Three Year Plan, Moving. Help with Pros & Cons Please.

[psraff]

As the Title States, I'm building a Three Year Plan. Since it's early I'm in research mode as to where I wish to relocate to, but I do know I love the pics that people post of the Southwest and much of it fits my style of living \ exploring.

So.... I would like to get input from the ones who live there and learn from you. I've spent many hours on Zillow.com and other sites looking at homes, climate, populations, even crime rates. Even went back to the FakeBook and after talking with an Admin, joined an Offroad Group in AZ.

Disclaimer... Please do no be offended by anything I think or say. I'm not a Dick or a Douche. I'm not trying to stick my nose in the air. All I know is what I see on the Internet (and we all know everything on the Internet is real, right?!?!?!). This is a huge decision, and I weigh everything no matter how small you may think it is. I grew up in Western Montana, so that's as far South (In the West) that I've ever been.

UTAH:
Originally I was thinking Utah (South West Corner) but the more I looked at the houses that were for sale, everything looked old. The houses that really grabbed my eye did so in the Duck Village area outside Cider City.

Granted, I didn't look in other areas of Utah (I'll explain more). Started looking at Climate. Winters were pretty relevant there. Also, I asked a Camp Manager here on the Slope who lived a few years around there (and his Brother still does) a few questions about what i was seeing with the houses, and the conversation steered away from that and to the Land Access.

He said (too him) it seemed it was getting too locked up to really get out and enjoy what I was seeing on Google Earth. So much, the last several years he quit hunting due to it. He said many of the roads I was seeing going into the mountains were gated up by one department or another.

Colorado:
Looking at houses in even Southern Colorado had a Butt Load of snow. Enough Said. I can drive there in the summer.

New Mexico:
It was WEIRD!!! Every single house I looked at shown me this beautiful area, nice and private, just what I was looking for. Then I would Google Earth the address and it was right next to a highway or in a sub division, or even next to a junkyard or something. Every single time. I'm not ignorant enough to think the whole state is properties of accumulated cars and equipment but the postings were extremely misleading. Every one of them.

So I centered on Arizona:
Northern AZ is out due to Snow. Which really sucks because I found a house on 14 acres with a 4 car garage! Yes, it had some kind of house on it also, but who cares about that. It had a 4 CAR GARAGE ON 14 ACRES!!

What I would like to find is an area where I'm around 30 min away from major shopping if possible. For example, there's a house in Morristown (NW of the Phoenix Area) that I like. Also there's one the Black Canyon City area (North of Phoenix).

On the other hand, there's several houses in medium sized town like Kingman and Fort Mohave that grabbed my eye.

I have to think about airports due to me working here in Alaska so it looks like Kingman \ Ft. Mohave I would have to drive to Las Vegas to fly out each time. I was hoping they would have a small airport to fly out of but they are private it appears. See, this is why I'm researching.

Are there areas in the other States that I should re-look at? Are there Cities that are close to a mass haven of historic roads with endless possibilities with warm weather year around?

And this is why I'm so hung up on the weather. Right now I work a 2&2. Meaning 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off. Our summers up here are about 3 months long (meaning camping weather). So I get half of that. I'm down to a month and a half. Up till now I had family (teenage daughter) and maintaining a home (mowing lawn, paying bills, typical man of the house duties), and really working on the 4Runner. So that month and a half just got cut down to about 2-3 weeks. I want a place with long summers so I can make up on time lost.

I'll be honest, the only thing that really scares me about AZ is the 12 or 13 things that will ruin your day if it bites you. Snakes, spiders, bugs..... Yes, a black bear and mountain lion is on that list also but lets be honest... I'll sit there, drink honey and play patty cake with a black bear long before I'll get within 10' of snake or a spider.

Also, I've just learned about the Permits you have to have for certain trails in AZ. How common is that? Will that rack up into hundreds of $$$ a year to go out to explore, or do you just get a hunting licence to avoid the whole process?

