Santa Cruz Mountains (Lompico, Boulder Creek, Felton, Scotts Valley) (San Jose: renting, crime rates)

[staplegunsarefun]

I lived in the bay area for about 2 years (about 2 years ago), so I'm not totally clueless about commute times, crime rates, areas, etc. But it has been a while, and I was never very familiar with the mountain areas.

I have two large dogs (70 lbs and 85 lbs)- and that seems to make renting fairly impossible. I'm looking at buying something. But honestly, I can't afford much except EPA, Menlo Park - the area east of 101, the nasty areas of Redwood City, a few sketchy houses in Pacifica or out in the mountains (Lompico, Boulder Creek, Felton, Scotts Valley).

Given those options, I'm leaning towards the mountains (and a crazy long commute). On the bright side, I plan to commute via motorcycle which means I can use carpool lanes / lane sharing in traffic - which helps a little. I can also work weird hours to avoid rush traffic (think 6am-3:30pm).

Does anyone have any feedback on living in Boulder Creek, Felton, Lompico or Scotts Valley? Commuting via 17 or 9? Things to avoid? Things to look out for? Anything?

[humboldtrat]

All those towns you mentioned except Scotts Valley are nice small rural towns in the redwoods. Roads from there to Hwy 17 are mostly windy 2 lane roads. And Hwy 17 itself, going north towards San Jose, is a windy mountain road, usually with truck traffic. Commuting on a bike might be "hairy", especially during the winter months when the roads are wet.

Also check out La Honda, west of Redwood City and Woodside, on Hwy 84. It's a small town in the redwoods. Hwy 84 is also a windy mountain road.

Check out Alice's Restaurant at the intersection of Hwy 84 and Hwy 35 near La Honda: Alice's Restaurant. Always a lot of bikes parked outside when I drive by.

[Wisteria]

Hi,

I live in Lompico: Lompico, California - Santa Cruz & Silicon Valley Rural Living - Live Among the Coastal Redwoods, Loch Lomond Lake and Lompico Creek

There are many people who ride bikes out here. Personally, I hate driving, so I'm not someone to give advice about commutes, and I work only a couple miles from my house here...(I know, pretty lucky! ).

I'm not sure where you are trying to get to in the San Jose area, but when I go to the downtown area, I take the Highway 17 Express. There is a Park and Ride in Scotts Valley, and the bus is only $4.00 (one-way, and includes transfers to the rail line or other buses). The bus is also equipped with wi-fi, and is a comfortable Amtrak-type bus (even has cup holders!). It has become very popular to commute that way lately because of the gas crunch. And it's only a 45-minute ride to downtown San Jose and the Diridon Train Station (it's an express).

I can't afford an expensive home in the areas you mentioned, either, and this has turned into a good spot for me for now. I raised my daughter here, and the schools are great. Lompico, being rural and very eclectic, has a lot of animal lovers -- I have a big dog (Akita/Lab mix), and 3 cats. The neighborhood is friendly, we help each other out (we do live in the woods), and I know all my neighbors. We are an odd mixture of people: I work in law enforcement but have a degree in social work and also teach art; another neighbor is a fire fighter; another runs his own septic company; another is a massage therapist, and another a construction worker, one is a university professor and another an ace mechanic. It's an odd assortment of homes and people, but we share a common love of nature and liking our privacy, although we also know the value of knowing each other and helping each other. We do not look remotely like suburbia! It is unique.

It's only a few minutes into downtown Felton where there is the Safeway plaza with a Long's Drugs, a coffee shop, a doughnut shop, a pizzeria and an Italian restaurant. In addition, there is New Leaf, the local health food store, a great Mexican taqueria (and another more formal Mexican restaurant that has great live music on weekends). There are also two Chinese restaurants, shops, and our local post office, where the workers know most of us by name! Lots of bikers seem to hang out at the Trout Farm Inn on E. Zayante Road. The Trout Farm has good meals and a swimming pool for locals. It is right across from the Zayante Firehouse and we locals greatly admire these hard-working fire fighters!

Close by is Quail Hollow Ranch, with horses, and lots of nice hiking trails. Well, actually, there are tons of hiking places nearby -- too many to list. The weather is great in summer (no fog, like at the beach), and nice, warm and sunny. We are a down-to-earth group of people up here in San Lorenzo Valley (which includes Lompico, Felton, Ben Lomond, Brookdale and Boulder Creek).

Houses up here are much more reasonable, and it's only twenty minutes to the beach and downtown Santa Cruz. Actually, you'd be surprised how many people commute to San Jose every day from here for work. I realize you may want the freedom your bike allows, however, if you're on a light rail line to work, or BART or whatever, I'd highly recommend the Highway 17 Express! Santa Cruz Metro - Amtrak Highway 17 Express

Good luck to you! Dogs are welcome where we are!

[staplegunsarefun]

Thanks for the responses! You guys are fantastic

[jetson81]

I'm wondering how a middle school child would get to school in the morning..is there a bus? and where they would go after school if their single parent works and can't pick them up.

[Wisteria]

Yes, there are buses. Just call the school district and you can find out more information.

[Wisteria]

After living in Lompico (Felton) - which I did adore - I moved into Santa Cruz a couple of years ago. I am a retired single woman and my daughter went off to live in Asia, so I could not handle a home by myself anymore up in the redwoods.... Thus, I found a small place in Santa Cruz. At least it is a couple of blocks from the ocean.

However, for children and schools, the SLV School District is the best in the county -- ironically, Santa Cruz Schools are not that good. Being in the mountains seems to be a much better place to raise children. You can easily get to town from there, but the culture and peace of the "Valley" is not at all similar to the City of Santa Cruz.