Best Small City for Skiing/biking/getting outside

[SUPERIOR]

Boise is a good place. But, it’s a compromise. Access to OK skiing 30 minutes away, great skiing about 1.5-6 hrs away. Excellent biking and river running within an hour, but the crowd factor has been growing. Also, HOT. Like, uncomfortably hot. Lots of breweries and conservative ideology to round it out.


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[SUPERIOR]

My personal list is: Ennis, Durango, Burlington, WA, McCall, Hood River, Whitefish, Shasta City, possibly Victor, ID ... but I live in Bozeman if that says something. Oh yeah: Golden BC


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[powpig]

Fresno.
Way closer to the foothills than you think, so plenty of rivers for rafting & lotsa lakes for boating not too far. Yosemite & Kings Canyon/Sequoia NPs are right there. Don't know anything about mt biking but there's gotta be some year round riding down there and Kernville is only 2 1/2 hours away. A couple small ski areas semi close, Kirkwood just 4 hours so pretty much the same as most of the Bay Area.
The couple who own the house next door (AirBnB it mostly) come up frequently and say its not a bad drive at all.
Oh yeah, they get way less rain than Seattle.

[Shredhead]

Other than being really crowded and having poor access to lift-served skiing...

Still - could be worse. Like Houghton.

Great MTBing, boating and access to the outdoors. Including really good BC skiing in RMNP and Cameron Pass.
It’s been awhile since I’ve driven Hwy 14 over to Steamboat or Winter Park, but it has to be better than I70.

[Best Mexican Skier from Da South]

I believe investing in collective, community owned ski resorts is the answer of the future. Get a large group of successful friends, figure out permitting, and purchase several rope tows or a small chairlift. Bootpack to the steep goods. Hire a small patrol for avvy control, or do it yourself.


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I like the way you talk, Mister.

That could be a good compound idea among friends too. Multiple cabins. A common cabin for laundry, holidays, and could even host some guests and charge top dollar.

That resort you painted sounds fucking awesome.

[core2]

Lol @ gapers giving away their last remaining sacred places on the internet.

[fastfred]

breckenridge

stop being a fucking pussy and tune your skis drop out and become another waste in the game of life
fuck trying to be middle class, fuck trying to be something meaningful in life
happy hour, skiing, and working some shit job to make ends meet
life isn't much more than that

[new yabyum]

Lol @ gapers giving away their last remaining sacred places on the internet.

^^^^^^you win^^^^^^^

[El Chupacabra]

Elko, Nevada, ticks all your boxes. Buy a snowmobile and sled ski to your heart's content. 4 hrs to SLC resorts.

[Driver]

Has anyone ever relocated to one of the suggested places as a result of one of these threads?

OP - Outside magazine and the like publish a "best places to live" issue every year. Maybe find a couple at the local library and see if that helps narrow the search?

+1

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[idahospud]

My personal list is: Ennis, Durango, Burlington, WA, McCall, Hood River, Whitefish, Shasta City, possibly Victor, ID ... but I live in Bozeman if that says something. Oh yeah: Golden BC


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Quoting Superior here because he and I have somehow lived in a few of the same places. He's right about Boise, but the heat is what you make it. The sun sets incredibly late in the summer and nighttime MTB rides there are a great way to get through the summer. Also, proximity to the Sawtooths can't be beat from anywhere else that's as livable as Boise, unless you can afford to not work and live in Ketchum, maybe.

I've always thought McCall was cool as hell, but it's tiny.

I now live in Bozeman and it's terrible, which I'm sure Superior would agree with. It's cold, storms frequently miss us, and the roving bands of deer are verbally abusive and surprisingly cruel. You don't want to live here.

[SUPERIOR]

Bozeman is terrible. Avoid at all costs.


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[donutlynx]

Definitely Tucson.

[SUPERIOR]

Lol @ gapers giving away their last remaining sacred places on the internet.

The real secret towns ain’t getting posted by me. But, what’s truly a secret anymore? Maybe Ennis was the only real secret gem I threw out, but it’s been discovered.


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[Supermoon]

Boise is cool. Bring your SEA money and buy my house.

Surprisingly few jobs in Bend. Has been on my list as a place to live for years but never really found a decent job opportunity. YMMV of course.

SLC is not a small town anymore. Traffic and sprawl and smog everywhere. Ogden could MAYBE be considered. Snowbasin is a fun resort but it could be too big for what you’re looking for.

Find a remote job and move somewhere like Ketchum or Hood River would be my advice.

[plugboots]

Bozeman is terrible. Avoid at all costs.

Some friends moved to my little town from Bozeman because, (well the wife is a pain in the ass), but she complained about the smog in Bozeman and “It was just getting too damn crowded.”

[the_flying_v]

It was:

“Northern New Mexico is basically Colorado, without the people and with better margaritas”


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Slidewright.com

It’s basically Colorado with tons of litter, lots of potholes, no jobs, bullet holes in every road sign, and very few dateable women.

It gets better once you get to Santa Fe.

[whyturn]

Yellowstone ski club. I hear the tips are good. Housing may be a challenge

[LiveLarger]

Courmayeur

Food is immensely better than in the US. You can rip Helbronner and "glacier du Toule" all day long. When the conditions aren't there, you can ski _perfect_ corduroy all day at the resort. You can ski to cham or take the bus approx 40 mins too.

[skaredshtles]

Courmayeur

Food is immensely better than in the US. You can rip Helbronner and "glacier du Toule" all day long. When the conditions aren't there, you can ski _perfect_ corduroy all day at the resort. You can ski to cham or take the bus approx 40 mins too.

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

When you find your paradise, please keep your mouth shut about it.

[Timberridge]

Londonderry, VT.

[Foggy_Goggles]

I would like to know what your career is?

Here is the big question, do you need a ski area?

The Western US is full of awesome places with great people and an affordable cost of living. For better or worse, they don't "tick the boxes" for a lot of people.

And search...tits...JONG...sister

[Ted Striker]

wapato

In 2012, Wapato allowed strip clubs into the city, in the words of one resident, "to put Wapato on the map."

[ex-powderbroker]

I just remembered, but has the OP considered Queensbury, NY? West Mountain is right there with awesome glades and night skiing, and an easy commute to Albany NY if you'd want to get into state politics.