Best mountain towns in America to live semi-cheaply and enjoy the outdoors?

What is the minimum size of this town?

Tides wrote:

What is the minimum size of this town?

Pretty much zero, as long as I have access to a town of 1000 or more within a 30min drive. I've considered living somewhere like Riverside, WY (something like 50 people), but the winters are too cold.

Baltimore would be a great fit for you.

You can camp in any undeveloped site in a national forest for two weeks for free- it has to be a spot that has been been established as a campsite but does not have omeadiate access to facilities (they are termed primitive campsites)

I like Dixie in southern Utah

educated hippie wrote:

I've realized that being outside in the mountains makes me happier than anything else in life

I'm with you, friend. I have never had a bad day in the mountains. Work and family mean I live in Manhattan, but I live vicariously through books and short trips to the Catskills and Adirondacks. And once in a while, the alps.

That isn't as sad as it sounds - I like cities too, just not as much.

I have no answer for you, but good luck.

have you thought of something in the NC mountains? Outside of Boone or Ashville somewhere?

There are so many great options. Generally the cheaper the town, the less work there is.

Also there are usually some smaller cheaper towns out side of the main town.

There are so many great places. Bozeman is a great start. I have always liked the Hood River area in OR, the eastern sierras are awesome but a little more expensive. Bellingham WA is great but grey. The List goes on and on.

The best thing to do is try to spend some time in each town maybe use letsrun to meet up with folks to do some runs.

Places I have thought of living

cody, wy

bishop, ca

hood river, or

missoula, mt

ketchum, id

leavenworth, wa

cle elum, wa

bend, or

ashland, or

sierra city, ca

squamish, bc

Obviously I havent spent much time in CO and the time there I didnt like as much as some other places I have visited.

Also do you climb or ski? This would also influence the choice. lots of towns are great for hiking camping and running but not for rock climbing

I've been just about everywhere in the mountain west, So here's a bit of advise.

Riverside WY IS NOT a mountain town - I'd avoid

Bozeman MT IS expensive (nearly as expensive as Jackson and gets pretty damn cold, I lived there)

Cody WY would be intriguing as long as you can tolerate or even enjoy tourists, and winters aren't too bad.

Missoula would be cool, but if you are looking for a small town, Plains and Hamilton near Missoula would be better, but all get fairly cold and a bit of snow.

Add to the list:

Spearfish, Custer, Hot Springs and Hill City South Dakota (Black Hills - Hot Springs has the best weather). South Dakota has ridiculously cheap housing relative to Montana and Wyoming, but a lot of work is seasonal because of the tourism in the Black Hills (Mt. Rushmore and the caves)

Lander Wyoming - winters are pretty mild, has a 4-year liberal arts catholic college, and the National Outdoor Leadership School, but not a whole lot of single ladies. Pay in Wyoming is considerably higher than it's neighboring states.

There are a few mountain towns in northern Idaho...Moscow and Sand Point come to mind. Moscow I believe has a small college and decent weather, and you're not too far away from the artsy Couer D'Alene.

I'm sure there are a lot of places in Utah, but I'm not terribly familiar.

Silver City New Mexico would be another one to look into. It probably has the best weather.

Bend, OR

Here's the Utah summary:

Larger Towns:

Logan - gets really cold but kind of the center of its region. Home of Utah State University. Lots of mountains surrounding the area to have fun in. Even saw an episode of that bigfoot hunter show filmed there.

Ogden - Decent trails to run on and part of the larger Wasatch Front area of Utah. Home of Weber State University. Utahns don't like Ogden much though.

Provo/Orem - Lots of people but still decently laid back. BYU and Utah Valley University are here. On the south end of the Wasatch Front and the most beautiful mountain scenery in Utah.

Smaller Towns:

Duchesne/Kamas - Small towns in the Wasatch Back with quick access to endless trails throughout the Uinta Mountains. Cold, high, and small. Pretty area though.

Moab - A mountain biking/jeeping/rafting/climbing paradise. Although not known for "mountains" there are plenty of mtn biking trails to run on. Plus, quick access to the La Sal mountains which are plenty high. Winters aren't bad. Red rock is the scenery.

Cedar City - Great mid-sized town (30k people) and home of Southern Utah University. It has as much as you'd need but not much more. Winters are a little heavier than you'd expect but St. George is 45 min away, 3000' lower, and always about 10 degrees warmer. Access to Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks as well as the high plateaus (10,000+ feet) of Southern Utah.

Flagstaff, AZ.

Mazama, WA

Ronald, WA

Stehiken, WA

Snoqualmie Pass, WA

Cody, WY

Cooke City, WY

Red Lodge, MT

Whitefish, MT

Ashland, OR

Jeffster!!! wrote:

have you thought of something in the NC mountains? Outside of Boone or Ashville somewhere?

What I was thinking. I could be very happy in Brevard or Asheville. Preferably Asheville since the town is more fun.

Blowing Rock Master could chime in here...

Ruidoso, NM. Cloudcroft might be a better choice though.

Stone Mountain, Georgia. There's nowhere better in the lower 48.

He said mountains, not 1,600 foot buttes

Squamish is super expensive these days.

Wardsboro Cruncher wrote:

You can camp in any undeveloped site in a national forest for two weeks for free- it has to be a spot that has been been established as a campsite but does not have omeadiate access to facilities (they are termed primitive campsites)

I like Dixie in southern Utah

Omeadiate? What would the root word be for this, Omead?