Somewhere like Steamboat Springs- does it exist? (Boulder, Durango: high school, college)

[SkyDog77]

Originally Posted by NW Crow

As always a lot depends on how much downtown & entertainment you want. Few places will have a great library unless it is at least a moderate sized city or a wealthy resort town.


Durango doesn't feel that much like a college town to me. The school is there but it is off to the side, not front & center.

I agree. Especially if you go north. I know several retirees who live in that area.

[NW Crow]

If you live in town, I guess about 1 in 3 is a college student at Fort Lewis or the community college. But they are only about 8% of the total county population. Lots of additional 20 somethings of course.

[EastwardBound]

Salida, best town in Colorado imo. Not overly commercial, still feels lively with a great downtown, abundant outdoor recreation, not a lot of sprawl, walkable.

It's quite a bit different from Steamboat though, in that, whereas Steamboat feels resorty and Disneylandish, imo, Salida retains the real town feel. And, as far as lush and green, there are very few places in Colorado, where you will find that.

[jgreco5]

Thanks guys.

We are sold on Colorado, though the other places in Oregon and Washington are beautiful. We like to camp and its location lends itself to easy camping to other great places. We also want to be in a "green" friendly place as its my medicine, so Montana won't work for us unfortunately. I'll be looking into the other places mentioned in Colorado.

Lush to me is in the trees not barren and there is grass and flowers, I hope that makes sense. I spent some time at 10,000 feet and it was very rocky and sparse.

Durango was very touristy/college in the sense that I didn't feel like it was a year-round community. Granted, I spent only a week there so I maybe got the wrong vibe?

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by jgreco5

Thanks guys.

We are sold on Colorado, ...
Lush to me is in the trees not barren and there is grass and flowers, I hope that makes sense. ...

for your desires... WATER certainly helps. If you get a rural place, get water rights!!! (I spent too many yrs watering 'miniature' CO trees...)

There are some really nice Colorado 'banana belts' if you are into orcharding / gardening / sustainability.

Palisade and Delta, are key areas, but also possible near Salida and Durango.

Durango is a pretty 'trendy', tho also college town +/-. There are many community events and usually a diverse economy in a college town, so... if you stay away from the campus and frequent the places the locals go... it can be pretty transparent. (and can be a bonus for visitors and your own kids).

[EastwardBound]

I second the water issue. If you plan to buy, look at 35+ acres, which typically allows for a domestic well (water use on the property) or a place with grandfathered water for domestic or outside use. Here is a link, which explains the situation regarding water.

http://water.state.co.us/dwripub/doc...ermitguide.pdf

[James Bond 007]

Coeur d'Alene or maybe Sandpoint, ID.

[ComeCloser]

I'm not sure how it rates on the green and lush scale, but what about Grand Junction?

[SkyDog77]

Originally Posted by ComeCloser

I'm not sure how it rates on the green and lush scale, but what about Grand Junction?

Very low

[SkyDog77]

Originally Posted by jgreco5

Thanks guys.

We are sold on Colorado, though the other places in Oregon and Washington are beautiful. We like to camp and its location lends itself to easy camping to other great places. We also want to be in a "green" friendly place as its my medicine, so Montana won't work for us unfortunately. I'll be looking into the other places mentioned in Colorado.

Lush to me is in the trees not barren and there is grass and flowers, I hope that makes sense. I spent some time at 10,000 feet and it was very rocky and sparse.

Durango was very touristy/college in the sense that I didn't feel like it was a year-round community. Granted, I spent only a week there so I maybe got the wrong vibe?

Originally Posted by James Bond 007

Coeur d'Alene or maybe Sandpoint, ID.

I’ve spent a bit of time in both Coeur D’Alene and Sandpoint, but read OP’s post.