Do the other States on this list have Permits you have to purchase to run a trail? How many of trails are getting gated \ closed or too damaged to use them?

The guy I was talking to on FB referred me to another site for AZ trails and even a book that I plan on getting. The same authors have it for Utah (or at least Moab), NM and CO as well. Looked very promising.

I would really appreciate any and all input from everyone with worthwhile information that could help me make my decision in this matter. Cities worth looking at or not to look at. For instance there's a town in Montana that sits in a bowl between two mountain ranges... winds whip through there at 80 mph every year. That's a town I have no interest in living in, no matter what they say how many sunny days it has every year.

Thanks everyone!!

 

[baja1]

Rosarito-Ensenada! same weather as san diego....purrrrrfect! and chuck full of 3G's :hello:

 

[psraff]

Rosarito-Ensenada! same weather as san diego....purrrrrfect! and chuck full of 3G's :hello:

Nice! Even though I've got a passport, I'm sure Customs is going to wonder why I'm making a trip from Mexico to America every two weeks. By the time they're done with their cavity checks, I'm sure I would be walking differently:wow::wow:. LOL

Thanks, but I'll stay north of the border to live. LOL

 

[Mark_BC]

AZ is frickin hot. Don't worry aboot the spiders and snakes. Be wary of scorpions though. I'll post a pic later of a scorpion I found inside my shirt that was hanging on the palapa overnight in Baja Mexico. Luckily I decided to check before putting it on... turns out to be one of the few lethal scorpions to children and dogs, and would ruin an adult's day.

 

[psraff]

AZ is frickin hot. Don't worry aboot the spiders and snakes. Be wary of scorpions though. I'll post a pic later of a scorpion I found inside my shirt that was hanging on the palapa overnight in Baja Mexico. Luckily I decided to check before putting it on... turns out to be one of the few lethal scorpions to children and dogs, and would ruin an adult's day.

Let me guess... Was it what they call the Bark Scorpion? Turns Blue under a Black Light? Like who in the heck is going to walk around with a Black Light to check to see which scorpion is going to turn blue or not?!?!?!

I'm going to see how far I can make it disintegrate with the S&W Governor (.410 Revolver). LOL

 

[phattyduck]

Northern AZ is out due to Snow.

If no snow is a requirement, you are limited to desert and coast, pretty much.

I imagine coastal is out, as it will be expensive and pretty limited for 4WD adventuring.

I'd suggest opening up to the possibility of snow for ~3 months out of the year to keep the summers reasonable and get you close to or into forested areas.

- How big of a population center do you want to be close to?
- Have you considered Northern California and the Sierras? (far north CA, not San Fransisco!)

-Charlie

 

[psraff]

If no snow is a requirement, you are limited to desert and coast, pretty much.

I imagine coastal is out, as it will be expensive and pretty limited for 4WD adventuring.

I'd suggest opening up to the possibility of snow for ~3 months out of the year to keep the summers reasonable and get you close to or into forested areas.

- How big of a population center do you want to be close to?
- Have you considered Northern California and the Sierras? (far north CA, not San Fransisco!)

-Charlie

Populated areas large enough for me to order something and I don't get a msg saying "can't get shipped to your location". Or I can go to a hardware store and get what I need without empty shelves or going to three to find one common part.

Ideally I would like to be able to do everyday shopping in a small town setting (be in town or drive 10-15 min), but be able to go to a large (25K or larger) to do major shopping done once a week or so (drive 40 mins or so).
or
If the larger area is a good community then I'm ok with living on the outside of it.

Also, I have to think of airports to get back up to the Slope for work. I don't want to travel for 2 days each way to and from work burning up your time off. Either an airport in my town or a town close enough to have one to fly out of (which then how do I secure my vehicle for the time away in a parking garage?)

Leaning away from snow for several reasons.
1. If I'm away and there's a storm then I have to worry about my roof or other damage (loss of power, fallen trees and such).
2. Plowing the driveway \ Icy conditions (IF I ever ended up with a GF or a wife, and I'm not there that's something that could strand them). Even though I have a large snow blower now. What if something happens. I know, I could run "What If" Scenarios through my head my whole life....

