Need Opinions about Pueblo (Denver, Colorado Springs: new home, transfer to, to live in)

[McGowdog]

30 miles away, 8 miles away, and yes.

Pueblo is not barren or desert-like. It's Southern Colorado town-like. Colorado as a whole, is what you might describe as barren and desert-like, as compared to the Pacific Northwest.

[bluescreen73]

Originally Posted by McGowdog

30 miles away, 8 miles away, and yes.

Pueblo is not barren or desert-like. It's Southern Colorado town-like. Colorado as a whole, is what you might describe as barren and desert-like, as compared to the Pacific Northwest.

It's true that the entire Front Range Urban Corridor lies in a desert, but the area around Pueblo _looks_ like a desert, whereas the cities north of Pueblo more closely resemble the high plains. The landscape changes dramatically between the Springs and Pueblo.

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by bluescreen73

It's true that the entire Front Range Urban Corridor lies in a desert, but the area around Pueblo _looks_ like a desert, whereas the cities north of Pueblo more closely resemble the high plains. The landscape changes dramatically between the Springs and Pueblo.

Agreed Pueblo is more like Arizona or as I like to say an industrial city that meets the southwest. Personally I think that is one of Pueblo's charms.

[Syringaloid]

The pictures I have Googled and others I have seen look as if the city is kind of lacking trees even in the city center. How green is Pueblo? Many Western cities,even Rocky Mountain cities, are in dry/desert areas but have a good amount of trees thus making them seem as a lush oasis in the dry lands. Does the river through town have thick foilage and trees along its banks? What are the city parks like?
Thanks for the info!!!

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by Syringaloid

The pictures I have Googled and others I have seen look as if the city is kind of lacking trees even in the city center. How green is Pueblo? Many Western cities,even Rocky Mountain cities, are in dry/desert areas but have a good amount of trees thus making them seem as a lush oasis in the dry lands. Does the river through town have thick foilage and trees along its banks? What are the city parks like?
Thanks for the info!!!

For a semi arid region Pueblo has plenty of trees nothing like the north west though. We have 2 rivers that run thorough here, the Arkansas and Fountain. Pueblo has the Pueblo Reservoir that is one of the largest in the state.

The bottom line is if you are looking for a tropical oasis Pueblo is not for you. On the other hand if you are looking for a nice city that gets more sunshine then Florida and close to great skiing and has plenty of out door activities like a kayak course in downtown Pueblo is for you.

[Syringaloid]

How would the tree cover compare for instance to another city such as Colorado Springs? Do people keep their lawns green or does the city dry out like some in Arizona do and everything is brown except for the green leaves on the trees?

[McGowdog]

To the above post, yes. It gets brown and we have 4 seasons in this state. Ask Jazz and others here what they think of lush Kentucky Bluegrass. Or rather, don't.

No, Pueblo doesn't have a lot of trees by nature. If people planted them, that's another story. There again, this is not the Pacific Northwest... aka the western sections of Oregon or Washington.

There are some cottonweeds that dot portions of the Fountain and along the Arkansas as it snakes down the Ark Valley and perhaps west of the city limits a bit... but through town, all we have is this huge mural.

For the 2nd time, the landscape between Pueblo and Colorado Springs only changes dramatically because as you head towards Colorado Springs from Pueblo, you're travelling back to the West ( and to the north, obviously) and closer to the hills and mountains that make up the Front Range. Colorado Springs also just so happens to be at the foothill of the furthermost westerly 14er in all of the land and one of the more remote mountain ranges in the state, and is also at the southern edge of the Palmer Divide which extends far to the north and east of the Colorado Springs Metro. (you want trees, check out this area). For example, head due south of Pueblo and you'll find that 1-25 curves back to the west as well and you'll be back in the hilly and mountainous Greenhorn Valley with pinions, cedars, pines, aspen trees, etc. Or you could head west of Pueblo where you'll run into the hilly and mountainous Fremont County of Florence, Canon City, the Royal Gorge, etc.

Head further south on I-25 from the Colorado City and Rye area and you're at the foothills of a 12,300+ elevation mountain. Then as you head further south, you go through the high plains of Walsenburg, the Great Metropolis of Aguilar, and the once bustling 4th largest town in Colorado, Trinidad. God made a few trees in and around Trinidad I guarantee you.

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by Syringaloid

How would the tree cover compare for instance to another city such as Colorado Springs? Do people keep their lawns green or does the city dry out like some in Arizona do and everything is brown except for the green leaves on the trees?

Pueblo does not get as hot as Arizona in the summer so our lawns are just as green and lush as they are in Colorado Springs. Some people don't think we should have Kentucky Blue grass in Colorado, I am not one of those people. In fact Pueblo has enough water for a city close to 500,000 people and buying more so water will not be a issue us like in other cities in the west.

My advise to you is take a weekend trip out here and see if Colorado is for you or not.

[McGowdog]

And if Colorado isn't for you, we'll understand. It's cool.

If you want trees and need to get away from the west coast for some reason, you might consider heading east of about Topeka Kansas. From there all the way to the East Coast, there's plenty of lush terrain.

[80skeys]

Interesting thread. The Puebloans who say Pueblo is "green enough" and the others who say it's a desert.

Well, I've travelled all over the U.S. and have lived in different places, let me put in my two cents.

For us living in the Southwest, we get used to the sparsity of trees. So when we say that there's plenty of trees in GJ or Pueblo, we mean "relative to the complete lack of trees just outside of town."

Anyone coming from outside the Southwest is basically going to consider the town itself brown and devoid of trees. You've got to remember that these folks are used to more humidity, more rain and more trees. you've got to put yourself in their shoes.

In GJ, Denver and Pueblo there's old established "tree lined" neighborhoods that have lots of mature trees that were planted decades ago. These are nice areas to live. As the poster said, these are "little oases" in the desert.

But in the general scheme of things, the southwest is a dry environment.