Ideal ski towns for the future factoring in all issues?

[Smellytele]

Frisco/Silverthorne/Summit County is great for lots of ski areas in close proximity, but I kind of prefer further west over by Avon/Minturn/Eagle. Like Summit County it looks like a chunk of suburbia tucked between the interstate and the mtns which may not be super picturesque, but there is convenience and familiarity in having Walmart, Home Depot, microbrewery, and plenty restaurants nearby. Over there you could use Eagle airport and stay away from Denver and Denver traffic for months at a time. I think real estate up at Beaver Creek resort is out of the question unless you have millions to spend, but down by Avon/Minturn/Eagle you might find something affordable. You might even find a condo within walking distance of the gondi that goes from the slopes into the town of Avon. Beaver Creek ski area is a big upscale ski tourist magnet, but still has a slightly lower crowd factor than many other large ski areas in that part of CO. BC also retains snow well and has great grooming. They open a lot of terrain quickly and it stays in pretty good shape until closing day. The full vertical of the trail layout is huge, something like 4k'. BC is mostly known for intermediate terrain, but has some decent trees and very respectable bump runs. You would quickly figure out how to get the best out of nearby Vail skiing too. And Vail has entertainment/culture all year. Avon/Eagle is only about 90 mins from Aspen too. Another plus for that area is base elevation is relatively low (~7400') for CO, which is especially helpful for short term visitors from lowlands.

There are dozens/hundreds of good candidates. It's fun to fantasize about any number of them.
View attachment 50973View attachment 50974

The Beav is fun.

When I said west of the tunnel i meant anywhere Dillon to eagle. Beyond that before you get to glenwood springs it is pretty barren.

 

[Edd]

I can understand. Everybody is different. For me, and this is my opinion only, NYC is too big, too dirty, too many people. Where I am is just big enough, on the ocean and is rural just down the street and some of the best mountain biking right out my door. Boston 25 minutes away, Sugarbush is 3.25 hours away.

I have been tied down to Sugarbush because I bought there. Don't get me wrong it is very nice and I have loved it. But in retirement, we do not plan to be tied down. We don't have kids, mortgages, dogs, cats, anything. Just our families to consider. We are now accumulating the funds we will need to make this happen so we won't worry about cost. We are going to go everywhere and do things we never could because of commitments. We are going to do this before we can't. That is the plan.

My wife and I are of a similar opinion to you. Have a decade or less of working left I hope and we’ve invested as opposed to buying property and have zero commitments. Hoping to do some real bouncing around when we step away from working but we’ll see.

 

[1dog]

Isn't that the truth!!

My in-laws live in Falmouth near the Mashpee line. The community they live in is on an peninsula right off of 28. It's just over 3 miles from their house to the closest Dunkin Donuts in Falmouth (about 1/2 of that distance is on the low traffic main road in their community). On a weekend morning in the Summer season it will often take over an hour round trip to make the morning coffee and breakfast sandwich run!!

I don't go to my in-laws in the Summer season very much anymore because of the traffic!

CC and flex time make all the difference. Inlaws in Centerville in 1:15 mins from home if done right regarding timing. Wasn[t an issue at all last year due to covid. Bety flex time keeps it scattered this year. How much of a reduction to 9-5 Mon-Fri work at office days ? Even 20% less makes a difference. Before 1PM and after 8 POM Friday nights good. Never 8-1 Saturdays June/July/Aug - week rental shift day. Ever. Sunday nights? Crap shoot. Warmest water outer Cape after July - plenty of sharks too!

 

[Domeskier]

Putting off the things we really want to do with our lives until the “golden years” is probably a lot of peoples first mistake. They aren’t really so “golden” as our bodies are naturally on a steady decline.

I often call the American dream the American nightmare. In a lot of ways it’s a sham.

I worked in a hospice center for a few years as a nursing assistant. I didn’t meet a single person on hospice that wished they had spent more of their life working or being concerned with impressing others. Most would tell me that I better do exactly what I wanted to because before I would know it I’d be in their positions.

I expect that I would be more upset if, because I always did what I wanted to do when I was younger, I burdened my old decrepit future self with the indignities of work and want.

 

[dblskifanatic]

My wife and I are of a similar opinion to you. Have a decade or less of working left I hope and we’ve invested as opposed to buying property and have zero commitments. Hoping to do some real bouncing around when we step away from working but we’ll see.

I pretty much let my career take me places. Military got me to Europe where I skied some cool places and participated on the 7th Corps Ski Team, went back to VT skied mostly Jay and Burke while in school., Went to southern California and explored lots of beaches and skied Southern CA skis areas and was a working tourist for 8 years. Moved to NH and lived in Concord NH which was a perfect location for a skiing family since it is well centered to get to everything VT, NH and ME. Then moved to CO and was a working tourist for 5.5 years and got some great skiing in as well as hiking, paddle boarding, kayaking, mountain biking and dirt biking. I will retire in five or so years and we plan to find more adventure. Our kids are in California, Utah, Colorado and Alaska so we have places to stay. Looking back, I am glad we never locked ourselves down, yet still have much more to try.