Big one's here.
3. I'm 45 now. So by the time this happens I'm hitting close to 50. I've seen my mom get old in Western Montana plowing snow, hauling wood, and such. It's a hard life and she's paid for it. Big Time. Very painful to see.
4. My place has to look nice. Like lawn is weed free and mowed every week. I see it's harder to do that with this schedule. I don't want my neighbors to see my house as "that house". So many houses in AZ have rock landscaping. I guess you could try to mow it, but damn that would sure hurt your shins and you would look goofy doing it. LOL

With having two weeks off at a time, I think I could easily drive to those higher forested areas and enjoy them (which I totally plan to do). It would be easy to plan a week trip with that type of schedule. Most Out of State workers work a 3 and 3 so it's even better (Saves on plane tickets that way).

So to answer your last question, no, haven't thought about northern CA. I drove through there back in the Army days and love the country but I think for the reasons I listed above I better look to more a desert climate (unless I'm just totally off my rocker).

 

[Mark_BC]

Let me guess... Was it what they call the Bark Scorpion? Turns Blue under a Black Light? Like who in the heck is going to walk around with a Black Light to check to see which scorpion is going to turn blue or not?!?!?!

I'm going to see how far I can make it disintegrate with the S&W Governor (.410 Revolver). LOL

Yup. They all turn blue under black light. The blue one here was pretty big, but the big ones aren't so dangerous. The first one is the bark scorpion in my shirt.

 

[Mark_BC]

To be honest, I prefer the scorpions of Mexico to the grizzly bears and moose of Canada and Alaska.

 

[trailbikerider]

Arizona is awesome, but IMO stay away from Phoenix. Wayyy too many people. That's a big reason why I moved back home.

My parents are snowbirds in Wickenburg, which is about 10 miles up US-60 from Morristown. It's far enough away from Phoenix (~40 miles) where you don't get the traffic, but close enough that you can go down for dinner or do any shopping at the big box stores. It also generally stays about 5 degrees cooler there compared to Phoenix, and it actually gets cooler at night in the summer.

I'd also recommend Prescott. They get winter, but it's very very mild, and they are at 5000', so it's forested and is routinely in the 70s and 80s in the summer.

 

[psraff]

Yup. They all turn blue under black light. The blue one here was pretty big, but the big ones aren't so dangerous. The first one is the bark scorpion in my shirt.

Nasty. Very Nasty.

In Montana it was common knowledge to keep wood and debris from around the house or other structures. Keep it clean and things won't look for a home there. I hope that same holds true for down there.

 

[GiGi's 1996]

I can only speak for Arizona. I was born and raised in Flagstaff and have lived in Tempe (Suburb of Phoenix) for close to 30 years....(wow, I am a little older than you...haha)

Flagstaff is out for you. Cons: Expensive to live there now and it snows.
I am curious to know where this 14 acre four car garage house is.....?!

Funny, I had never heard of Morristown. I googled it and realized it is halfway to Wickenburg. That area and Black Canyon City are on the outskirts of the Valley (that's what we call the whole Phoenix area). Getting to an airport would take some doing from those locations.

Kingman........? Kingman is desert like but it can snow there. Not much and not often, but it does happen. Kingman is..........Kingman. A place where you drive through or past to get to Las Vegas. BTW, the road between Kingman and Vegas is brutally long, flat, straight and looooong.

I am biased but I recommend the "Valley" somewhere. You have Sky Harbor airport, you have Williams-Gateway airport in the East Valley, you have endless shopping, entertainment, a lot of housing choices, you're 2 hours from the Mogollon Rim (google it), you're 30-45 minutes from all sorts of off road trails, lakes, etc......

Then we have "the weather". Example: Right now it is perfect for the doors to be open but I keep them closed because the citrus trees are starting to bloom and the pollen makes my eyes itch. As the saying goes "you don't have to shovel sunshine". I does get hot. You have to spend a weekend here in the middle of summer before you even consider living here. Resorts are cheap in the summer because they are always trying to fill rooms. But it's a dry heat, as they say....haha.

