My two cents as a newbie (relocating and purchasing a home)

[KnightStar05]

It’s been over three years since my last post so I guess it deserves a good update!

That first winter 2016/2017 was miserably long. It went from Winter to Summer pretty much within a few weeks because the snow/cold dragged on until April. Then there’s the other-other season - Smoke season. We’ve had them every summer but last summer was much milder than anticipated since it only lasted about a week. Compared to the whole month of August the previous two years where we lingered in the Orange/red/burgundy smoke zone.
The seasons are beautiful here, especially during the fall. All the pretty orange/reds on the trees. It definitely feels like the fall because the cool sets in, the changes in color, the apples ripe for the picking at local orchards. I don’t think I’ve eaten so many apples in my life, but hey they’re Washington Apples.
Springs are beautiful with so much greenary coming back to life. The tulips are the first to show on the lawns. It welcomes in Easter. It’s warm enough that you can play outside midday in a t-shirt, but carry a sweater along because it will get chilly.
Summers are mild, not very humid. A dry heat. There’s a chill in the morning that quickly burns up when the sun comes poking overhead. It usually feels like summer in between June and beginning September.
Winter winter winter. Bring your winter tires. No, not all season - that’s not enough. A dedicated pair of good glue-you-to-the-ground snow tires. You don’t want to venture up any hills without them and there are plenty of those around here. And those of us who are prepared, watch the ones who weren’t slide down the hill. Fools!
The winter was much shorter this year compared to years before. I definitely sense the global warming as the -elders~ always like to remind us of yesteryears. So the snow comes, it melts, it comes again, it melts again all throughout October through February. And this week we’ll be hitting the 50’s which is a record high for this time of year.

Water! We needs it. Like Gollum needs his precious. The aquifers here regenerate 50 times the national average so there will be no shortage or fears of droughts in this lifetime (hopefully).

Schools- we’ved opted out of public schooling so I can’t say too much without going on and on and on.... But if I must - WALDORF!

Community- People here are much friendlier and willing to have a conversation than other cities I’ve lived in. I always think-“ wouldn’t it be to live in ______?” And then remind myself of what Spokane has to offer and friendly people is one of them. Its a big enough city to feel anonymous but at the same time cross the same people in different settings.
Foodies- restaurants and breweries are popping up everywhere. With so many people from Seattle, CA and Portland, it’s really boomed in the service industries. Lots of fusion restaurants. My top five restaurants would be Wild Sage, Clover, Dirkins, Cochintos, and Italia Tratoriia.

The outdoors! There’s so much to do. Riverside state park. Beakon Hill. Fish Lake. Liberty Lake. You have several options within 25 minutes of downtown. It’s amazing. And there’s also ski resorts Mt. Spokane, Shweitzer, Silver Mountain, 49 North within a two hour drive in all directions from the city. You can also plan an extensive trip into Glacier National Park in Montana, which is about 4.5 hours away. Trail of the Hiawatha in Idaho is also amazing.

With all the amazing things this town has to offer, we are definitely setting roots here. My other half had the opportunity to relocate to Seattle with a major pay raise but we decided the quality of life would be lower. Because money isn’t everything and the time you spend with your family is more valuable. So much so that I’ve finally convinced my parents to relocate here in two years. They love the area and are moving into our neighborhood - Eagle Ridge.

Good luck to all of you in your journeys and I hope that my personal experience living here helps you.

[mistyriver]

We have studded snow tires for our cars. They really were essential in northern Idaho where we lived off grid.
But we live on the South Hill now and we haven’t put the snow tires on since we moved here four years ago. They’re hanging in racks in the garage.
All seasons on all wheel drive vehicles and we’ve had no problems.
If you’re coming from a non snowy place though, I’d recommend snow tires.


Are you talking about Windsong? My grandson did preschool there. A little too not worried about food allergies and anti-vaxxery for us. There was that negligence lawsuit too...

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/20...ging-bullying/