Caldwell for a young climber?

Hi all,

I'm finishing up grad school and am currently interviewing for jobs, one of which is in Caldwell, Idaho. I was wondering if you all could give me some info on how it is to live there. I guess I'll just shoot off a ton of questions I have, which are probably dumb but 

• For those who are familiar, what are your general thoughts on Caldwell?
• How is it for an early 20-something? I don't need to be in the heart of a big city, but I do value an outgoing community of people around my age
• How is access to rock and ice? I assume fairly decent, especially from my perspective (going on 5 years in central Illinois). Are there gyms in the area?
• Is living in Boise/Nampa and commuting to Caldwell feasible? Looking at google maps its a ~25-minute drive, but not sure how that would be during rush hour

And finally, and this hopefully won't start a spicy MP discussion, but politically I'm pretty leftist. I have no problem living and working with people of varying beliefs, but I'd hate to be the furthest left person around.

I'd appreciate any thoughts you all have on the above or other considerations. Thanks!

I like Caldwell. Always have. I don't live there, but I've been in Boise since 1980. Caldwell is probably the most affordable, locally, I'd say go with it, depending on what you really want.

Let's just get this out of the way now:

Yes, Caldwell (Canyon county) is heavily Hispanic.Yes, there are gangs. Yes, there is crime....at a far lower rate than Seattle or Salt Lake. So? So what, unless that bothers you.

And yes, Idaho is "conservative". But it's much more we just don't give a fuck. If that matters, Boise area is heavily blue. Who you hang out with will largely be determined by...who you hang out with. Work, and the rest of your life. FWIW, Caldwell is home to a rather elite private liberal arts college.

Agriculture is still a big deal in Idaho. Which means you are within smelling distance of a sugar beet factory and fields of testing for big ag, on the one hand....but an abundance of small farmers, farmers markets, and a thriving local food thing on the other.

Climbing, yes, you do have rock not too far for afterwork climbing, roped and bouldering. Nampa rec center has a climbing wall, Vertical View in Meridian has their grand opening this weekend, the Commons in Boise opens in February, and Asana, also in Boise, has a boulder gym (with a small roped bit).

Outside, the Black Cliffs are the main local single pitch stuff. Swan Falls for bouldering. But, you are four hours to City of Rocks. There is also quite a lot of smaller stuff locally and regionally, places for day trips, or weekend trips, that is not much known.

Ice climbing? Is like a tiny secret society here. Basically, there isn't any. But? Chat people up, join the right Facebook groups, and you're in.

Can't help you for the commute from Nampa to Caldwell part, but just Google it during commute times to get an idea. I can tell you, Boise to Nampa, it's almost all living outside of Boise and commuting in. The other direction is usually pretty empty.

This is one of the fastest growing places in the country, but it is still the most isolated "metro" area in the lower 48. A long way from everywhere. Keep that in mind also.

We are hoping to get out this afternoon to climb, if it dries out enough (respecting muddy trails). Almost certainly will be out tomorrow!

Best, Helen

Caldwell ID=shithole
Literally anywhere else around Boise would be a better place to live.
Mccall is ~2 hrs north of boise and there's some great rock climbing there, although hardly anybody climbs up there so it's often adventurous and dirty and feels like you're doing an FA half the time. Not a lot of info on routes in mccall but there are a lot and a lot of potential for more.
Might be some ice in Riggins, like 3-4 hours from Boise. 

Keegan Miller-Ryan wrote: Caldwell ID=shithole
Literally anywhere else around Boise would be a better place to live.
Mccall is ~2 hrs north of boise and there's some great rock climbing there, although hardly anybody climbs up there so it's often adventurous and dirty and feels like you're doing an FA half the time. Not a lot of info on routes in mccall but there are a lot and a lot of potential for more.
Might be some ice in Riggins, like 3-4 hours from Boise. 

Shithole? Based on what? As Ada county fills up and gets too expensive for regular people to live, Canyon county (including Caldwell) is rapidly going the same way. I don't know how long you've been away, but it truly is changing very quickly. Caldwell (and the little towns farther west) is on the end of that change, being farther from Boise and a longer commute, but that also means it's still affordable. 

That said, I admit I am partial to Idaho's small towns. I have no problem with places that are still populated mostly with working stiffs, who know each other and will talk in the grocery store. 

McCall is a nice town, and yes, there's climbing, but you'd want an overnight trip or a really long day to get much in. You would know the same places up that way that I do, if you were climbing when you lived there, including the off the radar stuff. There's a lot of that here. Fun and interesting for a day or weekend trip, but not big enough to be on MP, or a "destination".

Ice anywhere in southern Idaho is fleeting. Some years yes, some years no, and you better be ready to scramble for the four days it's in, lol! We don't have alpine in the way some places do, no volcanoes or glaciers, but the mountains and adventures are there. Again, like the small, off the radar climbing, just talk to folks when you're here, OP, if this is where you end up.

Best, Helen

Thanks for the responses y'all!