Wait a minute....the traffic here seems to be getting worse exponentially. We're in the middle of Spring Training season for baseball so there are a lot of "snowbirds" here now. You better not move to the Valley......we full! haha

As for the "critters"...... we coexist. I have an exterminator and a cat. You left out roaches. A roach in your shower in the dark can ruin your morning. Yuck. Coming across a rattler or Gila Monster on a trail is the fun part, as long as they're a safe distance away. Spiders....aren't there spiders everywhere?

What ever you do, don't move to Tucson.......the air is toxic down there....

We Arizona State Sun Devils really dislike Tucson and the Wildcats of the U of A.....it's a rivalry joke.

Hopefully something I typed is helpful to you. Wish you the best of luck.

 

[psraff]

Arizona is awesome, but IMO stay away from Phoenix. Wayyy too many people. That's a big reason why I moved back home.

My parents are snowbirds in Wickenburg, which is about 10 miles up US-60 from Morristown. It's far enough away from Phoenix (~40 miles) where you don't get the traffic, but close enough that you can go down for dinner or do any shopping at the big box stores. It also generally stays about 5 degrees cooler there compared to Phoenix, and it actually gets cooler at night in the summer.

I'd also recommend Prescott. They get winter, but it's very very mild, and they are at 5000', so it's forested and is routinely in the 70s and 80s in the summer.

You're the second I heard about Wickenburg. Looking at Homes, I came across Morristown and I was drawn to it for the reasons you mentioned.

I like this place.

The inside is aged and would need to be updated but it has a garage \ shop and I love the walkway they have up the hill to watch the sunsets. I googled it and the "Neighborhood" is just so so, but it's the last house on the road which is cool.

I'll look harder around Wichenburg and Prescott and see what's there.
Thanks!!

 

[trailbikerider]

You're the second I heard about Wickenburg. Looking at Homes, I came across Morristown and I was drawn to it for the reasons you mentioned.

I like this place.

The inside is aged and would need to be updated but it has a garage \ shop and I love the walkway they have up the hill to watch the sunsets. I googled it and the "Neighborhood" is just so so, but it's the last house on the road which is cool.

I'll look harder around Wichenburg and Prescott and see what's there.
Thanks!!

That place looks nice, and you'd have the Hassayampa in your backyard that you could take up to Wickenburg or down to Surprise.

 

[psraff]

I can only speak for Arizona. I was born and raised in Flagstaff and have lived in Tempe (Suburb of Phoenix) for close to 30 years....(wow, I am a little older than you...haha)

Flagstaff is out for you. Cons: Expensive to live there now and it snows.
I am curious to know where this 14 acre four car garage house is.....?!

Funny, I had never heard of Morristown. I googled it and realized it is halfway to Wickenburg. That area and Black Canyon City are on the outskirts of the Valley (that's what we call the whole Phoenix area). Getting to an airport would take some doing from those locations.

Kingman........? Kingman is desert like but it can snow there. Not much and not often, but it does happen. Kingman is..........Kingman. A place where you drive through or past to get to Las Vegas. BTW, the road between Kingman and Vegas is brutally long, flat, straight and looooong.

I am biased but I recommend the "Valley" somewhere. You have Sky Harbor airport, you have Williams-Gateway airport in the East Valley, you have endless shopping, entertainment, a lot of housing choices, you're 2 hours from the Mogollon Rim (google it), you're 30-45 minutes from all sorts of off road trails, lakes, etc......

Then we have "the weather". Example: Right now it is perfect for the doors to be open but I keep them closed because the citrus trees are starting to bloom and the pollen makes my eyes itch. As the saying goes "you don't have to shovel sunshine". I does get hot. You have to spend a weekend here in the middle of summer before you even consider living here. Resorts are cheap in the summer because they are always trying to fill rooms. But it's a dry heat, as they say....haha.

