Possibly Moving to Wyoming (Cheyenne, Laramie: rentals, homes, theatres) - (WY) - City-Data Forum

Kenneth Ogorek · 12-19-2009, 03:44 PM

I currently live in the Greater Seattle area and I'm looking at a job in Wamsutter,Wy.. I have a wife and 2 boys (ages 7-10)my question is should we look at Rock Spring or Rawlins for a place to live. Pros and cons please thank you

WyoNewk · 12-19-2009, 04:05 PM

Outsider here, never lived in either town. But I've spent a little time in both, and I'd pick Rock Springs over Rawlins if the distance isn't a problem, mainly because of its larger size and more services. Coming from Seattle, Rock Springs will be enough of a shock for you and your family. You'll probably also want to travel to a city now and then, and Salt Lake would be the natural choice, so you'd be that much closer to it in RS. And to be honest, I've never been too impressed with Rawlins.

gaduchman · 12-19-2009, 08:29 PM

Rawlins is a tough town, you'd be better off in Rock Springs.

jazzlover · 12-20-2009, 01:16 PM

Neither one of them is exactly a "family"-type town. They are both boom-bust towns in the energy patch. I've met some very nice folks from both when I lived in Wyoming, but even they admit that their towns are not the "ideal" community. Lots of transience, along with the social problems that go along with that. Neither town has a particularly pleasant climate, either, though Rawlins tends to be colder and windier than Rock Springs. I've been through Rawlins a LOT of times, and I never have been there when the wind wasn't blowing. Rock Springs is a little better in that regard, but not much. As for Wamsutter, just some man-camps, a bar or two, and some gas stations. Hot, windy, and dusty in summer; cold, windy, and dusty (or blizzarding) in winter. People either like it or hate it, the latter more common among non-Rocky Mountain region natives.

rmmoore · 12-29-2009, 02:19 AM

You're in for a real treat

I'm curious though, how in the world does someone in the greater Seattle area find and consider taking a job in Wamsutter, WY? I'm not being snide or obnoxious, I am genuinely interested, almost to the point of shock. Those two places are WORLDS, if not a UNIVERSE apart. Have you actually BEEN there yet?

Of the two choices you propose, take Rock Springs. Culture shock is putting it mildy, with lots of sedatives. Life as you know it is about to change, if not STOP. Please note that I said "life as YOU know it". If you can adapt to the SERIOUS change, you'll find life to be simpler, more relaxed, and although harder, much more fulfilling and meaningful. Take advantage of being close to nature, Wyoming is an outdoor enthusiasts paradise, if you LOOK for it.

Good luck, keep us posted on how things turn out for you and your family. We moved here for the sole purpose of a BETTER place to raise our children, and have NO regrets, zero, zilch, notta. You couldn't pry me out of here now. But, that's just me. Again, good luck. We lived in Rock Springs/Green River before moving to Cheyenne, and I spend a lot of time in/around Rawlins for my job, so I know a bit about both of them.

lazydazy · 12-29-2009, 08:44 PM

WOW! That's going to be quite the adjustment. For sure go Rock Springs over Rawlins no question about it. Good luck w/your move.

Kele · 12-30-2009, 11:03 AM

I suggest you look at Laramie for work.

There are a number of elementary schools, a junior high, and a high school. My son attended Spring Creek Elementary, which provided him with an excellent education. He scored in the top two percentile in the nation on standardized testing during his last year there. He is currently his first year at the junior high and is a 4.0 student.

I live in what is known as the Tree District, two blocks from Spring Creek, seven from the University. Homes here are reasonable (mine will be on the market come spring after I finish my last semester at the University) and the area is lovely. If you choose to rent, there are rentals available as well.

Although the weather can be dicey, getting stuck in Laramie is no real pain because there are plenty of amenities in this town thanks to the University.

You'll also find that having the University in town opens the door to a variety of activities including plays, orchestral offerings, and some star powered acts coming to town (we hosted Elton John last year at the University) plus there are two movie theatres, one of which gets all of the current showings. We also have some pretty decent restaurants along with all of the prerequisite fast food.

I've been to both Rawlins and Rock Springs. No offense to either town, but I'd rather not raise my son in either one of them. The stories of the drug use in both are rampant here in Wyoming.

Just a little FYI from one parent to another....

sunsprit · 12-30-2009, 04:56 PM

I'd advise you to come on out to the Wamsutter area, as well as visit Rock Springs for a week or two ... before even getting too serious about job negotiations/income, etc. You may also want to visit with a local realtor and see what your housing options are at your price point/income.

With several relatives in the Belleview and Clyde Hill Area, I'm pretty familiar with the Seattle area from my visits to them. I've bicycled just about the whole area all the way down to Renton and around the lakes and along the sound past Ballard Locks, gone antiquing in the area and North of Seattle, sailed the sound and raced out of SYC, as well as out of RCYC in Portland on the Columbia. I've fished many salmon seasons and crabbed there, too.

