Moving to Blanca, Costilla County. Please tell me about this area (Alamosa: sale, home)

[shariaroberts]

Greetings everyone, My husband and I just purchased land in Blanca CO.
Costilla County. Can anyone tell me about this area, the people, what kind of work is available, etc...... Thank You

[jazzlover]

I hope you didn't get in on one of the land sale deals that go on periodically in that area. 40 acre tracts of sagebrush (nothing else) out on the desert floor. Years back, some tracts didn't even have legal road or utility access. I thnk that's stopped, but there is some desolate country out there. Blanca itself is a very small, largely Hispanic farm community. The nearest town of size is Alamosa. There are very limited jobs in the area. Costilla County has one of the lowest per capita incomes in the United States. I don't know where you currently live, but for most people from outside of the area, that part of the San Luis Valley can be a real culture shock.

There are parts of Costilla County that are gorgeous, and Forbes (of magazine fame) Ranch and Trinchera Ranch, both sort of upscale rural home developments (many seasonal and some year round residents) are east of Fort Garland in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo mountains. So, it sort of depends where you bought.

[shariaroberts]

Well I currently live in Muskegon Michigan. And yes I think it was one of those land sales. This guy is selling 40 acres, splitting it into 5 acre parcels, 5,ooo each. Was this a bad purchase? The land sits 3 miles outside the town of Blanca.

[jazzlover]

I would seriously check it out . . . That probably also means drilling a well and installing a septic system if you plan to build there. There may or may not be power to the lot line. At 3 miles out, it's probably sitting out in the sagebrush. Would probably have a pretty good view of Mt. Blanca (14,000+ elevation peak), though. The valley floor is around 7,500 feet or so. It can get colder than hell there in the winter, too. 30 below not uncommon. Dry (less than 9 inches of precipitation annually). Nice summer (if short), though--seldom above 90 degrees, usually down into the 40's at night.

Do a search for "Blanca Colorado" on www.flickr.com and you can get a pretty good idea of what it looks like on the valley floor. Green it's not. I happen to like the San Luis Valley, but for most people, it's an acquired taste.

[coolmtn]

ShariaRoberts,

Did the land investment work out? Have you drilled a well and built on your property yet? I am interested because we just purchased property outside of Blanca too and with all the posts about drilling wells and not finding water I'm a little concerned that maybe this was not such a great purchase. Not too worried about the cold, lived in upper New Mexico and I know what a cold winter is all about.

Let me know.

[CrazyBeautifulDisaster]

Hi! Well I am a native of the San Luis Valley and like jazzlover said the San Luis Valley can be a real culture shock! I have lived in Alamosa for 11 years and it is the largest town in the San Luis Valley. There is not much to offer and jobs are hard to find. And I'm talking about Alamosa County...Costilla County is I'm pretty sure the poorest County in Colorado. I hate to make you feel like you made a mistake but if I hadn't lived here all my life, I don't think I would want to relocate here. It is very dry and if you really think about not that pretty out here.

In fact we have been looking to relocate for 2 years and just haven't made a commitment to a certain area.

And of course being from "The Valley" my whole life I can tell you a little about the people. Of course you will be able to find the happy go lucky people like myself or you can find people that are just angry at the world. (Although it may be my experience in the work place because I have always worked in Customer Service - Kmart for 10 years-until it closed, Mental Health for 2yrs & Social Services for 1 yr). I guess maybe with my employment experience I may not be the best person to give you advice about the people because in those fields I may not always deal with the happiest of people.

Anyway, I hope I've helped a little. If you have any other questions feel free to ask & I'll try to help.


And depending on what you do for a living there may be a position open soon at Social Services in Alamosa County

[larslarson]

Originally Posted by coolmtn

ShariaRoberts,

Did the land investment work out? Have you drilled a well and built on your property yet? I am interested because we just purchased property outside of Blanca too and with all the posts about drilling wells and not finding water I'm a little concerned that maybe this was not such a great purchase. Not too worried about the cold, lived in upper New Mexico and I know what a cold winter is all about.

Let me know.

I bought one of those 5 acres and although haven't been up there again to put in my road and septic am not unhappy for having bought it. I grew up in minnesota so know what cold is, just make sure you have your ducks in order (wood or other heating sceduled) before winter and that is ok. Love the sagebush and desolation of the land. It is not necessary to dig a well, many residents have a buried tank and bring in water for a small price. I've been looking into this for a long time now. you can probably get more info on that stuff from costilla county site or colomtland.com which has links to everything.

[Mike from back east]

This photo is from near the Great Sand Dunes Nat Park, near Blanca and Alamosa. This is actually the GOOD looking parts. The sagebrush stuff that land companies sell looks a lot worse, sand and rocks with sagebrush plants dotting the mix, and flat as a pancake as far as the eye can see. I wouldn't have it as a gift, but some people like it just fine, to each his own.

[jpphillips!]

We purchased 40 acres about 6-7 years ago, but have not built anything on the property yet. We will need a water well, and will use some type of solar power- septic, etc. We hope to build some type of log home one day and retire there. Seems like a place you can retire reasonably. Time will tell I guess.

Yes, there is not a lot there, except for beauty, tranquility, and peace. Big city gets us down, but this will definitely be a change. We have visited in Sept and Oct. and the weather is beautiful. I know they have about 4 really cold months. We believe that Elk run through there, but not sure. There seem to be hunters that come on our property.

My husband and I fell in love with the property. We are on a hill in the middle of the Valley, off 12 mile road and road 24, off near the potato farms. We are surounded by the Sangre De Cristo mountain range and face Blanca Peak. There are a lot of beautiful places to visit that are close by.

Any comments are appreciated.

[coolmtn]

Originally Posted by jpphillips!

We purchased 40 acres about 6-7 years ago, but have not built anything on the property yet. We will need a water well, and will use some type of solar power- septic, etc. We hope to build some type of log home one day and retire there. Seems like a place you can retire reasonably. Time will tell I guess.

Yes, there is not a lot there, except for beauty, tranquility, and peace. Big city gets us down, but this will definitely be a change. We have visited in Sept and Oct. and the weather is beautiful. I know they have about 4 really cold months. We believe that Elk run through there, but not sure. There seem to be hunters that come on our property.

My husband and I fell in love with the property. We are on a hill in the middle of the Valley, off 12 mile road and road 24, off near the potato farms. We are surounded by the Sangre De Cristo mountain range and face Blanca Peak. There are a lot of beautiful places to visit that are close by.

Any comments are appreciated.

Hi JPPhillips!

I agree with you completely. We haven't been up that way since last July, but we sure are hoping to make another trip soon. The solar power and log cabin theme was what we were planning too. Hope we both get to make these plans reality. Let me know if you find any good builders etc. I'll keep you informed too.

Good luck to you.

CoolMtn