Wait a minute....the traffic here seems to be getting worse exponentially. We're in the middle of Spring Training season for baseball so there are a lot of "snowbirds" here now. You better not move to the Valley......we full! haha

As for the "critters"...... we coexist. I have an exterminator and a cat. You left out roaches. A roach in your shower in the dark can ruin your morning. Yuck. Coming across a rattler or Gila Monster on a trail is the fun part, as long as they're a safe distance away. Spiders....aren't there spiders everywhere?

What ever you do, don't move to Tucson.......the air is toxic down there....

We Arizona State Sun Devils really dislike Tucson and the Wildcats of the U of A.....it's a rivalry joke.

Hopefully something I typed is helpful to you. Wish you the best of luck.

Very helpful, thanks. First I think the 14 acres is off the market, it's not coming up in my saved list anymore but here's my Google Link to it.

https://goo.gl/maps/ieNqb8cDMET2

You're right, Flagstaff is $$$ I spent about 5 minutes and moved on. LOL

There are a lot of trails around there. Kingman, not as many. I was given this site last night:
Home - AZOFFROAD.NET - Your source for offroading in AZ
Some good info in there.

What do you think about Aquila? Look what I just found!!!!
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/48404-N-Black-Eagle-Rd-Aguila-AZ-85320/8316803_zpid/?fullpage=true

As for spiders... Let's see, we don't have Black Widows, Brown Recluse, Tarantulas, Scorpions (yes, I know they aren't spiders but still), probably Hobo Spiders, Centipedes (again, not spiders), and you mentioned roaches. Oh yeah, I bet you have Wolf Spiders also. Yeah. We have none of that. Most don't survive the winters so we don't have to worry about them up here.

 

[trailbikerider]

Very helpful, thanks. First I think the 14 acres is off the market, it's not coming up in my saved list anymore but here's my Google Link to it.

https://goo.gl/maps/ieNqb8cDMET2

You're right, Flagstaff is $$$ I spent about 5 minutes and moved on. LOL

There are a lot of trails around there. Kingman, not as many. I was given this site last night:
Home - AZOFFROAD.NET - Your source for offroading in AZ
Some good info in there.

What do you think about Aquila? Look what I just found!!!!
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/48404-N-Black-Eagle-Rd-Aguila-AZ-85320/8316803_zpid/?fullpage=true

As for spiders... Let's see, we don't have Black Widows, Brown Recluse, Tarantulas, Scorpions (yes, I know they aren't spiders but still), probably Hobo Spiders, Centipedes (again, not spiders), and you mentioned roaches. Oh yeah, I bet you have Wolf Spiders also. Yeah. We have none of that. Most don't survive the winters so we don't have to worry about them up here.

Aguila is a waaaaaays out. I think it's 30 miles west of Wickenburg, which is the closest town with a grocery store. It's also very poor out there.

 

[TrexRunnerGirl]

Sorry, I followed the 3rd Gen link and didn't see all the other good info you had here.

I like someone who researches the heck out of stuff then finally just wings it. That would be in my wheelhouse.

As for the Southwest, you really should visit where you think you want to plant yourself. I think it is great that you got excited about the 4 garages/14 acres and not so much the house. My dream is 30 acres/barn with a lift and 20 stall garage...yet I digress there.
I would suggest Flagstaff area. I did live around there and the winters really aren't that big of a deal (at least the 2 years I was there). I've also lived on the Navajo Reservation - while remote, it is great for getting out and exploring.
Phoenix and it's suburbs are pretty nice also. Depends on how far you really want to be from shopping. sometimes the drive times are deceiving. Living on the rez, Flag was about an hour (going about 85 all the way) for like 90 miles. Current residence outside Chicago, an hour to drive 10 miles.

I am currently driving to New Mexico to Las Cruces for the Bataan Death March (hoping I won't die). I like Albequerque and Santa Fe..not so much Taos. This will be my first time that far south in NM.

