How to Live in the Colorado Mountains - an Insider's Guide

Every year, people dream of packing up and moving to the Colorado Mountains. The Colorado Mountains offer fresh air, spectacular scenery, uncrowded living, and limitless year-round recreational opportunities.

Before packing up and heading to the Colorado Mountains for that Shangri-La, there are some questions one needs to ask oneself to understand if Colorado mountain living is a realistic option. One can then know what they'll be giving up and what they'll be getting in return.

Assess your lifestyle

Are you a city person or a country person? If hiking, biking, camping, rafting, skiing, and fishing sound appealing, the mountain lifestyle is for you. The mountain lifestyle is all about slowing down and enjoying the scenery.

If you like to shop in chic stores, eat in four-star star restaurants, and have first class nightlife, there are only a handful of mountain towns in Colorado that are viable options. All of them are very expensive.

Assess your income

Most mountain areas in Colorado have a higher cost of living. This is due to housing, transportation, and heating costs. Most local jobs are low-paying seasonal service industry employment positions. Assess if your income is will be sufficient to meet your living costs.

Assess the area

Investigate the local culture and traditions. See if you will blend in. If not, keep looking around. Mountain people can be eccentric and shooting guns on US National Forest Service land is perfectly legal. While you may not be political, the local government and taxing structure may not suit you and your beliefs. With some searching, one can find a Colorado mountain culture where one will fit right in.

Know your neighbors

Colorado Mountain residents often rely on neighbors for help in an emergency. You never know when a snowstorm could drop 12 feet of snow in a week. In sparsely populated areas, a neighbor with a snowplow is often a welcome sight.

Living with wildlife

Living in the Colorado Mountains means adjusting the ways that one is accustomed to living so that conflict with wildlife is minimized. The rules of Colorado mountain living are different than suburban living.

Colorado Mountain living often involves having bears, snakes, mountain lions, elk, and moose as neighbors. Some will eat your landscaping, some will root through your garbage, house, and cars looking for food, and others will simply try to eat you or your pets.

Weather and mountain driving

In the summer, the Colorado Mountains can have sudden lightning-sparked forest fires or instant flash floods. In the winter, you may find yourself snowed in or stranded. If one is prepared, it's no big deal. The ill-prepared can face life-threatening situations. High alpine valleys in the Rocky Mountains can stay frigid well into summer.

Colorado Mountain driving requires more concentration and observation. Mountain roads can require gearing down and driving slower in summer as well as winter. Deer, elk, and moose can be an additional driving hazard. Winter driving in the mountains requires a reliable vehicle and good tire tread.

Self-sufficient

Unless one is extremely wealthy, Colorado mountain living requires a little bit of self-sufficiency. Those who are life-long learners will enjoy the challenge. Those used to picking up the telephone and having someone come immediately and fix things will be sorely tested. Weather and long drives can make for a long wait.

Stop and enjoy the scenery

The best part about Colorado Mountain living is the scenery and relaxed lifestyle. Just sit back and enjoy life or go out and enjoy nature to its fullest. Live every day to its highest potential. You'll soon have a group of new mountain friends.

With a bit of investigation and planning one can find their own private Colorado mountain paradise. One can then enjoy scenery, wildlife, and plentiful recreational opportunities.