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Geography kind of prevents modern cities from being built within a mountain range. Many cities are built at higher elevations and surrounded by taller peaks which for this conversation should qualify.
That sounds about right.
Quote:
Originally Posted by AnythingOutdoors
TThere just aren't many +25k mountain cities that aren't in valleys. Flagstaff is about the only one I can come up with, and maybe Bend (though lots of wildfire smoke in recent years).
Yeah, Flagstaff is the best example of what I'm looking for that I have found. Not sure there really is anything else.
I may consider a smaller town, but it couldn't be too small and it would need all the basic amenities as well as apartment options.
Places like Denver is next to mountains but is also next to plain on 3 other side. Does have high elevation, though.
A few WV cities like Clarksburg or Morgantown are in uplands - but doesn't exactly have prominent mountains next to it. Perhaps more "hilly" than "mountainous". Pittsburgh is similar in that regards - actually probably more elevation changes within Pittsburgh than, let say, Denver.
Otherwise, Asheville NC is the one that definitely comes to mine being "mountainous" / "in the mountain". Roanoke VA also. Cumberland MD is a bit too small but definitely "mountainous" (although it's depressing also).
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hawaii900
Yeah, Flagstaff is the best example of what I'm looking for that I have found. Not sure there really is anything else.
I may consider a smaller town, but it couldn't be too small and it would need all the basic amenities as well as apartment options.
I'd say Flagstaff qualifies as it is quite an ascent and big climb coming up I-17 from Phoenix through the mountains, up the mountain, with grand the peaks back dropping the city when you arrive. It does have the feel of an overgrown mountain town with a charming but small pioneer feeling downtown. The railroad is very prominent through the middle of town and the NAU campus is across the tracks.
The rest of the city is mostly suburban and a bit commercial then it fades into rural areas fairly fast. I don't see myself living in Southwest again, but I could live in Flagstaff. Its surroundings (alpine peaks, Sedona, Grand Canyon, Ponderosa pine forests) are quite magnificent.
Some non-traditional thoughts: You could look at big city adjacent: Someplace like Manito Springs, CO adjacent to Colorado Springs. Even the western bit of CO Springs (west of the freeway) grows up and round the slopes of Cheyenne Mt and Pikes Peak, and others. In the Denver area, maybe Estes Park as an example of a small tourist town that's not too far out.
You could look at West Linn/Wilsonville OR with Peat's Mountain between the two and lots of expensive housing on the slopes all around. Both towns start at the river level and climb significantly to their eventual high points, with ridges, bluffs, benches and canyons spread throughout. McMinnville, OR, a city of 35K, is another choice in the Coast Range mountains. They aren't high snow capped peaks, but heavily forested peaks with housing going close to the tops.
Even Flagstaff, AZ is mostly on level ground with the mountains adjacent, and suburbs/housing lots built up the slopes. Bend, OR has a very similar look.
Cumberland MD is a bit too small but definitely "mountainous" (although it's depressing also).
I'm actually rather fond of Cumberland, myself.
It's surrounded by mountains, but I'm not sure it would count by the OP's standards, because it sits in a valley. Its elevation is just 627 feet above sea level. Frostburg, just 8 miles to the west, sits at 2,070 feet. I-68 heading west from Cumberland, and even more so after La Vale, is a long, uphill slog. (Heading east, it's a steep but shorter upgrade before transitioning to a more roller-coaster experience through the mountains.)
Missoula
Rapid city
Bozeman
Spokane
Bend
Reno
NWA
El Paso
Santa Fe
Tucson
Flagstaff
Parts of Denver
SLC
Asheville
Roanoke
Charlottesville
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