Why not southern Wyoming? I did a tour with the kids around Yellowstone and like the Jackson Hole area. Very pricey and all but maybe there is something close not so pricey?

I"m sure you will get better advice from people who live in the SW. I have always liked the SW desert and yes, the critters are to keep you on your toes at all times. My big scare was the black widows. Found 3 in one week on the patio furniture as I lifted up a cushion or towel. They promptly became dead spiders. And those scorpion spiders - those white/yellow things that run across floors. Not enough cuss words in the world to make them even close to how much I smashed them. Just keep a shotgun or pistol handy for the snakes. Or a shovel. a nice E-tool will do the job and easy to keep in the truck.

Have you pondered Texas? Big state, nice terrain, easier on the cash flow.

Now I will follow this thread to see where you end up. Once I get my camper/Airstream/Shasta, I'm rolling south/SW and out of this snow.

 

[psraff]

Aguila is a waaaaaays out. I think it's 30 miles west of Wickenburg, which is the closest town with a grocery store. It's also very poor out there.

Dang. That's pushing it. Even with all that Shop \ Garage space it offered I don't want to turn into a total recluse. I'm anti-social enough as it is. :hunter::hello: LOL

 

[HOJeepster]

Flagstaff, AZ. Beautiful weather, center of a lot of great areas.

Boise, ID. Idaho is great.

Colorado - full, don't move here. If you did, Grand Junction might be an option, close to Moab.

 

[psraff]

As for the Southwest, you really should visit where you think you want to plant yourself. I think it is great that you got excited about the 4 garages/14 acres and not so much the house. My dream is 30 acres/barn with a lift and 20 stall garage...yet I digress there.
I would suggest Flagstaff area. I did live around there and the winters really aren't that big of a deal (at least the 2 years I was there). I've also lived on the Navajo Reservation - while remote, it is great for getting out and exploring.
Phoenix and it's suburbs are pretty nice also. Depends on how far you really want to be from shopping. sometimes the drive times are deceiving. Living on the rez, Flag was about an hour (going about 85 all the way) for like 90 miles. Current residence outside Chicago, an hour to drive 10 miles.

I am currently driving to New Mexico to Las Cruces for the Bataan Death March (hoping I won't die). I like Albequerque and Santa Fe..not so much Taos. This will be my first time that far south in NM.

Why not southern Wyoming? I did a tour with the kids around Yellowstone and like the Jackson Hole area. Very pricey and all but maybe there is something close not so pricey?

I"m sure you will get better advice from people who live in the SW. I have always liked the SW desert and yes, the critters are to keep you on your toes at all times. My big scare was the black widows. Found 3 in one week on the patio furniture as I lifted up a cushion or towel. They promptly became dead spiders. And those scorpion spiders - those white/yellow things that run across floors. Not enough cuss words in the world to make them even close to how much I smashed them. Just keep a shotgun or pistol handy for the snakes. Or a shovel. a nice E-tool will do the job and easy to keep in the truck.

Have you pondered Texas? Big state, nice terrain, easier on the cash flow.

Now I will follow this thread to see where you end up. Once I get my camper/Airstream/Shasta, I'm rolling south/SW and out of this snow.

I plan on trying to get out and taking some short trips outside and visiting these places come spring time to review them in person. Maybe I can work it into a business trip and have them pay for part of it even. Fingers Crossed!

I've even thought of buying just property and putting a three car garage on it with an apartment on top. That's all I need. Then if i even want \ need a house I can build that later. I'll need one bay for the 4Runner, one for a car, and one to actually work projects in.

Never thought of WY really due to weather and such. The country is breathtaking and growing up in Montana, would be close to that. Maybe I'll poke around a see what's around. Generally if it's not snow, then it's wind for WY. Or both!

As for the spiders and such getting in and around the house, that was a question I was going to ask later on once I narrow thing down. Maybe some Plutonium 242 sprinkled around the floorboards or something....

Texas? Texas?!?!? That little state located somewhere on the bottom of the country. Didn't know anyone even lived there. :boxing::boxing: