Rainy, snowy mill towns in the NW

[Silverfall]

Since snow seems to be your main criteria, you can look up snow levels with the OCS. If you click on a city on the map, and then go to station meta data you can see average snow depth. You can see it month by month.

[Fiddlehead]

Oakridge, OR

Butte Falls, OR

McKenzie Bridge, OR

Not sure all are mill towns, but logging is around and each gets 10" to 30" of snow, with tons more nearby.

[nwexpat]

Thanks to everyone for the input! Thanks to hamellr for the intel on Parkdale, and to the multiple people who suggested Butte Falls. Special thanks to Silverfall for the awesome website - that's exactly what I've been looking for, and it's much appreciated. Also thanks to ronnieds for suggesting Colville, which looks incredible, and has much cheaper property to boot!

Based on your guys' input and Silverfall's climate website, I've decided to mainly focus around Detroit, Government Camp, Rhododendron, and Butte Falls in Oregon, and Sedro-Wooley, Concrete, Skykomish, and Colville in Washington.

Thanks to everyone for the help!

[DannyBoy3546]

Ever check out Spokane, WA or Coeur d'alene, ID area? it gets a lot of snow and percipitation and lots of trees and have good history and acreage you can buy pretty easily, check it out. (I know this forum's a little older)

[Nell Plotts]

The area around Coeur D'alene has attracted California retrees, I doubt that acreage is a cheap as it once was.

I don't think Spokane or Coeur D'alene have much precip except for snow in the winter.

[pug4impatience]

My dad lives in Mill City, Oregon. Its beautiful there. 45 minutes from major city (Salem, Or). 20 minutes from basic shopping- Stayton. There is still logging in the area. There is a lumber yard just down the road from his house and the logging trucks pull through town all day long. Its green year around. Lots and lots of trees. Seasonal snow but never so much that its impossible to navigate. Around 1000 feet in elevation means when there is valley rains you might get a couple of inches of snow. I lived in Salem off and on for nearly 10 years and used to spend weekends up at my fathers during the summer to beat the heat. It was always about 10 or 15 degrees cooler with a nice breeze at his place. The view off his back patio was lush green trees. The river is right there too which has a nice walking trail.

[rainforest338]

I hope my place isn't taken as being too out there......Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. Actually, any part of Southeast AK. Cold, but not bone chilling cold...gray, rainy a lot, get some snow, logging--not tree farm but old growth in forests, logging camps where it is normal for suspenders--tin--corks, boats, fishing, hunting, some milling but most logs are rafted off by barge.

[Metlakatla]

Yeah, and in certain places on the island, you can look in any direction and see a clearcut.

The people in suspenders and corks are all Outsiders who are only there to take what they can and leave.