Thinking about moving to Eugene (Portland, Springfield: 2015, lease, house)

[cxm123130]

I am looking for some information from people who have lived in Eugene before. I am considering moving there next May (as in May 2015). I am currently living in Dallas, TX and I am from NC. I am in my mid-twenties and really miss the outdoor recreation that NC had to offer and I miss the small city atmosphere. Dallas is too big and spread out and flat. I am graduating next May with a chemistry degree.

1. Is it easy to find people in Eugene who love to hike, kayak, bike, climb, etc.?

2. Where are some good areas in the Eugene/Springfield for people my age? Im looking to rent around $900/month.

3. How is the bus system in Eugene?

4. Is the rain really as bad as they say? I like to hike in the rain unless its pouring. I have heard that the rin is mostly light. Is this true?

Thank you for any advice and information.

[bler144]

Originally Posted by cxm123130

1. Is it easy to find people in Eugene who love to hike, kayak, bike, climb, etc.?

2. Where are some good areas in the Eugene/Springfield for people my age? Im looking to rent around $900/month.

3. How is the bus system in Eugene?

4. Is the rain really as bad as they say? I like to hike in the rain unless its pouring. I have heard that the rin is mostly light. Is this true?

1. In my opinion, yes. There's also lots of rec soccer, ultimate frisbee and other team things that are easy to glom onto regardless of skill. Most of the people I played sports with were into the non-team sports you mentioned. But there's a climbing spot in Eugene people go just to hang and socialize, so I presume you'd meet people there too. Kayaking would be the easiest of those solo activities to meet people imo, as there's a fairly organized social network, though I'd have to dig around to recall the name.

2. For a 1BR $900 is a pretty generous budget. I'd say it largely depends on if you want to be in UO student housing territory or not. If you want to be around partying 19-25 year olds, you'd be looking between on the west side of campus (Hilyard to Pearl, 11th to 19th) or on the south side (18th to 28th, Hilyard to Agate). Though there are also some quiet neighborhoods tucked in there. If you wanted less student contact you'd have a range of options. The Whit has a lot happening, though also property crime. Downtown, near west, and much of south Eugene will be attractive, though a lot of that swath is SFH or 2+ BR rather than dedicated solo apts. But you could look for rooms to rent or a roommate as well. But in any case, short of renting a 2BR house solo, your budget is fine.

Though if you don't have a job in hand be aware you'll probably need savings to book a lease, and many jobs in Eugene don't pay all that well because of a ready supply of educated labor who doesn't want to leave. So make sure you've evaluated job prospects, unless you're thinking of doing a grad program with stipend at the UO.

3. Bus system is pretty good. I'd argue it's probably better than Portland's these days. Plus you can bring bikes on almost any bus - the EmX you bring them on-board, and other routes have front racks. Though most of the city is pretty bikeable year round.

4. If you like to hike in the rain, I wager you'll like Eugene's rain. One of my winter rituals was trail walking out near Westfir in the rain. Historically OR rain is on the range between light drizzle and light rain. The total amount of precipitation isn't that high compared to other parts of the U.S., it's more that it's packed in between late Dec and early May most years, with few extended days of sun break. But it tends to be dry between June-Sept. So compared to the east which is brown and the winter and green in the summer, Eugene is incredibly green through the winter/spring, and starts to turn a tad brown in August - like California though less so.

[Hawk J]

There is Northwest Kayak Anglers

several of the folks are members of OFF (Oregonfishingforum).They have a lot of FUN...

Oregon Fishing Forum

Do a search to find kayak fishing threads...

[cxm123130]

Bler144 thank you so much for the advice. Hawk J thank you for those links.

[cxm123130]

So as someone without a car, is Eugene still fairly easy to get around in? Or is it best to have some form of motorized transportation?

[bler144]

Like most places outside NYC, things will be easier if you have one. But a lot of it depends on where you live/work and what you want to do. The first two years I was there I didn't own a car, though I did have occasional access to one via someone I was dating. Of course, those were the days before zipcar.

If you live on the near west or south side and work downtown/VRC/UO you can get to any of those pretty conveniently by bike and/or bus year round. And you can bike/walk/bus for most of your shopping as well.

If you live way up in the south hills you'll be more reliant on the bus (or really developing those legs to pump up the hills) but you could do it. If you lived way out in Barger and were trying to commute by bike/bus to the UO, that would be harder imo b/c I think those routes would all require at least one transfer at the downtown station.

As I said above most of the time the rain really isn't a big deal, but there will be 3-5 days where it's dumping and you're too lazy to put on your whole waterproof set with gaitors. And on that morning, you'll really wish you had a car. Or if you want to take a weekend trip to Ashland or the coast or Bend.

I think in the average year I did live there owning a car (about 5 years total) I averaged about 4-5k a year, but that includes a few CA/Pdx/Bend trips for group activities, not just local driving.

[Steve Pickering]

Eugene is growing their public transportation system. Jobs will be your only downfall if you try to move without one.