Moving to Colorado???

[worm]

I have accepted a new position within my company and we will be relocating to Colorado this spring. It was a tough decision to leave Nevada but I'm looking forward to the new challenges from work and learning a new state for hunting and fishing. I'm hoping that some of the Hunttalkers from Colorado could offer some good advice on where to live. I will be traveling withing the entire state of Colorado so the location of where we decide to live is wide open. I would like to be in a smaller town -15k population and around 5k feet in elevation. Close to good hunting and lake fishing. A new lake boat has been added to my relocation list for walleye and perch. I don't have to worry about school districts, sports, etc.. due to the fact that it's just my wife and I moving. With that said I would still like to be within 30 minutes of a good college just in case the daughter decides to join us later on down the road.

Any advice will be highly appreciated!!

 

[Oak]

Montrose. You will be about an hour from the college, though.

 

[SFC B]

Woodland Park. I say this as it is close enough to the Springs for everything (Colorado College and UCCS included) but is surrounded by lots of public land, close to Tarryall and 11 Mile reservoirs and a fairly low cost of living. It has a good deal of stores/services for a small town as well.

 

[Jorgy]

I have a few pieces of advice.
1 ) if you could drive to denver in less than an hour, your in the wrong place.
2) if your life revolves around boat fishing, colorado is not your place - unless you like fishing the same reservoir all the time.
3) i70 between denver and vail can be a complete pain in the hinney, don't live where that is your main travel route.
I personally love the western slope, lots of good people and good hunting, but not a lot of lakes/res. for the boat (I'm originally from wisconsin though)

 

[Hunting Wife]

Lots of great small towns on the west slope. Stay away from the front range of you want to stay out of the rat race. I lived in Montrose for a few years. It is kind of where the southwest meets the mountains. You have canyon country, fourteeners, lakes, and a "real town" all within about an hour. But you're really in trout and whitewater country. Might need a raft instead!

 

[noharleyyet]

I've always been impressed with Montrose & it's surrounding area, can't believe how it's grown but it's still a small town feel IMO.

 

[LuketheDog]

Salida or Gunnison

 

[Pagosa]

I lived in Montrose in the late 90s and I wished I would have bought a house there. I would also recommend Montrose or Crawford. If you like cold weather Gunnison is a great place to live. There are libs and rock lickers in every town in western Colorado, but also a lot of great people and beautiful country. Glenwood Springs, Pagosa, and Dolores are also great towns. Where are you moving from In NV?

 

[JohnCushman]

I really like Montrose when I drive through there on my way to elk hunting. It's got all the 'creature features' of a big city, but still small enough to have a somewhat small town feel. I always stop in for lunch somewhere. From there, within an hour, you have a couple of good bodies of water that are boat worthy, plus some good stream fishing for trout, and good access to public land in elk and deer country. Ridgeway is an awesome little town right down the road with a state park and lake, but past that is a town with great little shops and eateries and a fly shop. A nice little place to spend an afternoon with the wife and the view is absolutely breathtaking getting there.

 

[HighDesertSage]

Montrose. You will be about an hour from the college, though.

I second this.

 

[T Bone]

Another vote for Montrose.

We've lived here 5 1/2 years and love every part of it. It's a play ground. It's world class hunting, fishing, mountaineering, back packing, skiing, rafting, kayaking...one hour travel in any direction. No walleye or perch to speak of though. That boat would probably work fine for the trout fisheries on the local reservoirs.

It's a great community.

The things my wife occasionally longs for are shopping and concerts. Those are 5 hours away.

CMU does have an extension here.

Drop me a line if you want to visit. I'll show you around.

If it does work for you, don't dilly dally in buying property/house. IMO, values are about to rise sharply.

I already take it for granted, but I can be trout fishing in 4 minutes, and my elk hunting spot is in eyesight. How cool is that?

 

[Outdooraddict]

Actually, there are some jumbo perch in Blue Mesa- but they will take some time to find. But, you might want to switch from walleye to giant lakers.

 

[worm]

Thanks to all of the Hunt talkers that has posted. Looks like I have a few locations to start looking at. Your advice is highly appreciated!!

 

[T Bone]

I thought of another down side. Compared to NV, taxes will be a bit of a shock.

 

[wolfpup]

I have 2 thoughts that would sway my decision had I found myself in your boat for the following reasons:

1) Pueblo West - (biased because I live here) - If the I-25 corridor is your main route, your drives will be much more pleasurable than a commute from the outskirts. You will get twice the property for your $ at half the population. You are within a few hours to any mountain range, and Denver if you care to visit that place. Pueblo Reservoir in your backyard. 90 minutes from South Park. 90 minutes from gambling in Cripple Creek. 45 minutes to COS and Sportsman Warehouse and Bass Pro.


2) Salida, Grand Junction, or most places in bewteen. Beautiful areas and close to all things we love, but are tougher to live in if your $ is tight or your work is on the front range.

Personal opinion but property prices and population keep me from Colorado Springs, Denver, Fort Collins, and any suburb of those. If your interested in the area or have any other questions feel free to pm me.

Forgot to mention Colorado State University - Pueblo or Pueblo Community College - which is far cheaper than most colleges in CO.