Eugene air is bad... now what?? (Portland, Salem: smog, house, air quality)

[ArtMom]

I am so depressed.

We had pretty much narrowed our plans to Eugene to buy 5 plus acres for our forever house.

Now, I see that Eugene has bad air

Honestly, Im getting a little stressed. We have 3 kids and we have horses and I dont know where to go.

Too much rain isnt good for horses.
Need space and fresh air for the kids to run and catch frogs and grow.
Need to get away from ALL THESE PEOPLE!

How far would we have to go from Eugene to get out of the trapped valley bad air?

Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.

[norm]

According to this web site there has only been one day in the last month that Eugene's air quality wasn't good.

Air Quality : AQI - Last 31 Days - Lane Regional Air Protection Agency

[ArtMom]

Norm, Thanks for that very much. Im going to read it right now!

[Baja Boomer]

Originally Posted by ArtMom

Too much rain isnt good for horses.
Need space and fresh air for the kids to run and catch frogs and grow.
Need to get away from ALL THESE PEOPLE!

How far would we have to go from Eugene to get out of the trapped valley bad air?

Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.

If you're set on Oregon, have you looked at central Oregon? Bend, Redmond, Prineville? Lots of room for kids and horses, dramatic but beautiful scenery, lakes and rivers, no more than a 3-hour drive from Portland, Salem, Corvallis and Eugene (only about 90 miles from Eugene, I think?). Some snow in the winter, but less rain than Eugene, lots of sunny days. Skiing not far away, and the delightful village of Sisters nearby for weekend exploration.

Bend has a nice little park for picnicking and playing alongside the Deschutes River, which flows through town. Population about 78,000. It's a nice small city, suffering some growing pains but dealing with it.

Just a thought.

[orygun]

Originally Posted by ArtMom

I am so depressed.

We had pretty much narrowed our plans to Eugene to buy 5 plus acres for our forever house.

Now, I see that Eugene has bad air

Honestly, Im getting a little stressed. We have 3 kids and we have horses and I dont know where to go.

Too much rain isnt good for horses.
Need space and fresh air for the kids to run and catch frogs and grow.
Need to get away from ALL THESE PEOPLE!

How far would we have to go from Eugene to get out of the trapped valley bad air?

Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.

One year Eugene got a bad rap on air because of nearby Oakridge's inversions ,because they are both in Lane County. The air does get smoggy and if you want to escape head to Cottage Grove or Creswell. When we lived in Cottage Grove we could see the pollution sitting on Eugene when we drove north on I-5.

We took our horses and kids to Montana where it is DRY. But now our horses have hooves as hard as rocks. After so many years in damp Western Oregon I never knew that was a concern.

Patti