Best towns to live in CO...?

I live in CT and am currently in the process of getting an initial teaching certification for Colorado. Any suggestions on which towns are the best to live in in CO in terms of access to climbing and a good scene? I boulder and sport climb and ideally I would love to have easy access to both. I've been told to look at Golden... any thoughts? Suggestions? Pearls of wisdom?

Anything is appreciated! Cheers...

I'm a bit partial to the Boulder area, having lived here for nearly 20 years. Great access to bouldering, trad and sport climbing, and Eldorado Canyon is just a few minutes outside of town. Boulder has gotten more expensive over the last few years, but there are lots of great restaurants/bars/coffeehouses, good climbing gyms, a pretty liberal mindset, and just 25 miles from Denver.

If you're looking for a small-town feel, there is Lyons (15 miles northwest of Boulder) or Nederland, in the mountains above Boulder. Both have easy access to great climbing.

Do you prefer cities or smaller towns?

I have lived in Colorado my whole life and currently live in a small town in the mountains and it is great! I lived in Denver and Boulder for a long time as well. Pretty much wherever you live, as long as it isn't east of Denver on the plains, you will have access to whatever climbing you desire within a short area.

Golden wouldn't be a bad choice at all, it is kind of in the center of the front range. Clear creek canyon resides a short drive away with many sport crags and boulders throughout the canyon. Eldo isn't far away as well. Just take a climbing trip out here and see what you like.

hey there, that's awesome. congratulations. I would highly recommend checking out Boulder, its amazing and I love it, close access to the Park and sport or trad up the canyon, Eldo's close. If ya are looking to get away for the weekend and not just after work the Cherry Creek School district, south of Denver is something I went through and would highly recommend teaching at. If your looking or a small town feel tucked away in the mountains, Gunison (but it gets cold, though it has the black for huge big wall) or any other mountain town are all pretty nice and quaint.

hope i could help

CLIMB ON

If you're planning on sticking only to sport, then Golden would be an ok choice. You would be right next to Clear Creek Canyon and Table Mountain.

I would recommend Boulder, due to its proximity to EVERYTHING. You have sport and some trad in Boulder Canyon, lots of sport in Dream Canyon, bouldering at Mt Sanitas and Flagstaff, and trad in the Flatirons and world famous Eldorado Canyon.

Also, Boulder is only 30min from Golden, and 60min away from Estes Park (which is next to Lumpy Ridge and Rocky Mountain National Park).

I'm not sure if Golden has any gyms, but the few times it's shitty outside, Boulder has the ?Boulder Rock Club? (walls and bouldering) and ?The Spot? (bouldering).

People will moan about housing in Boulder, but unless you plan on buying a house, rent is quite reasonable.

And as for a good scene, well, there's no contest: Boulder.

Since you're asking I'll throw my two cents work in. I'm from New Hampshire, made the move out here a few years ago. I work in Golden, live in Denver. This makes getting out after work really easy. However, I would not want to live in Golden and work in Denver. The traffic is absolutely terrible if you work the typical 8-5 type schedule. Just something to consider when picking a place to live. Of course, if you don't work regular hours it probably doesn't matter.

Boulder is great for climbers of all kinds, but getting a teaching job with the school district is not so easy (lots of folks want to work here; there's a major university popping out grads but K-12 enrollment isn't growing and teachers tend to stay put so little turnover); the other districts (Adams, St. Vrain, DPS, etc) have much more growth and more opportunities. If you have special skills (bilingual, dual-certified) the story could be different. Housing costs are high compared to many other parts of the US. The average annual household income in Boulder is now +$80,000/yr -- 'way more than most teachers make. Commuting through the Denver Metro area is not much fun, although the aforementioned districts are easy commutes from Boulder. (I live in Boulder and work for BVSD)

FYI: Not everyone loves the sport climbing near Golden (a bit chossy in the lower grades esp. and traffic in Clear Creek makes it noisy). The best sport areas (Shelf Road and Rifle) are a 2-3 hr drive. But the wide variety of rock/climbing in the Front Range makes it very special.

Many people like the small town-big town atmosphere in Boulder; it's a fun place to live. My advice: rent for a year at least & get to know your way around the region before you commit to a neighborhood.

Good luck!

I would recommend Golden. It is not true it is only a place for sport climbing either, it is 15 minutes to the entrance of Eldorado Canyon. You can immediately head into the mountains from Golden as well.

