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There’s a place just next door that is about to put up a brand new gondola. May want to check that out. 

u might like grand junction if u are out going u can find a few hundred cool ppl that are not blue collar rednecks (lots of those due to coal mining and oil and gas fields all around GJ) but there are fruit orchards and open minded active ppl too

btw ideal renting situation is if u have utilities included for electric and gas to run heat and ac due to cold winter and crazy hot summer 

granite trad and 14ers within 2-3 hours 

world class hot springs like orvis 90 min south

and sandstone trad (most require a bit of aid) very close

the black canyon of the gunnison for gorgeous and dangerous crumbling big walls

and fruita for world class mtb trails

and close to moab for mtb and winter climbing

GJ has a rock gym and a decent acro yoga community

for what it is worth if u move to GJ do buy a very good air filter machine for inside as the old mining dust blows 24/7 365

If you search around in the forums you'll find many similar posts where GJ locals argue with each other trying to convince you to move here or stay the hell away. I don't think we need another one of those tiresome arguments here. If anything reading those will give you a feel for the character of the local climbing community.

Montrose is pretty sweet. Good access to the black and the desert, as well as various climbing in the san juans

Aaron Kwrote:

If you search around in the forums you'll find many similar posts where GJ locals argue with each other trying to convince you to move here or stay the hell away. I don't think we need another one of those tiresome arguments here. If anything reading those will give you a feel for the character of the local climbing community.

It’s a vocal minority that are in the ‘stay away it’s mine’ crowd.

It’s a small minority ( around six ) of the GJ climbing community that participates in these forums.

The vast majority of the local GJ climbing community are very welcoming and rather chill.  The attitude tends to be if you want to move here great, if not it’s cool. 

Granite Grantwrote:

for what it is worth if u move to GJ do buy a very good air filter machine for inside as the old mining dust blows 24/7 365

Well is the high desert with sandy soil so there i is a going to be dust  It’s not like the dust bowl or anything.  I’d say the dust is far less than Moab  

Also oil, natural gas, and mining haven’t been much than 5% of the local economy for around 10-15 years.  I only bring this up for those looking for work in those areas. 

Everything else you said is spot on. 

Sup. Monticello, UT is as close as you can get to Indian Creek and still have a grocery store. That's why we moved here. There are other crags close by too, but those aren't on MP. Skiing, running, biking, fishing, etc, out the backdoor with nobody around in a rural mountain range, conditions have been great this year for skiing. Some other options inside CO would be Mancos, Cortez, Dolores.

don't forget dove creek, pinto bean capital of the world!

slimwrote:

don't forget dove creek, pinto bean capital of the world!

I have to admit the beans are great, but I left Dove Tweak off the list because… well because I wouldn’t wish it upon someone to move there.

T Dwrote:

Montrose is pretty sweet. Good access to the black and the desert, as well as various climbing in the san juans

Second that Montrose is pretty sick, though it has to be one of the coldest cities in Colorado (behind Alamosa)

I third what JT and T Dz wrote. Recommend taking a look at Montrose. It's pretty great. Google Maps says 3:24 to Indian Creek. Other climbing options nearby or in the San Juans from Ouray going South. Also it's pretty close to Telluride, Crested Butte, Silverton, Purgatory, and the backcountry skiing district of Red Mountain Pass to Silverton (though very avalanche prone too...). There's lots of running trails and mountain biking all along the Western Slope. A good magazine for checking out the Uncompahgre Valley Arts/Food/Culture scene is "Wayfinder Magazine" - wayfindermagazines.com. And if you can afford it, Ridgway is an even closer/better option (3hrs to Indian Creek). Though it's a lot smaller, so with a lot less work options if you need that.

I was trying to make this same decision several years ago, and almost pulled the trigger on a place in Montrose.  I too frequent UT, NV, WY and even GJ, some nice climbing in the GJ area as well.  I'm even an organizer on the Western Slope meetup group where I post climbing and canyoneering trips when I come that way.

Ultimately I decided to stay on the East slope and built a van for shoulder month trips west.  My reasoning was 1- I think there are many more options for dating around the Denver area; 2 - Similarly there are a lot more climbing partners to be found; 3- Other resources are generally better, like if you need a piece of gear for a weekend adventure, good chance you can either find it local in the Denver area or more likely to get overnight shipping to the Denver area.  I can't speak to the latter in the Montrose area, but I would assume overnight or even 2 day shipping to Montrose might be limited.  And I was worried about a coming water war to the West slope, though I think being in CO is  less of a concern, but living in UT or NV I feel too risky.  

So just some things to consider, it depends on your needs and expectations.  Good luck

Ian70wrote:

I third what JT and T Dz wrote. Recommend taking a look at Montrose. It's pretty great. Google Maps says 3:24 to Indian Creek. Other climbing options nearby or in the San Juans from Ouray going South. Also it's pretty close to Telluride, Crested Butte, Silverton, Purgatory, and the backcountry skiing district of Red Mountain Pass to Silverton (though very avalanche prone too...). There's lots of running trails and mountain biking all along the Western Slope. A good magazine for checking out the Uncompahgre Valley Arts/Food/Culture scene is "Wayfinder Magazine" - wayfindermagazines.com. And if you can afford it, Ridgway is an even closer/better option (3hrs to Indian Creek). Though it's a lot smaller, so with a lot less work options if you need that.

I have lived in Montrose  a long time for most of the reasons you mention but it has gotten much more expensive for housing in the last few years due to people moving here and a low inventory of housing units. Average new house is 450- 500,000 for 1400sf three bedroom. Ridgway is nice but has the same issues for housing, or lack of it. There are new 3 bedroom townhomes going for 900,000. Telluride ghetto pricing. Western slope got more crowded since covid because  the people that would have gone to Disneyland in the summer came over here and liked it and moved here. Working from home made housing prices jump. Wester slope water has and always will be a problem because lower Colorado river basin users take more than upper basin users and the front range users have always looked at western slope water as theirs. Whiskey is for drinking and water is for fighting and the only winners are the lawyers.

I noticed no one put up the traditional post yet so I’ll go ahead and do my civic duty

Stay away we’re full.

On a serious note I think montrose fits your requirements the best. It might be just over 3 hours to the creek but it’s only one hour from escalante canyon which is similar. I moved from montrose to GJ area four years ago for work reasons. Both places are great but the grand valley has a more distinct desert feel to it and is 5-7 degrees warmer on average. Montrose has a great climate. 

The joke is people who think that GJ is to cosmopolitan and liberal move to Montrose.

Chad Millerwrote:

The joke is people who think that GJ is to cosmopolitan and liberal move to Montrose.

When I lived there it felt pretty even. The Telluride influence is strong on the south end of Montrose. 

Klaus theKwrote:

When I lived there it felt pretty even. The Telluride influence is strong on the south end of Montrose. 

Maybe I’m thinking about Delta.

The Telluride influence is real strong when Telluride Express unloads a bunch of people at city market south to load up on stuff before they head to Telluride.

It may be surprising to some that Montrose County consistently votes about 10 points more Republican than Mesa County. About equal with Delta County 

Yup Montrose county is very conservative but at least we don't have a county registrar that is facing criminal charges like in Mesa county. If you base you decision on where to live on how conservative an area is you can rule out just about every rural area in the west. large areas as well like Colorado Springs or Salt Lake City.