I've definitely seen a lot of back and forth re: is Caldwell crime-ridden, and it's obviously pretty subjective but I've spent a lot of time wandering all over Chicago at night so my scale is probably different than others (not that I personally think Chicago is bad, just that others, sadly, probably do).

As for the rock, I don't mind requiring weekend-long trips. Honestly, I still haven't gotten used to the idea of after-work climbing, or non-alpine start day trips, because the closest crags to me now are 3 to 5 hours away. I guess this also applies to ice - it doesn't need to be 2 hours out from me, cause I currently drive 9 hours each way just to get on it.

I'll look into the commute times. Sounds like Boise is where I'd want to live, or possibly Nampa, but not sure I could live in Caldwell proper because it would require more driving to get to gyms after work. I'd rather spend more time getting to work than to leisure. But, if anyone with experience in that regard chimes in I'll happily listen.

Thanks again for your help OLH and Keegan - if this next interview goes well there's a decent chance you'll run into me flailing at the local crags

Well, not to rub it in, but my drive time to the black cliffs is about 20 minutes. The Commons gym is less than two miles, Vertical View, I could easily bike to.

Just came back on to add, good luck with your interviews! Hope something works out well for you, wherever you end up.

Best, Helen

I live in Caldwell and have never had an issue with crime.  Caldwell is more affordable than Ada County but like everywhere in the valley housing costs are rising.  Being further from the central mountains is a downside but the Owyhees are close and offer plenty of climbing opportunities.

You can display "Typical" Traffic (instead of "Live").
I selected Monday at 8am.  It only shows traffic heading towards Boise,
mostly on I-84 E, 26 E and 55 N/S.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Caldwell,+ID/@43.5899164,-116.4475489,11z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x54afb2bb781a17cb:0x6edc428b43754d9c!8m2!3d43.6629384!4d-116.6873596!5m1!1e1?hl=en

https://www.mountainproject.com/map/106060666/black-cliffs
A basalt columns area.

Shithole based on me being opinionated. Not really much else. With the right mindset anywhere will work though and there's plenty of fun to be had around that area.

Keegan Miller-Ryan wrote: Shithole based on me being opinionated. Not really much else. With the right mindset anywhere will work though and there's plenty of fun to be had around that area.

Lol! Opinionated on MP??!?! For shame, sir! Hey, even Caldwell isn't immune to the rapid changes. Here's a fun one from a couple years ago:

Best, Helen

Didn't Nampa recently open a new gym too? Heard something about it a while ago, haven't blown into nampa recently to check it out though. Could be a good addition to the area

Hey everyone, I just wanted to check back in and say thanks again for the help. I just found out that I got the job, so I'm currently trying to decide if it's right for me and looking into the housing situation. I have a couple more questions I was hoping you all could help with.

First, I'm 90% sure that if I take the job I'll live in Boise and deal with the 30ish minute commute. What are the different neighborhoods? I see a lot of people talking about the North End and the Bench - would you say those would be nice for a young professional? Are there any others you'd recommend? Not delving into this too seriously right now as I'm still waiting for the official offer packet to arrive with all the details (don't want to get too specific, but due to the nature of the job pay is non-negotiable and scaled on experience).

This one sounds a bit goofy, but I promise I'm actually curious and I'm only asking because I've seen it mentioned - does Nampa actually smell like a fart? If I don't live in Boise, I'd probably got to Nampa, but I don't want to be inhaling nasty sugar beef fumes for the next chapter of my life.

And I guess lastly, if you have any other advice about moving/life in the Boise area, I'm all ears.

Thanks!

Honestly, if you're going to live in the Treasure Valley, Boise is the best place if you can afford it. Easy access to climbing, the foothills, the ski resort, the river, etc... but you'll pay more for it. The North End and the Bench are great areas. The North End though is one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the city. Having lived in Chicago though your definition of expensive may vary. One spot that gets overlooked near Boise is Garden City. Now Garden City definitely has some shitty spots but it's quickly being cleaned up and redone. Property tends to be cheaper, you're right by the river and very close to downtown. Commuting from Boise to Caldwell should be pretty easy as you'll be going against the main rush hour traffic. As for Nampa, sometimes you can smell the sugar beet factory and other times you can't and honestly the smell really isn't that bad. 

Yesterday. :-)

I timed the drive back to my house on the Boise Bench: 18 minutes.

Best, Helen

1. I live literally right next to The Black Cliffs. It takes me 23 minutes to get to work in Nampa and average 20 minutes back home from work leaving at 5:30 PM. If I lived nampa/Caldwell and traveled to Boise, that same commute would take an hour at least. The Boise greenbelt is so frickin awesome to bike spring/summer/early fall. We saw Lord Huron,  Nathaniel Rateliff, The Avett Brothers, and other concerts last summer at the Idaho Botanical gardens and were able to bike there and back avoiding traffic and parking. Fly fish the boise river after work. Hike the local trails. Do it all! Nampa/Caldwell you get farms. I highly recommend east boise. It's more expensive nowadays but getting a roommate will be easy if that's something your open too.