Tell me where to go! (in Wa.) (Seattle, Tacoma: homes, living)

[ABC_i'M_Gone]

Looking to retire in Wa. in the next few years. Planing on visiting next summer and following winter to check out weather conditions. We are looking at western Wa.
1. Near water (fresh or salt).
2. +/- 2 hrs to major medical area (son with special needs)
3. Rural are with acreage
4. No major weather areas.
would like to visit 4 or 5 areas (3-4 days each) to see what they offer. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[WASailorGirl]

Originally Posted by ABC_i'M_Gone

Looking to retire in Wa. in the next few years. Planing on visiting next summer and following winter to check out weather conditions. We are looking at western Wa.
1. Near water (fresh or salt).
2. +/- 2 hrs to major medical area (son with special needs)
3. Rural are with acreage
4. No major weather areas.
would like to visit 4 or 5 areas (3-4 days each) to see what they offer. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I would recommend:

1) Sequim
2) Port Townsend
3) Chimacum
4) Gig Harbor

(West Puget Sound for the most part, is more affordable than on the Seattle side of the Sound.)

All of these areas, with the exception of Gig Harbor, are on the Olympic Peninsula north of the Hood Canal Bridge. Sequim and the Port Townsend/Chimacum area are in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains and receive much less rain than the Seattle area.

Port Townsend is about a one hour drive and a half hour ferry ride to downtown Seattle. So, you could be in Seattle in about an hour and a half, give a few minutes wait time for the ferry. You can also drive around through Tacoma and be at the airport in about an hour and 45 minutes.

Sequim is growing and has a lot of the big box stores ie: Home Depot, Walmart, Costco etc. It's very beautiful tucked up next to the mountains and in some areas you can get a nice water view.

Port Townsend (where I live), is a smaller historic artsy community that is surrounded by water on three sides. It feels like you're on an island. The paper mill, and the boating industry (wooden boat building, boat repair etc), are major employers. Tourism is also alive and well especially in the summer. There are a dozen or so of historic B & B's.

To get acreage you would just need to go slightly outside of town. Chimacum is about 15 minutes away from P.T. Also, the Cape George and Discovery Bay areas are nice.

Gig Harbor is just north of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge and is also a great area near the water. It has a nice historic downtown on the waterfront and an area of newer stores (Target, Costco, Home Depot etc) all nestled in beautiful tall green trees. It is very spread out so you can definately find acreage there. It does get more rain than up North though.

Hope that helps!

[ABC_i'M_Gone]

Thanks SailorGirl, We went thru that area last summer,but didn't stop. We will definitly spend time in that area when we come back. Thanks for your help. Are you familiar with the Elma/Montesano area?

[bmsea]

Elma/Montesano/Hoquiam/Aberdeen/Ocosta/Grayland are all worth a look. These are the cities in Grays Harbor that I would recommend for anyone looking for affordable waterfront/affordable acreage. None of these places are more than an hour/hour and a half from Olympia, or 2-1/2 hours from pill hill in Seattle. Olympia has 2 good hospitals (I gave birth at St Pete's and can attest to their good service) and Grays Harbor Community Hospital has good, albeit limited, facilities. If you want to be near the ocean, Ocosta and Grayland are your best bets. If you want to be near the bay - Ocosta has some of the most beautiful waterfront. Aberdeen has Home Depot, Walmart, Safeway, Top Foods, Sears; but for Costco/Target/major mall you have to drive to Olympia.

But if you compare prices between Grays Harbor and places like Port Townsend and Sequim, you will find that the price of land and homes is way more affordable in Grays Harbor County. I believe that we will catch up in the next 3 - 5 years as commerce grows out here.

Good luck!

[StealthRabbit]

you should draw a circle from Portland and check out SW WA

Woodland/Kalama and east
and Washougal to White Salmon in the Columbia Gorge. More wind, but usually less rain; but depends on elevation . location.

There are some major advantages to be close to Portland (great EZ airport, and not the freeway parking lots so popular in SEA)

The OR beaches are nice and interesting weather. Great skiing is really close. and plenty of water in the Columbia River for most activities.

+ a few minutes to great salmon fishing in local rivers.

I found it a pain to be 'on-the-peninsula' (WA) for traffic and services if you need more than the average. Not sure if the new Narrows bridge has improved that. With energy costs and the value of time it just takes too long to get things done if you had to frequent the east side of the sound. (but this is all relative to your own expectations) I live in the boonies, but can be into Portland in 25 min., and if I plan my trips off hours I can get out that fast too

[mustang34]

You could try the Tri-Cities. Located in Southeast Wa. Fairly large area. There are 3 hospitals and if you can't find what you need here, we are about 2 hrs. from spokane, the Columbia River flows right down the center of the cities, lots of land outside of the cities and weather is pretty mild and the most severe weather event is the occasional strong windstorm. We do get some snow and it can get above 100 F in the summer, but this is occasional, not constant.

[xboxmas]

Originally Posted by mustang34

You could try the Tri-Cities. Located in Southeast Wa. Fairly large area. There are 3 hospitals and if you can't find what you need here, we are about 2 hrs. from spokane, the Columbia River flows right down the center of the cities, lots of land outside of the cities and weather is pretty mild and the most severe weather event is the occasional strong windstorm. We do get some snow and it can get above 100 F in the summer, but this is occasional, not constant.

I believe he said western washington

[mustang34]

Originally Posted by xboxmas

I believe he said western washington

Oh yeah, oops, thanks.
I need to read more carefully!

[Sandy Nelson]

When you come to scout, make the Olympia area one of your stops. Olympia is a little more than an hour's drive from Seattle, and two hours to Portland. It is located on the southern tip of Puget Sound and has great views of the Olympic mountain range, as well as of Mt. Rainier. Olympia would make a great retirement location, as it offers the low-stress living of a small town, two hospitals, and lots of recreational opportunities as well as cultural events.
If you visit, be sure to see the capitol campus, the farmer's market and the waterfront boardwalk.

Sandy