It is funny how Grand Junction is always never in play for a good place to live. It is central to most anything and cheap to live at. Lots of climbing. Yet if you are looking for a "scene" you will not find it here.

Sawpit, CO

Golden! It has quick access to everything and everywhere. Also you don't feel like your part of the city life.

ctmeg:
You should gather up your options for us first to help narrow down the field. For example, "Golden" seems to be the prevailing mantra. However, JeffCo Public Schools just lost yet another bond issue, so their hiring will be minimal as they are actually looking to cut budgets. Golden is a horrible place to commute to and from also.

What are your priorities with sport climbing also? Table and Clear Creek are easy after work crags from Golden, but if you'd rather be within striking distance for day/weekend trips it'd be hard to beat Colorado Springs (Shelf Road, Penetente, Red Rock Canyon Open Space, Castlewood, Devils Head). But a dismal scene.

Boulder is truly hard to beat, but realistically needs to be placed in the "future goal" category unless you have a trust fund to tap.

Grand Junction gets flipping hot in the Summer, that's why no one lives there.

Central Denver (The Highlands, Upper Platte Valley, even part of Capital Hill) is as hip as it gets out here as far as a scene goes, and you are not too far from anywhere really. Plus if you commute you go against the flow.

Never been there but driving by Gleenwood Springs man, it seemed awesome from the highway lol. I know that might sound dumb, but it seemed like a decent sized town, good holiday decor/spirit. Just seemed like a super cozy place to me. Would love to look at it stay there sometime more in the future.

Summit county is bomb, but breaking into the world here is proving somewhat hard. Jobs are not easy to come by and people are slightly more closed due to the influx of crazy out of towners. Can't blame the locals, but just my experience thus far.

living in Fort Collins has been nice for bouldering. Horsetooth Reservoir and Carter Lake are close, and the 420s or destinations near boulder are a nice day trip. i've climbed 1 to 4 days a week outside since i moved here in june. weather has been, at worst, bearable (i've yet to live through a winter here, though).

there is sport climbing outside the city up the Poudre Canyon. I like Crystal Wall a lot, but it's small. The Palace (across the river from Crystal Wall) is bigger, but I've only been at one crag there and it was alright. Overall, sport climbing here isn't amazing, but it's certainly good. those crags are at most 40 or 45 minutes away. it's also less than an hour to The Monastery.

as a grad student, i rent, and there are plenty of cheap housing options in that regard. from looking at random houses for sale in the neighborhood i gather that buying a house in fort collins is a pretty reasonable undertaking. i also tutor at a high school here and there are jobs to be had. the town is slowly growing and there are a couple first-year student teachers, so there must be some options.

boulder is close to everything, but it's far too "cool" for me. i don't know much about golden other than every time i drive home from skiing i wish i lived there because it's like an hour from a couple major resorts.

good luck searching.

hmm strange i have a good friend who is thinking of moving to CO from CT to climb and teach as well... Perhaps you'll run into her!!

Don't live in Aurora.. or anywhere east of 25... my time spent in Golden has always been enjoyable and it's awfully pretty

Regardless, CO is CO and you can certainly make the best of anywhere you can land a job
And besides, if you are anything like my friend then you'll be moving around a good bit in the years to come :P

I grew up in West Hartford, CT and now find myself right outside Boulder. I can't say that I miss CT much because of all of the accessible outdoor goodness that the Boulder area and beyond has to offer: world class trad climbing; cool sport climbing; decent bouldering; great desert climbing at 4+ hrs; good ice in under two hours; good skiing/riding in 1+ hrs.

I haven't lived in any other area of Colorado, but I've visited quite a few other places in the state. The only other area that I personally might like living is down south some, near Durango or even smaller, like Telluride or Silverton. Great mountains, great accessible skiing, climbing, etc. without quite as many people as the compared to the Denver/Boulder area.

Hope that helps some. Good luck with your move!

--Marc

durango

I am looking at moving to Westminster in the summer to go to school. Any insight on the scene there?

Colorado Springs hasnt been mentioned and it has climbing access that rivals boulder, especially for sport. It has a negative rap as a super conservative city but in my 5 years living there, I never came into contact with this segment of the population for better or worse. The key is living near the city center or in manitou springs. Oh yeah, and its affordable.

brooks8970 wrote: Oh yeah, and its affordable.

brooks8970 wrote:Colorado Springs hasnt been mentioned