looking for a quite, rural town in western OR. (Gresham: rentals, homes)

[YellowHorse]

I'm a native born Oregonian and grew up in the rural area near Forest Grove. How I ended up stuck down in So Cal is a long story.

Anyway, my hubby is a truck driver with a company that has an opperating center (OC) out of Troutdale and we have finally saved enough to make our move north. Since I have been away from Oregon for nearly 15 years, I realize many towns that I knew as rural may no longer be so.

We currently live in a small rural town about an hour away from any real shopping and I'm happy to be in such an environment. We are currently just under 2 1/2 hours away from the OC now and since hubby only has to make that commute just 1 or 2 times a month, he's willing to live that far away from the OC in Troutdale.

I have three large (outdoor) dogs and a few horses and would like to find an affordable rental in a rural town for them. I homeschool my kids, so schools are not an issue. We are very much outdoors people, we like trail riding, hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, etc.

Other than staying away from the Gorge (I have an issue with the wind), I would like some suggestions of nice, rural communities/towns within approx. 2 to 2 1/2 hours drive to Troutdale.

Thanks

[Silverfall]

What is small and what do you consider affordable?

[YellowHorse]

Well, if I can keep horses, we can go up to $1000/mo.

Small is less than 6,000, though I don't mind larger towns, I just prefer small towns because they tend to be less expensive for rent.

I'm going to be making a trip up there in July, and will be scouting out the different areas, I was just hoping to narrow it down some before heading up.

[Silverfall]

How many horses? I think the rule is an acre per large horse (non-ponies).

[YellowHorse]

I have two full sized horses and one miniature horse.

I have my own portable corrals so places that are zoned for horses, but have no facilities are no problem for me.

[StealthRabbit]

I'd start the hunt in Boring-Damascus Area, and for lower rent head toward Estacada, or Sandy.

These will be colder areas (near Mt Hood), but are decent communities and within 20-30 min to Troutdale, and very horse friendly and near national forest for better riding.

Depending on age of kids, I would consider staying close to a college (Gresham / troutdale / Oregon City) We homeschooled, but kids went to college in 11 and 12th grade to give them a 2 yr headstart. (paid for in Wa State, similar program exists in OR)

[YellowHorse]

Great! Thanks StealthRabbit

[StealthRabbit]

You might want to also check into Brush Prairie / Meadow Glade / Glenwood areas north of Vancouver, WA. (20 min to Troutdale) If your husband drives OTR for Swift (Troutdale) or similar, you might enjoy the income tax free benefit of WA for the miles he logs outside of OR. (If an OR resident you will pay OR income tax (7-9%) on ALL income earned.

Do you have any particular leanings on your family value set? (Conservative / liberal / religious / sustainability, ecology ...) or any recreational needs (Competitive sports / swimming / gymnastics / drama / orchestra ...)? We can help direct you to a region that would save you some time and social hassle. The interesting thing to me was the lack of swimming pools (indoor) in the PNW. Some areas are well served (Washington county) but most areas are not. I have to drive 30 miles to a pool, that would not be good if kids were competitive swimmers. (Mt Hood college in Gresham has good pool). Certain soccer and baseball areas are not desirable. Some areas are much stronger in 4-H (should be a pre-req for US presidents )

[YellowHorse]

Thanks for the tips StealthRabbit. Hubby works for Schneider which is also based out of Troutdale, and yes, he is OTR.
Actually, we were also looking into Goldendale, but it seems there isn't many rentals (if any). My uncle used to have a place out there and I used to love to visit that area. Thanks for the leads on the other WA towns, I'm not familure enough with Washington to even know where to start looking for horse friendly areas.

We tend to be more on the conservative side in our values, but are very self sustainability minded and very interested in organic/environmentally friendly farming. We are all very outdoor types, never to be found strolling malls or outlet centers, lol. We are very big on fishing, camping, hiking, horseback riding/trail riding, just to name a few.

LOL, I never swam in swimming pools until I moved down to California. We would just go to the river
I have always found it funny that Californians always say the swimming pools are cold, while I grew up swimming in the icy rivers of Oregon . I never think the swimming pools are cold enough, lol.

[StealthRabbit]

Areas east of the Cascades will propably appeal to your values and be a nice place for you to move. The folks have good community support and friendly events like community potlucks, breakfasts, and 4H. (do consider the weather issues... as you requested 'western OR' which is usually considered west of cascades and equals ~200+ days of rain (within 2 hrs to Troutdale region). Rainfall drops dramatically from Hood River (45 min east of Troutdale) east. For horse 'foot health', and not having to ride in the rain, I would look to the easterly direction (Which would be 'North Central' OR... or South Central WA (But we can't mention WA in OR forum tho it is 5 minutes away and many of us cross the river several times / day. WA forum allows cross border comparisons ))

You might look to Dufur, Tygh Valley, area of OR if you prefer the drier climate, lower rent and still 2 hours to Troutdale.

Goldendale will have plenty of rentals, and probably the least expensive (Or neighboring towns such as Bickleton).

You will want to stay back off the river several miles, as the boardheads drive the rental prices up. There is also some rental pressure from wind projects under construction.

There will be some wind in these regions (hence the wind turbines...) but not the 80 mph stuff we get along the river. It is also not like living in WY, but similar to any other 'prairie town', a sustained breeze is about as common as sustained rain in western OR.