Which town would fit my likings?

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by McCallister

Thanks jdavid93225. I have been through grand junction last year on my way out to MOab, UT. I only drove through it though so I did not really see too much of it. Seemed nice though. I'll have to look a litle bit more into CO taxes, costs, etc... I do have to say I am also partial to the desert type scene that I experienced in Moab UT. THat is the downfall, I appreciate all types of areas from the northwoods of my state(WI), to the splendor of the Rockies, to the Zion, arches, Bryce canyon places. Maybe I should just make it a personnal goal to visit all the national parks & be content where I live now??? I guess we'll see once I make a road trip again out that way.

I know what you mean. I love all those areas, too. It was only because of my interest in the beauty of those areas that I traveled there in the first place. I love so many parts of the west that it is difficult to pick just one place that I'd want to live. If I didn't already have property in Wyoming, and have a love for the way things are done there, I could have easily looked to retire in any of the states you mentioned.

If you end up relocating, you might want to look into relocating somewhere toward the middle of the areas you like, then just take a lot of trips to the places you want to see. I think there is just too much to see in the Western U.S. (not to mention the rest of the country) than anyone can see in a lifetime, even if they spend their life on the road. I plan to do my best to see as much of it as I can.

-Joe

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by McCallister

If any of you know much about these states & had to rank these states in order from the best to worst to live, how would you order them & why? Things to take into consideration are a combination of many things like jobs, scenery, urban sprawl(BAD!!!), community, pollution, cost of living, etc... Here is my order based on what I've read so far.

1. Montana
2. Wyoming
3. Utah
4. Idaho
5. Colorado

One other thought that just came to mind would be to think about the size town in which you wish to live. If you're looking for a population of 20,000 or more, that rules out most of Wyoming. I know you mentioned getting a job in the 25-30K/yr. range. I would imagine you could find this income level nearly anywhere, but it might be easier in a larger town. You might also want to think about how close you want to be to a larger town.

My property in Wyoming is outside of Wheatland, which has a population around 3500. About an hour south of there is Cheyenne, with a population around 50,000. Another hour and a half south of there, is Denver with about 200,000. I like that the bigger cities are far enough away that I don't have much impact from them, yet close enough that I can get there easily enough if I want or need to. I just wish I were living out there already!

If you want to be within a few hours of a big city, you could use a large map of the area and a compass to figure out how far out you could get without being too far away.

There were a couple other places that I've visited that I felt were beautiful and might be worth consideration. Kanab, UT, Showlow, AZ, Raton, NM, Trinidad, CO, and Pagosa Springs, CO all come to mind. Each of them is wonderfully scenic, and still not too big, though Showlow is getting that way in my opinion.

Well, this was supposed to just be a short post, but I see it's gotten pretty long, so I'll sign off for now!
-Joe