goal is to be away from tourists and in a very conservative area, it might be best to look around Rifle, Parachute, Palisade, Fruita. You would have medical facilities in Grand Junction.

[NW Crow]

If they like winter, Leadville might be another option. Milder, Canon City and outlying area. Johnson Village might be a quieter, more conservative satellite to BV, though I don't think of BV as hectic compared to main draw mountain towns. If they'd enjoy a small town, all things considered, Westcliffe and South Fork are nice spots. Walsenberg wouldn't be a top choice of many but it is old school and has more affordable real estate.

[K-Jay]

Oops. I probably left out a huge factor -- snowcapped mountain views. I should have added that to start with, sorry. The Collegiate Range is pretty amazing for that!

They don't really have to be in a conservative town, per se, just not extremely liberal. I am near Fort Collins, which I think is pretty balanced, and that is fine. Just no Boulder.

[interloper1138]

Salida is far more 'middle of the road' in terms of local politics than you would expect. Despite all the artists and tourists, this is still very much a rural community with solid traditional roots. There are plenty of passionate liberals and conservatives here, and despite the obvious ideological differences, people seem to get along pretty well. I think the political balance helps contribute to the charm and character of this area.

That said, BV has always felt more conservative to me in comparison to Salida. Not drastically so, but the fact that they are pretty adamant about keeping recreational marijuana out of town is a pretty good indicator.

[smdensbcs]

Originally Posted by K-Jay

Oops. I probably left out a huge factor -- snowcapped mountain views. I should have added that to start with, sorry. The Collegiate Range is pretty amazing for that!

As nice the mountain view is from BV, nothing I've seen in Colorado compares to the view of the Sangre de Cristos from Westcliffe. Stunning. Impossible to describe in words. You have to experience it. No ski resorts anywhere nearby. One "super" market. Several restaurants. A fantastic bakery run by sweet Mennonite ladies. A Shakespeare summer season. Annual bluegrass festival. Did I mention the most gorgeous mountain-range view short of being in Nepal? 45(ish) minutes to Pueblo and Canon City. 90 minutes to CO Springs. Colorado has so many great places, Westcliffe being just one.


Disclaimer: I don't live there, I just like to hike the dozens of Sangre trails west of town.