To say that you'd be moving to a whole different paradigm of life in RS Wyoming ... pace, recreation, entertainment, amenities, housing, attitudes/social network/society, restaurants, shopping ... is an incredible understatement.

People out here in Wyoming are more concerned about who you are than what you have, which is a very striking difference ....

Climate is another issue entirely, especially in the winter months which can easily be 6 months of the year ... and we're not even talking yet about the winds in the area. You will not have the forests, green vegetation, dense undergrowth rain forested hillsides with lots of lakes here around Rock Springs. You'll be in a high altitude desert area, and it's rather stark in the landscape here. Riding a bicycle in the Seattle metro area is a pleasure (except in a rainstorm) ... it isn't in this Wyoming area. You won't have the Seattle humidity and overcast days, either.

Schools, OTOH, are currently well-funded in Wyoming, and the center for a lot of family and community activity.

mortisha · 12-31-2009, 02:16 PM

I have to disagree about riding a bicycle in Wyo. - we have great bicycling around here (Torrington area). We a plethora of highways where you can ride for 2 hours and only meet one vehicle. We were biking through the first part of Nov. My intrepid husband went out 2 days ago because he couldn't resist the sunny day and dry roads.

We learn in the summer that you get your cycling done before 10 am because that is when breezes will come up (if they do) and it is cooler. On the other hand there are evenings that are so beautiful that you can't wait to get on your bike.

If you want mountain biking we have lots of trails in Guernsey Park and Laramie Peak. You can drive a few hours and get to totally different roads to try and little towns to explore. We have done a lot of traveling and often remark that if nothing else, where we live is one of the best places to bicycle.

sunsprit · 12-31-2009, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mortisha

I have to disagree about riding a bicycle in Wyo. - we have great bicycling around here (Torrington area). We a plethora of highways where you can ride for 2 hours and only meet one vehicle. We were biking through the first part of Nov. My intrepid husband went out 2 days ago because he couldn't resist the sunny day and dry roads.

We learn in the summer that you get your cycling done before 10 am because that is when breezes will come up (if they do) and it is cooler. On the other hand there are evenings that are so beautiful that you can't wait to get on your bike.

If you want mountain biking we have lots of trails in Guernsey Park and Laramie Peak. You can drive a few hours and get to totally different roads to try and little towns to explore. We have done a lot of traveling and often remark that if nothing else, where we live is one of the best places to bicycle.

While my comments re bicycling where pretty specific to my area of the SE corner of Wyoming ... it's also in the perspective of riding in the Seattle area vs Wyoming.

As you mention, you ride before 10 AM in the summer because that's when the breezes come up ....

perhaps we should define what is a "breeze" around here. Our wind gauges don't even register air movement below 15-20 mph. In Seattle, that's past time for small craft warnings to be flown (which start at 12mph!) .... I've watched sailboat races get postponed or cancelled when the wind got stronger than 12 mph due to safety concerns on the water. Such strong winds don't even qualify as a "breeze" around here by Cheyenne ... and that doesn't include the fact that the winds here typically are gusting, which is much more difficult to deal with than a steady breeze on a bicycle.

In Seattle, I can ride my bicycle and not be run over by ignorant and discourteous drivers who laugh as they blast rocks and come very close to running you off the road ... as they do on our country roads around here in Wyoming. We may not have a lot of traffic density, but it only takes one a**hole in a pick-up truck to spoil your whole day. I've literally been blown off the road by truck/trailer combinations onto the soft berm area where I did a "wango-tango" for several yards before stopping (and a couple of those stops were when I crashed ....).

If you haven't ridden in a major metropolitan area that's bicycle friendly like Seattle, then you haven't experienced a truly nice place to ride in traffic and congested areas, or in quiet residential areas. I know that it is tough to ride in Cheyenne, even on the back streets in residential areas, especially on those streets where there's no stop signs for cross traffic. Folks around here simply don't register bicycles as a vehicle with a rider .... now I save my very nice custom built frame OLMO road bike for my riding days in other places than around home, and my nishiki mountain bike for when I'm in the back country from my plane.

Congrats, mortisha ... on having sunny days and dry roads to ride on two days ago in Torrington. Two days ago, in the sunshine here in SE Wyoming, I was able to fire up my 4020 JD Diesel and start working on clearing the drifts around my driveway and barns and haystacks so I could get my livestock fed. I even cleared the county road along our property frontage so that there was a full lane for traffic to pass by and for the post office to find our mailbox. I'd defy you or your husband to have ridden then ... or now ... on our snow packed/icy and very slick muddy roads around here, even with a mountain bike. It's still a challenge to get around here on our roads, and then you've got the traffic issues to deal with ... even if it's only a couple of vehicles, it's still a nasty riding situation and not worth risking my life to be out there.