If it weren't the midwest I'd be for this. Somewhere in the Coastal Range of Oregon.
Oooh, and Montana.
So there are other places I'd go. They would all still include low populations though, haha.
Oregon is my jam - PDX area, specifically. I enjoy Seattle, but it's far more overpriced (last time I checked CoL calculators, anyway, and as a visitor). It's so beautiful!
PnW is absolutely beautiful - on a good day. I lived in Seattle for 4 years, but had a really tough time in the winters there. The closest analogy I have is think of is an overcast November day in Iowa, then have that be the default weather from Halloween until the 4th of July. I’m not kidding.
Also, the ocean is nearby, but... it’s not really set up for a prototypical beach day. The water is freezing cold to the point where I’m not sure you want to go in without a wetsuit.
The mountains are absolutely perfect, though!
I think you have to definitely not be a person who has seasonal affective disorder or anything! We've visited Seattle in May, and Portland multiple times (only in winter) - I love that it's not 100 degrees below, but gets rain and a bit of snow. I don't mind the weather at all, but it likely would be hard to plan events that are entirely outdoors!
Good call. Oregon would be at the top of my list, followed by Montana.
For sure Oregon here. I've never been to Montana, but it looks like I would love it. I like the PacNW's moderate temperatures that still have lots of green. I do love city life, have always wanted to live in NYC for a few years - the NW has some good-sized cities that give you big-city amenities with easy access to a gorgeous coast, mountains, waterfalls, etc. I mean, if it was good enough for the Goonies...
I’m not a lay out on the beach kind of guy I was thinking more along the lines of fishing. I spent a little time looking at houses in Portland this afternoon on Zillow.
We've looked quite a bit at housing in PDX over the past couple of years - it's not terrible at all, price-wise. There are definitely some schools that are preferable to others, but the CoL isn't much different from here. And so many tech opportunities.
Got two sisters in PDX, both Clones. Not a question of if or where, but when for me.
Same. PDX is my happy place. Great music, sports, food and bar/brewery scene, lots of variety. I know it's considered hipster, but I think more they just embrace their weirdness and offbeat interests.
You all can stay away from Oregon and erase it from your list.
Weather sucks. People suck. Traffic sucks. Live music scene sucks. Restaurants and food carts suck. World class craft beer and hundreds of breweries suck. Willamette Valley wines and wineries suck. Legal weed sucks (if you're into that). Beautiful coast line sucks. Gorgeous mountain ranges suck. Fishing, camping and outdoor life sucks.
I could go on. Just look somewhere else.
I'm so jealous! There really is everything there. We've discussed moving out to PDX several times, as we just love it (and have only been in winter, not even when it's nice out or anything). The whole thing just is my sweet spot!