We thought we would like to be around Boston, but being here, we have changed our minds - can't win them all.

 

[raisingarizona]

I expect that I would be more upset if, because I always did what I wanted to do when I was younger, I burdened my old decrepit future self with the indignities of work and want.

It’s a bit of a balancing act but the old, decrepit future is only a very short moment of our lives and not a part that I’d care to keep me from living my life in fear of “what may happen”. God, talk about fear of want, regretting not doing the things I dreamed of when I had my health is a much greater fear for me than being old. Seriously, that’s terrifying! Hell, if it gets real bad I’ll just pull a trigger or do way too much heroin.

Fear is a hell of a drug and the American Nightmare syndrome can’t survive without our fear.

Each his own. There’s no wrong or right, just sharing my personal thoughts and what every person that had one foot in their grave told me during my health care career experiment.

And besides, if you really are stoked on your decisions and life path there’s probably no need to get defensive on an Internet forum with complete strangers. . Yes, I am trolling you office guys just a tiny bit but also hoping that can ignite a fire for some that are on the fence about getting out there more and living it up a little before it’s too late.

 

[Domeskier]

And besides, if you really are stoked on your decisions and life path there’s probably no need to get defensive on an Internet forum with complete strangers. .

The irony is thick with you. Apparently "my personal thoughts" irked you so much you couldn't rest until you came back and added this little dig (yes, I saw your post before the edit).

 

[1dog]

It’s a bit of a balancing act but the old, decrepit future is only a very short moment of our lives and not a part that I’d care to keep me from living my life in fear of “what may happen”. God, talk about fear of want, regretting not doing the things I dreamed of when I had my health is a much greater fear for me than being old. Seriously, that’s terrifying! Hell, if it gets real bad I’ll just pull a trigger or do way too much heroin.

Fear is a hell of a drug and the American Nightmare syndrome can’t survive without our fear.

Each his own. There’s no wrong or right, just sharing my personal thoughts and what every person that had one foot in their grave told me during my health care career experiment.

And besides, if you really are stoked on your decisions and life path there’s probably no need to get defensive on an Internet forum with complete strangers. . Yes, I am trolling you office guys just a tiny bit but also hoping that can ignite a fire for some that are on the fence about getting out there more and living it up a little before it’s too late.

Have the T-Shirt to go along with my thinking - 'live every day as if its sudden-death overtime.'

I'm almost 3" shorter than I was 20 years ago - dr said due to bumps - he a skier too - I say hair loss. I'll never do Stein's top to bottom big bumps as fast as 10 years ago without stopping, but I'll still do them.

I still have Center Chute and Dodges Drop on list - every time I've been there its been 'off limits' I don't have too much longer. . . . . Corbets? Gotta be full of snow.

As Dick Danger ( of Throbbing Member fame) says ' make your peace with the Lord ' at the top of every couloir. Dodges has an NFZ so. . . .

 

[raisingarizona]

The irony is thick with you. Apparently "my personal thoughts" irked you so much you couldn't rest until you came back and added this little dig (yes, I saw your post before the edit).

Like I said, I’m f-Ing with ya a little. Let’s not take any of this too seriously.

heck, who knows.....maybe I’ll regret everything as I lay in some real crappy hospice center for extremely poor people waiting for a cna to come in and change my diaper. If I get a bad stroke I probably won’t be able to shoot up heroin or hold a gun. I’d be lying if I said that that thought doesn’t scare the crap out of me!

 

[raisingarizona]

Have the T-Shirt to go along with my thinking - 'live every day as if its sudden-death overtime.'

I'm almost 3" shorter than I was 20 years ago - dr said due to bumps - he a skier too - I say hair loss. I'll never do Stein's top to bottom big bumps as fast as 10 years ago without stopping, but I'll still do them.

I still have Center Chute and Dodges Drop on list - every time I've been there its been 'off limits' I don't have too much longer. . . . . Corbets? Gotta be full of snow.

As Dick Danger ( of Throbbing Member fame) says ' make your peace with the Lord ' at the top of every couloir. Dodges has an NFZ so. . . .

Sudden death over time, I like that!

 

[snoseek]

Putting off the things we really want to do with our lives until the “golden years” is probably a lot of peoples first mistake. They aren’t really so “golden” as our bodies are naturally on a steady decline.

I often call the American dream the American nightmare. In a lot of ways it’s a sham.

