Ashland, WI info??? (Wausau, Superior, Minocqua: upper-class, real estate, coop)

[Gottahavelakesandtrees]

I am trying to find information on Ashland for a possible relocation. What is the community like? How are the schools? Is it a good place to raise a family? Are there a lot of outdoor (recreation, hunting, fishing) opportunities? How is real estate? Is acreage fairly reasonable?

We are a professional liberal family who love cold, snow, and easy access to getting away from it all.

Any and all insights would be appreciated. Thanks.

[happy777]

I worked in the area (outside) in about a 75 mile radius of ashland for last 3 years. COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! people OK, summer by great lake is very nice. schools I dont know never heard anything bad. They have small colleage. Indian reservation/Casino small one about 12 miles away. Not much to do in winter snowmobiling in north is the best. fishing good in summer. They have tv's Ha HA. High cost of living in wisconsin, high Taxes. cold BUGS!!!!!!!!!! are downers

[aussiegal]

Originally Posted by happy777

High cost of living in wisconsin, high Taxes. cold BUGS!!!!!!!!!! are downers

happy777: I'm glad that you don't live in Washington state or California when you talk about the high cost of living in Wisconsin. You wouldn't survive here. WI is probably one of the cheapest states I've lived in. But I guess it's all relative.

As for Ashland, we lived about 60 miles south and went there for picnics, shopping and the Gospel Jamboree each year. Since it's right on Lake Superior it does get very cold - but so does anywhere in the Northwoods. Maybe not as much snow as the U.P. (Upper Peninsula of Michigan) but lots of snow nonetheless.

But since you're into hunting and fishing, snowmobiling comes next. Ice-fishing is also very popular in Wisconsin - you guys will love it. And as for acreage, I just did a quick search and found that someone had 5 acres outside Ashland (there were several parcels) for $30K. Who said Wisconsin is an expensive place to live? In western Washington you'd have to pay close to $200K for something similar.

Another good thing about Ashland from my perspective was it's relatively close proximity to Bayfield which is a gorgeous touristy town northwest of Ashland. Very cute shops.

Can't speak for the schools. Our town had an amazing school district though with some really great teachers. Our son graduated from High School there, went to a private university in Texas and graduated with a degree in aeronautical science. Not bad for the Northwoods. His 5 closest friends from high school also went on to university and excelled. One can only hope that Ashland comes close.

I truly think that before you commit to a move to Ashland that you need to visit and see it for yourself. We liked it as a place to get away but we didn't live there and probably wouldn't want to move there (although I know some people who did move there from our town - but actually lived in Mason). But that's us and not you. All the best with your decision making.

[Gottahavelakesandtrees]

Doesn't sound too bad! What is the town 60 miles south? What is the area like around Ashland- farm land or woods?

[Drover]

Originally Posted by Gottahavelakesandtrees

Doesn't sound too bad! What is the town 60 miles south? What is the area like around Ashland- farm land or woods?

More trees than farmland. Growing season is a little too short up there. In fact there's a huge national forest just south of Ashland called Chequamegon (pronounced "sheh-WAW-meh-gon"). If you need trees, Ashland is a good area to find them.

[aussiegal]

Originally Posted by Gottahavelakesandtrees

Doesn't sound too bad! What is the town 60 miles south? What is the area like around Ashland- farm land or woods?

The town we lived in is called Phillips. It's the kind of town that you pass through but few live there. However we did - for 7 years. Only problem was that there were no large stores in town so we had to drive elsewhere for shopping which was great. I loved it.

To me, farmland and acreage are different things. Farmland means completely cleared of trees or close to - acreage can include trees. There is some farmland around Ashland but as another poster stated it is very wooded. As is the Northwoods in general. However, all the original forest growth was logged many years ago (and logging still is major in that area) - it's all secondary growth now. Not quite sure where all the logs come from that are piled high on trains that head south through Phillips. Lots of trains and lots of logs. So there is some farmland around the Ashland area, but not nearly as much as around Phillips and south of Medford, for example.

I remember travelling many years ago, before we moved to Wisconsin, through Ashland to Duluth and onwards from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and thinking to myself how much that part of the world resembled living in a lettuce!!

But you can get acreage pretty much anywhere in the Northwoods and there are tons of lakes. We loved a pretty little town called Minocqua which also has shopping although not as much as Wausau our next biggest shopping area. There are many lakes around Phillips too - in fact, all that area is pretty much like Minnesota as far as lakes are concerned. Lots of them around.

Definitely a visit is in order.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by aussiegal

Not quite sure where all the logs come from that are piled high on trains that head south through Phillips. . .

Tree farms is my guess.

[aussiegal]

Originally Posted by Drover

Tree farms is my guess.

Gosh, I never thought of that. You're probably right. We had quite a few tree farms between where we lived and town.

[Norsky1]

I have a lot of family in Ashland. I visit there frequently and lived there when I was in grade school. If you like the Great Lakes, Lake Superior is right there for you!

All I can say is that there is not very many jobs around there from what i have heard lately.

[crazyme4878]

I lived in Ashland for 2.5 years and loved it. I went to the college there, but I grew up a couple hours south and we would take vacations in that area growing up as well.

Property is cheap. No other word for it. However, many of the houses are older and might need some updating, especially with insulation.

Because of the college, it is an extremely liberal town. Well, actually it is a mix. The original towns people are blue-collared democrats, and the college brings in liberal democrats.

There is a wonderful brewery, an awesome bakery, and a great coffee shop. The coop is a nice size for the size of the town, as well. The college brings in a lot of lecturers, and they always include an "open to the public" lecture each time.

My son went to preschool at Lady of the Lake. From our experience and from what I saw every day picking him up--it seems like a great school. The kids were all extremely polite and nice and the teachers I interracted with were as well. However, I don't know the test scores and such, but you can easily look those up.

One of my former high school teachers became the principal of the public high school about seven years ago. He was a very good teacher and a good person, although I can give you no detail on his principal qualities. Overall, I have never heard anything bad about Ashland schools (besides that they beat us in basketball in high school, hence ending our team's championship run).

There is also a wonderful Waldorf school in the Penokees, appx. 15-20 miles away from Ashland. I only hear wonderful things about this school.

There are TONS of outdoor activities to do--both motorized and unmotorized. However, you do have to drive 1/2-1 hour for a lot of it. But really, there is too much to list (however, if you want me to give a try, I will) I don't recommend swimming on the Ashland side of the bay, but the beaches NE of Washburn are awesome! Bayfield is an upper-class tourist town, but it is fun to walk around, the orchards are great as well.

There are several people in the area that have built strawbale houses, and more that are interested in it, so if that is your thing, you should have no problem in recruiting people for your work parties. Tons of people garden, so don't listen to the naysayers on that subject.

The downsides are the older homes, the slight riff in the community between college and towns people, and the blizzards you sometimes get (the last time I lived there there were two blizzards at the end of winter and I was housebound for a day or so--but I lived right on Lake Superior, on a little-used city side street). There is also contamination of part of the bay front. The drinking water is ok, as is the artisian wells west of town. And trust me--if there was ever a vigilante town on tracking contamination--it's Ashland.

Are you thinking of a position with the college?