I worked in a hospice center for a few years as a nursing assistant. I didn’t meet a single person on hospice that wished they had spent more of their life working or being concerned with impressing others. Most would tell me that I better do exactly what I wanted to because before I would know it I’d be in their positions.

This is the way.

I did 3 in utah, 3 in colorado, 6 or 7 in Tahoe and one last one back in Utah. I'm getting near 50 and have gone beyond what I had dreamed. I'm cool kicking back in northern new england, settling down and being close to family. I dont even have any pressing urge to get on a plane to ski at this point. I'm ok with working later in life to make up for it all I just assume keep moving till I cant. Fuck those were some good years. I hope for refills in my next life

 

[raisingarizona]

This is the way.

I did 3 in utah, 3 in colorado, 6 or 7 in Tahoe and one last one back in Utah. I'm getting near 50 and have gone beyond what I had dreamed. I'm cool kicking back in northern new england, settling down and being close to family. I dont even have any pressing urge to get on a plane to ski at this point. I'm ok with working later in life to make up for it all I just assume keep moving till I cant. Fuck those were some good years. I hope for refills in my next life

I’m at 45 and am feeling super content as well. Sure, there’s still a lot of things I want to do but none of it feels pressing or urgent in any way. I’m broke, have plenty of aches and pains but I’m in a good place overall.

my buddy Simon says that if you live what you’re doing for work why would you ever retire anyways? I really love my work right now which is extremely fortunate and I’m super grateful for that. I don’t think many people get to experience that.

 

[dblskifanatic]

I’m at 45 and am feeling super content as well. Sure, there’s still a lot of things I want to do but none of it feels pressing or urgent in any way. I’m broke, have plenty of aches and pains but I’m in a good place overall.

my buddy Simon says that if you live what you’re doing for work why would you ever retire anyways? I really love my work right now which is extremely fortunate and I’m super grateful for that. I don’t think many people get to experience that.

I get it! Work to live and not live to work! I know some of my friends that have been very career focused and had little play time. I have had very good jobs all the way and did not have to sacrifice fun - have been able to do a lot!

 

[cdskier]

For me, and this is my opinion only, NYC is too big, too dirty, too many people.

I live 8 miles outside of NYC and I agree with you. I go there as little as possible...

I have liked the Boston/Cambridge area when I've visited for work. But visiting a few times is quite different than living near there.

 

[jimk]

I worked for 40 years in a cubicle like Dilbert. I cherish the memory of it. Just kidding about the cherish part. We all do what we have to do to make it in life. I'm retired now and doing my best to be a geezer ski bum to make up for all those misspent years as an office worker. Time waits for no one.

 

[Domeskier]

I live 8 miles outside of NYC and I agree with you. I go there as little as possible...

I prefer the anonymity and privacy that living in NYC provides over the claustrophobic closeness of life in most suburbs. No one cares if you're weird and unsociable in cities.

 

[raisingarizona]

I prefer the anonymity and privacy that living in NYC provides over the claustrophobic closeness of life in most suburbs. No one cares if you're weird and unsociable in cities.

I’ve always thought it’s interesting how crowded and busy NYC is but yet, it’s lonely and cold at the same time. I definitely like to stay off the radar a lot of the time and I can be pretty weird and unsociable myself. Anxiety can be like that.

I guess I’m complicated though, I also love our little ski mountain and our community. The Bowl is like my Cheers where everybody knows everyone.

 

[raisingarizona]

I worked for 40 years in a cubicle like Dilbert. I cherish the memory of it. Just kidding about the cherish part. We all do what we have to do to make it in life. I'm retired now and doing my best to be a geezer ski bum to make up for all those misspent years as an office worker. Time waits for no one.

There’s no wrong way. I bet you are having a good time now.

 

[raisingarizona]

I worked for 40 years in a cubicle like Dilbert. I cherish the memory of it. Just kidding about the cherish part. We all do what we have to do to make it in life. I'm retired now and doing my best to be a geezer ski bum to make up for all those misspent years as an office worker. Time waits for no one.

I’ll open up a bit here for a minute. One aspect I struggle with is now, after living a more selfish existence I sometimes feel guilty for not being able to provide more for my daughter. I see how the other kids get to go on nice vacations or have the latest and greatest gear and i can feel crappy comparing myself to their parents. I didn’t plan on becoming a dad, it just happened.

I’m a good dad though and she’s a great kid. So I need to remind myself of that from time to time.

 

[2Planker]

I live 8 miles outside of NYC and I agree with you. I go there as little as possible...

I have liked the Boston/Cambridge area when I've visited for work. But visiting a few times is quite different than living near there.

Grew up there. Lived and worked there all my professional career.
Always gravitated North on weekends. Our family had a place in Bethel.
Eventually bought a place in Conway when I got married at 50+. Not our "forever home", but we are going to retire in the MWV.